THE EXCHANGE RATE AND ELECTION 2007
Lragir.am
19 May 06
Fluctuations on the currency exchange market of Armenia are not
related with any external factor. Economist Edward Aghajanov thus
assessed the recent revaluation of the Armenian dram on May 19.
According to him, it is pointless to explain the tendencies on the
Armenian currency market using an economic logic.
“If some of our oligarchs have problems with say the budget, they need
drams, they cause the exchange rate of the dram go down, collect the
drams and solve their problems. And do not forget that next year is an
election year, much money is needed. You know that the oligarchs are
likely to run for the parliament very actively. And most probably our
oligarch guys have already started saving money to spend it lavishly
in 2007,” says Edward Aghajanov. He says some people estimate that
at least half a million dollars is going to be spent for each seat
in parliament.
“See how many of our oligarchs are already opening offices, it
takes money, doesn’t it?” says the economist. According to him,
this illogical situation benefits from the policy of the Central
Bank on revaluation of the dram. Edward Aghajanov believes that this
policy is wrong and leads to a perilous situation. Edward Aghajanov
says the revaluation of the Armenian dram against the dollar caused
the adverse balance of trade of Armenia to go up by 28 percent in
2005. The economist forecasts that it will soar by another 22 percent
in 2006 and will go far beyond 1 billion dollars. The adverse balance
of trade in Armenia is equal to 17 percent of the GDP, whereas when
the adverse balance of trade in the United States topped 5 percent
of the GDP, the economists of this country set the alarm go.
“And what did the Americans do? They artificially caused the exchange
rate to go down. Thanks to this low exchange rate in November
2005 exports in the U.S. exceeded a monthly index of 100 billion
dollars.” Edward Aghajanov is surprised why the Central Bank and the
government are not concerned about the tremendously high percentage
of the adverse balance of trade and the tendency to grow.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

NA VICE SPEAKER: FOR TURKEY, BLACKMAIL IS A KEY POLICY
Yerkir
19.05.2006 16:19
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Bureau
member and National Assembly Vice Speaker Vahan Hovhannisian said on
Friday that the derailing of the Armenian Genocide bill in the French
Parliament is the continuation of Turkey’s blackmailing policies.
“Blackmailing has been the main method in Turkey’s politics for the
past 250 years,” Hovhannisian said. “Therefore, it didn’t come as a
surprise to us.”
He added that the Turkish reaction to our foreign policies is a sign
that our policies are working.
“But I believe that France cannot delay this issue forever,”
Hovhannisian went on saying. “I think, France, as a progressive
European nation, will return to this issue, and we will succeed
this time.”

TEHRAN FINANCES CONSTRUCTION OF IRAN-ARMENIA HIGH-VOLTAGE LINE
Yerkir
19.05.2006 12:23
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Iranian Import Development Bank is going to finance
construction of a third Iran-Armenia high-voltage line. The Bank gives
Armenian side lax credit at the rate of 85% of project cost for 5
years, a REGNUM correspondent was informed at Armenian Energy Ministry.
The third HVL is a twin-lead one; its estimated capacity totals
400 kWt, its length – 312 km. It is worth mentioning that Armenian
governmental delegation, headed by Armenian Energy Minister Armen
Movsisyan, is now on a work visit in Iran.

CSTO AND SCO PREPARE JOINT MANEUVERS
Yerkir
19.05.2006 11:35
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – Possible joint maneuvers with participation of
armed forces of Collective Security Treaty Organization and Shanghai
Cooperation Organization are discussed, Chief of Russian Joint Stuff,
First Deputy Defense Minister of Russia, Chief of CSTO Joint Staff,
five-star General Yuri Baluevsky is quoted as saying by a REGNUM
corresponding.
At the same time, he did not name certain date of the maneuvers,
informing that the question is still under discussion. Mentioning
aim of the maneuvers, the general stated that threat of terrorism is
common problem of all member-countries of these organizations. It
should be reminded that CSTO unites Armenia, Byelorussia, Russia,
Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and SCO – Russia, Chine,
Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

AMERICAN STYLE THE MISTERY OF OPTIMISM
Tigran Avetisian
Aravot.am
18 May 06
The US State Secretary representative Mathew Brayza speaking on
the possibilities of the NK conflict settlement in his speech in
the Congress on 16 of May declared that the parties were close to
the agreement than it was in the past. “The US positively marks the
possibilities of reaching agreement between Armenia and Russia”,
the American diplomat stressed mentioning time limits of that
optimism. That is “next some weeks”, during of which by the State
Department official’s words “the governments of both countries must
be brave and overcome discrepancies”.
Let’s record a thing; a lot of declarations of different American
officials make us change the classic meanings of some words and
expressions. The most descriptive is perhaps ”optimism”. That quality
resides at Americans and we should argue that they don’t loose their
optimism even in the most difficult situations of the life and they
always smile. It is righter; according to a lot of psychologists
optimistic mood helps to bear the difficulties. Anyway we can’t ignore
that from time to time publicly expressing ”optimism” means a/ that
word has changed its meaning and is used by other meaning, b/ there
are serious reasons for optimism about which we aren’t informed enough.
The possibility of the first version isn’t so big. So we have to
examine the second version. But in that case we face to another
American quality, pragmatism. A thing, which isn’t combined with
optimism. Or maybe Brayza combines it.
–Boundary_(ID_BRcBtp0E9Ix0hY03Cmnn9g)–

EVOLUTION WAY DOESN’T EXIST
Margaret Yesayan
Aravot.am
18 May 06
The “Republic” party leader Aram Sargsian makes such a conclusion
from the last events.
How do you mark what happened to the OEP. It seems it is a bad
tradition that such stories happen to almost all political powers of
Armenia from time to time.
These authorities realized privatization in the economic field of
Armenia and the result of that privatization was the formation
of monopolistic economies. The same they act with the political
field. They have finished privatization of the economy and have begun
the privatization of the political field.
And they do their best to privatize the political field completely. And
this is a way, which leads to destruction. We live in the 21st century
but unfortunately their logic belongs to the 19th century.
Do you consider normal that the political power inside the authority
constantly criticizes the authority and then becomes the opposition.
Every political power has been formed round its project, goals and
ideology.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of timeservers in the authority. Be
sure if such a situation starts against “Republican” less people will
remain in that party than they remained in the OEP. If such process
starts against Robert Kocharian or Serge Sargsian nobody will stay
with them. Unfortunately it is so.
Those persons who left the OEP hadn’t entered into that party for
the ideology of that party but for having support /roof/, avoiding
of some kind of taxes, acquiring some sort of property. This must be
a problem for those persons who will admit those persons making them
as their advisors or something else.
Can Robert Kocharian use this situation in favor of him, declaring
to international structures that he can’t concretize his answers on
Karabakh conflict because of the political situation in the country?
I share that standpoint that this situation was formed for solving
just such problems. Because there is only a cause; internal political
situation. And this can lead to double dangers. I see Robert
Kocharian’s refusal of not taking part in the NATO summit in this
context. Today Robert Kocharian is in the political backstage and
the outside world has some demands from him. He is in this situation
because of himself, and frankly speaking, I pity him.
Some people think that Serge Sargsian takes advantages for the
coming presidential elections from the events happened to Arthur
Baghdasarian. There were two possible presidential candidates in the
authority and one of them must leave.
I don’t think that Serge Sargsian took advantages of it because it
doesn’t bring public resource, public vote to him. Serge Sargsian
has administrative and financial resources. But I’m sure that force
majeure conditions will be in Armenia and presidential elections will
be held before parliamentary elections.
Doesn’t Arthur Baghdasarian disturb the oppositionists becoming
the opposition?
It isn’t so. There is a plenty of places in the opposition and
each party from the opposition proves that nothing is right in
the authority and there is a crisis in that field. Opposition or
authority is decided during the elections and the opposition has
won in all our elections and it will. Why don’t I go to the NA,
because I consider it non legitimate. And now if people think that
the elections had been rigged and the coming elections must be fair,
I consider it positive. ‘Republic” party declared that the only way
of a problem settlement is revolution. Arthur Baghdasarian tried to
prove that there was an evolution way for the problem settlement. And
here is the result. I think he made sure that the evolution way didn’t
exist and the only way was revolution.
–Boundary_(ID_JNvxlRXLO5Wa61ADDQrkdA )–

EAF CHAIRWOMAN SAYS ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BILL WILL PASS SOONER OR LATER
Yerkir
19.05.2006 17:41
YEREVAN (YERKIR) – “We are grateful to the deputies who defended
the honor of France as a country dedicated to high ideals,” European
Armenian Federation Chairperson Hilda Choboian said when commenting
on the bill criminalizing the Armenian genocide denial at the French
National Assembly.
She, meanwhile, condemned the French government, which “prevented
the free expression of will by the National Assembly members.”
She also expressed her confidence that sooner or later the bill will
be adopted by the French parliament.

RA MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMY AT RA PRESIDNET’S OFFICE
ArmRadio.am
19.05.2006 17:55
Issues related to 2007-2009 medium-term expenditure programs, the
Millennium Challenge Corporation and international financial structures
were discussed today during the working meeting of President Robert
Kocharyan and RA Minister of Finance and Economy Vardan Khachatryan.
The Minister informed that the discussions of medium-term expenditure
programs have come to an end. These expressed the Minister’s
instructions on raising the minimum salary and increasing the funds
directed at medical services and social problems of servicemen.
Vardan Khachatryan informed that this year for the first time the
programs presented by the International Monetary Fund were approved
not by the Board of Directors, but via query, which means these are
being accomplished without problems.

RA HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER’S VISIT TO VANADZOR
ArmRadio.am
19.05.2006 18:04
On May 19, 2006, Mr. Armen Harutyunyan, the RA Human Rights Defender,
visited Vanadzor for the first time during his term in the office,
which was also his first visit to the marz.
He was the guest in the Armenian Constitutional Right-Protective Center
(ACRPC) and had a meeting with the organization’s chairman and heads
of departmen ts. The CARPC Chairman presented the organization’s
activities;
The Defender met with more than a dozen of representatives of Vanadzor
NGOs in the ACRPC HR Library.
Within the framework of the visit Mr. Harutyunyan met also with
Mr. Henrik Kochinyan, the Governor of Lori marz, and Mr. Samvel
Darbinyan, the Mayor of Vanadzor City.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

INDEPENDENCE OF KARABAKH IS NOT IN RUSSIA’S INTERESTS
Lragir.am
19 May 06
Vladimir Putin told Robert Kocharyan to reject the invitation of the
President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Leluche, who has already
met with the Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliev. Russian political
scientist Andranik Mihranyan is said to have made such a statement
on May 18 in Yerevan. On May 19 he was invited to the Hayeli Club,
and the news reporters tried to find out from him if this information
was true. He said he had not asked Putin or Kocharyan and he does not
know what they talked about, or whether they talked or not. Andranik
Mihranyan said it was Robert Kocharyan’s decision to decline the
invitation and there has been no pressure on behalf of Moscow.
“At least I do not know about it. You know that the heads of state
decide themselves the advantages or disadvantages of taking one step
or another. I think in the current reality it was much more compliant
with the interests of Armenia, therefore Kocharyan did not go to that
summit,” says Andranik Mihranyan.
The meeting in Paris would probably be part of the process of
settlement of the Karabakh conflict if it would take place at all. It
is difficult to tell what its influence and result would be. Andranik
Mihranyan says he is optimistic about the settlement of regional
issues. Mihranyan points to the model of Kosovo to underlie the
settlement of these problems. According to him, Putin and Lavrov have
already announced to the West that the independence of Kosovo should
be assumed as a precedent and be applied to Transdnyestr, Abkhazia
and Osetia. Andranik Mihranyan says it is the duty of the Armenian
diplomacy to extend the list and include Nagorno Karabakh. “In order
for Russia to recognize, the Armenian diplomacy should explain that
this is in the interests of Russia,” says Mihranyan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress