Agence France Presse — English
July 2, 2005 Saturday 1:54 AM GMT

Second mobile operator launched in Armenia

YEREVAN

Armenia’s second mobile communications operator began working in the
south Caucasian state Friday, under the Vivacell trademark.

Vivacell is owned by a Lebanon-based holding, whose major
shareholder, Pierre Fatouche, also owns Karabakh-Telecom, a mobile
operator in Azerbaijan’s breakaway enclave of Nagorno Karabakh — a
largely Armenian-populated republic which won independence in
1993-1994.

According to the company’s director Ralf Erekyan, Vivacell — which
invested over 75 million dollars to set up a network capable of
servicing 300,000 clients — would first cover Yerevan and certain
other regions and complete its coverage over the entire country by
the end of the year.

Armenia held a tender for the second mobile operator in November,
after Yerevan stripped the mobile monopoly from ArmeniTel, 90 percent
owned by Greece’s OTE.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

IRNA, Iran
July 2, 2005 Saturday 11:36 AM EST

Over 123,000 tons of goods exported from Gilan

Bandar Anzali,Gilanprov, July 2, IRNA Iran-Export-Gilan Over 123,
,000 tons of goods worth 46.6 million dollars were exported from this
northern province during the first three months of the current
Iranian calendar year (started March 21, 2005), head of the
provincial Customs Office announced Saturday.

Ardeshir Mohammadi added that the exported commodities registered
rises of 18 percent and 14 percent in terms of weight and value,
respectively.

Construction materials and carpets as well as agricultural,
industrial, mineral and chemical products were among major items
exported from the province, he said.

The goods were exported via borders of Bandar Anzali and Bandar
Astara to Central Asian countries (Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan,
Kazakhstan, and Armenia), Russia, Turkey, Romania and United Arab
Emirates (UAE), Mohammadi added.

He noted that over 901,000 tons of goods, worth 460 million dollars,
were imported to the province, adding that the imported goods
indicated increases of 22 percent and 88 percent in terms of weight
and value, respectively.

Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic
July 1 2005

OSCE Parliamentarians Meet In Washington

1 July 2005 (RFE/RL) — Parliamentarians from the 55-member countries
of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, or OSCE,
start five days of talks in Washington today.

Chairman Dimitrij Rupel, who is also Slovenia’s foreign minister, is
scheduled to address the 14th annual opening session, expected to be
attended by some 300 representatives from North America, the
Caucasus, and Central Asia.

Discussions are expected to focus on piracy, human and arms
trafficking, and combating terrorism. The situations in
Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia, and Moldova are also on the agenda.

At today’s session, Ukraine’s Television Channel Five is due to be
awarded the 10th OSCE Prize for Journalism and Democracy.

The OSCE, based in Vienna, was founded in 1995. Its predecessor, the
Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, was created in 1973
to provide a forum for Cold War opponents to communicate.

A1plus

| 18:34:09 | 30-06-2005 | Politics |

NKR PRIME-MINISTER CALLED PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS A ‘NATION-WIDE VICTORY’

On June 28, a regular session of the NKR Government took place, at which
resolutions on over 20 issues were adopted. At the beginning of the session
NKR Prime-Minister Anoushavan Daniyelian focused on the results of the
Parliamentary elections in the NKR, calling them `a nation-wide victory’.

`Our hopes have been realized. I think I’ll be right to say that we managed
to conduct fair and democratic elections. The fact is testified to by
international observers as well’, head of the Government said.

The Government members adopted draft laws `On Insolvency’, `On Legal
Profession’, `On Order of State Registration of Departmental Normative
Acts’, etc.

A resolution concerning the order of licensing the activity of guides was
adopted. In this connection the Premier stressed the great importance of the
development of tourism, which, according to him, must become one of the most
principal sources of the NKR incomes in 7 years.

The Government adopted a decree on monthly payments of 25 thousand drams to
people granted in corresponding spheres the title of `People’s’. By another
resolution of the Government, cash benefit of 16 thousand drams will be
allotted monthly to children without parental care.

A resolution on creation of a commission on the celebration of the 14th
anniversary of the proclamation of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was also
adopted at the session. The Commission will be headed by Vice-Premier Ararat
Daniyelian.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Kazinform, Kazakhstan
July 1 2005

Washington to welcome jubilee session of OSCE PA

ASTANA. July 1. KAZINFORM. 14 session of the OSCE Parliamentary
Assembly has started its work in Washington. Parliamentary delegation
of Kazakhstan is led by chair of the Senate committee for
international affairs, defense and security Zhabaikhan Abdildin.

The current session is considered to be the jubilee one for Helsinki
act on cooperation and security in Europe has been signed 30 years
ago.

The agenda comprises consideration of OSCE actual issues, including
gender equality, regulation of situation in Nagorny Karabakh,
Abkhazia, and human traffic.

One of the key points is an elevation of efficiency of the
organization in future on the ground of recommendations of the OSCE
Council of honorable persons where enters the chair of the Kazakhstan
Senate committee for social and cultural development Kuanysh
Sultanov.

More than 300 parliamentarians of 55 OSCE member states, European
countries, US and Canada are taking part in it.

Moldova Azi
July 2 2005

Problem of Recognition of Self-proclaimed States Has to Be Solved –
Russian Presidential Administration CEO Says

Mr. Modest Kolerov, Chief of the Department for Inter-Regional and
Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries of the Russian Presidential
Administration, took part in an international forum “Europe: Results
of Changes” being held in Moscow, and stated, in particular, that the
problem of recognition of the sovereignty of unrecognized states
[such as Transnistria, South Ossetia, Abkhazia, Nagorny Karabakh]
needs to be solved.
“This is one of the most important and principal problems today, and
we all cannot avoid solving it”, he said, adding, “Today, we cannot
help recognizing the very reality of the existence of people living
in those unrecognized states with all their problems, like we cannot
help recognizing those very self-proclaimed republics.

Mr. Kolerov reminded there existed the so-called “international
corridors of possibilities for resolving the problem of unrecognized
republics. These include: international legitimization of elections
to power organs, e.g. like the recent parliamentary elections in
Nagorny Karabakh that were recognized by the OSCE; realization of the
self-styled republic’s rights in the fields of education, culture,
sciences; and other”, said the Kremlin high-ranked representative. In
his words, such unrecognized states are already participants in
international economic relations, except, perhaps, Nagorny Karabakh.

“At acting so, NATO has to be excluded from settling any conflicts
related to the existence of unrecognized states in the FSU area. Any
involvement of NATO’s in settling such problems will only lead to
further freezing of the conflicts”, said Modest Kolerov.

The Russian Presidential Administration representative criticized
former Soviet republics, having stated they lack sovereignty,
democracy, and leaders, “but their biggest and painful-most shortage
is the deficit of legitimacy”, as he put it.

Two weeks ago, Kolerov visited Chisinau and Tiraspol, and made a
number of loud statements that were perceived by the Moldovan
leadership as an indirect recognition of the ‘Transnistrian Moldovan
Republic’.

The ongoing Moscow forum is being attended by several politicians
from Moldova who represent the parties of the so-called pro-Russia
orientation – the leader of the Ravnopraviye [Equal Rights]
Socio-Political Movement Valery Klimenko, Valentin Krylov of the
Party of Socialists, Moldova Noastra Alliance Chairman MP Serafim
Urechean.

Speaking at the forum, Urechean qualified as “lame” the
Ukraine-proposed Plan of settling the Transnistria problem. He said
the Yushenko Plan “is not viable. It has no logical end”.

ARKA News Agency
July 1 2005

1.4% FALL IN CONSUMER PRICES CAUSES 0.1% AMD REVALUATION

YEREVAN, July 1. /ARKA/. A 1.4% fall in consumer prices in June as
against May 2005 caused a 0.1% revaluation in the nominal AMD/USD
nominal exchange rate. The RA National Statistical Service reports
that 7.7% AMD/USD exchange rate revaluation was recorded in June 2005
as against December 2004, with inflation being 1.4%. A similar trend
was recorded during the corresponding period of last year – a 4.5%
rise in consumer prices was accompanied by 3.8% AMD revaluation. In
June 2005, the average AMD/USD exchange rate was 448.80AMD/$1,
whereas in June 2004 it was 543.90 AMD/$1. Thus, 17.5% AMD
revaluation was recorded during the period under review. P.T. -0–

A1plus

| 18:18:57 | 01-07-2005 | Politics |

THE `NEW TIMES’ TO APPLY TO THE US GOVERNMENT

Yesterday the new program `Haylur’ announced that the political secretary of
the party `New Times’ Edward Grigoryan has been involved in drug trafficking
in USA and passed several years in prison.

Today the Party spread a message in which it is said, `We knew that an
attemp would be made to discriminate the political secretary of the party
spreading false information about him’.

The Party announces that they will apply to the US Government to get full
information about the `issue’ about Edward Grigoryan, after which they will
make an official announcement and demand the denial of the misinformation.

Before that the New Times Party informs that `the attempts to avoid change
of authorities with suchlike steps are simply ridiculous. The authorities
only enhance the decisiveness of the NTP activists to struggle against
present system’.

A1plus

| 14:54:39 | 01-07-2005 | Official |

ARMAVIA APOLOGIZES

For the last few days because of technical reasons some flights realized by
the company «Armavia» are realized with delay which causes the righteous
complaints of the passengers.

The company «Armavia» apologizes for the delays and asks to approach the
temporary problems with understanding. In the closes future all the
technical problems will be solved and «Armavia» will represent itself newly
in the market.

A1plus

| 14:17:46 | 01-07-2005 | Sports |

POSSIBILITY OF A MEDAL

In the Chess European Championship the 12th round took place. Karen Asryan
played a draw with Vasili Ivanchuk, the player with the highest reputation
of the tournament. And Levon Aronyan beat Alexey Federov.

Now Asryan and Aronyan have 8.5 points each and are in the 3dr place with 3
other players. In the last 13th round they will play with each other. Both
of them are real pretenders of medals, but if one of them wins, he will
secure his place among the first three.