ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Jan 12 2005

`The Supreme Council’ deputy club of RA NA to hold jubilee
celebrations from March to September 2005 devoted to the 15th
anniversary of RA NA

NKR President signs decree on implementation of changes in the
structure of the Government

In 2004, emphasis put on the development of economic and transport
constituents in the relations between Armenia and Russia

NKR President signed the law providing forced execution of legal acts

No shifts registered in Armenia-Turkey relations in 2004-Vardan
Oskanian

President of Armenia Robert Kocharian sends a congratulatory message
to Mahmoud Abbas, newly elected President of the Palestinian
Authority

Armenian President holds working meeting with Armenian Labor and
Social Affairs Minister

Armenian Government undergo staff changes

*********************************************************************

`THE SUPREME COUNCIL’ DEPUTY CLUB OF RA NA TO HOLD JUBILEE
CELEBRATIONS FROM MARCH TO SEPTEMBER 2005 DEVOTED TO THE 15TH
ANNIVERSARY OF RA NA

YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. `The Supreme Council’ deputy club of RA
NA will hold jubilee celebrations from March to September 2005
devoted to the 15th anniversary of RA NA. As ARKA was told in the
club, `the last 15 years were the period of hardship, however, the
supreme legislative body of the country still has its special role in
the political life of Armenia’.
The first session of RA NA took place on July 20, 1990. A.H. -0–

*********************************************************************

NKR PRESIDENT SIGNS DECREE ON IMPLEMENTATION OF CHANGES IN THE
STRUCTURE OF THE GOVERNMENT

STEPANAKERT, January 12. /ARKA/. NKR President Arkady Gukasian signed
decree on implementation of changes in the structure of the
Government, NKR President’s press office told ARKA. According to the
decree, the Ministry of Urban Development and Development of
Production Infrastructures has been reorganized to the Ministry of
Territorial Management and Infrastructure Development and the
Ministry of Urban Development. With the other decree Boris Alaverdian
released from position of the Minister of Urban Development and
Development of Production Infrastructures was appointed on the
position of NKR Minister of Urban Development and Armo Tsaturian
appointed on the position of NKR Minister of Territorial Management
and Infrastructure Development.
Gukasian also signed a decree according to which Garik Grigorian was
appointed NKR President’s assistant. L.D. –0–

*********************************************************************

IN 2004, EMPHASIS PUT ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ECONOMIC AND TRANSPORT
CONSTITUENTS IN THE RELATIONS BETWEEN ARMENIA AND RUSSIA

YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. In 2004, the emphasis was put on the
development of economic and transport constituents in the relations
between Armenia and Russia, as stated RA Minister of Foreign Affairs
Vartan Oskanian during the press-conference summing up the results of
2004. According to him, many economic problems were solved in 2004.
In particular, an agreement was achieved on participation of Armenia
in construction of the North-South international transport corridor,
which is of strategic importance to Armenia from the standpoint of
having an alternative way for transport communication with the world
through the territory of Iran. Besides, Oskanian noted that the ferry
for cargo transportation between Poti and Caucasus will be of high
importance for the trade turnover between the countries. Due to the
ferry communication, the expenses on transportation of Armenia-Russia
cargo will reduce. Among the actual issues of the agenda on economic
cooperation between Armenia and Russia Oskanian noted the necessity
of restoring full work of the enterprises given to Russian by Armenia
to redeem the state debt of RA to RF, increasing the volume of cargo
transportation between the countries, high participation of the
Russian capital in the Armenian economy, and full use of the
energetic potential of Armenia.
The Minister noted that in 2004 the relations with Russia developed
in military-political, trade-economic and humanitarian sectors. In
particular, in 2004, an Armenian-Russian Association for Business
Cooperation was established, uniting about 100 companies from the two
countries. Besides, currently about 50 subjects of RF actively
participate with the regions of Armenia in the area of economy.
Oskanian also noted that in the framework of cooperation between RA
and RF Ministries of Culture for 2003-2005, the days of RF culture
were held in Armenia in April 2004, and in March 2004 a week of the
Armenian film was held in Moscow. According to Oskanian, an agreement
was reached to announce the year of 2005 as a year of Russia in
Armenia, and the year of 2006 – that of Armenia in Russia. A.H. –0–

*********************************************************************

NKR PRESIDENT SIGNED THE LAW PROVIDING FORCED EXECUTION OF LEGAL ACTS

STEPANAKERT, January 12. /ARKA/. NKR President Arkady Gukasian signed
the law providing forced execution of legal acts. The President also
signed the law on water users communities and on implementation of
changes and novels to the law on order of publication and entry in
force of laws and other normative acts, NKR President’s press office
told ARKA. L.D. –0–
The laws were passed in NKR NA on Dec 8, 2004. L.D. –0–

*********************************************************************

NO SHIFTS REGISTERED IN ARMENIA-TURKEY RELATIONS IN 2004-VARDAN
OSKANIAN

YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. No shifts registered in Armenia-Turkey
relations in 2004, RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian stated at the
press conference in result of 2004. According to him, Turkey
continues connection of opening of Armenian-Turkish border and
settlement of relations with several pre-conditions, while Armenia is
for establishment of relations without pre-conditions. He also
reminded that in 2004 foreign ministers of Armenia and Turkey met in
Istanbul and New-York, and discussed bilateral relations during the
meeting. The parties also exchange views on regional and
international developments. At the same time the Minister stressed
that in 2004 bilateral relations continued demonstration of activity
from non-government structures. Besides trilateral meeting of foreign
ministers of Armenia, Turkey and Azerbaijan took place in the frames
of Istanbul NATO summit. L.D. –0–

*********************************************************************

PRESIDENT OF ARMENIA ROBERT KOCHARIAN SENDS A CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE
TO MAHMOUD ABBAS, NEWLY ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE PALESTINIAN
AUTHORITY
YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian sent a
congratulatory message to Mahmoud Abbas, newly elected President of
the Palestinian Authority. As the Press Service of RA President told
ARKA agency, Kocharian wished the newly elected President good health
and productive work and expressed confidence that the received vote
of confidence would serve for the Palestinian President as the
strongest guarantee for establishment of peace and stability in the
region. L.V. -0–

*********************************************************************

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT HOLDS WORKING MEETING WITH ARMENIAN LABOR AND
SOCIAL AFFAIRS MINISTER

YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. Armenian President Robert Kocharian had
working meeting with Armenian Labor and Social Affairs Minister
Aghvan Vardanyan. As Armenian President Press Service told ARKA,
during the meeting Vardanyan presented to the Head of the Armenian
State the results of the Ministry’s activity for 2004 as well as he
outlined plans for the year 2005. During the meeting the officials
particularly discussed the issues related to reforming of the pension
system T.M. -0–

*********************************************************************

ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT UNDERGO STAFF CHANGES

YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. The Armenian Government underwent staff
changes. As Armenian Government Press and Public Relations Department
told ARKA, by decree of Armenian PM Andranik Margarian, Deputy
Armenian Finance and Economy Minister Meruzhan Mikayelyan, Deputy
Armenian Justice Minister Anahit Avagyan, Deputy Armenian Minister of
Labor and Social Affairs Karine Hakobyan were released from the
positions held. T.M. -0–

News of Delaware County, PA
Jan 12 2005

DeFeo reflects on Delaware County notables
By Joe DeFeo 01/12/2005

Thank you, Upper Darby/ Lansdowne Rotary for mailing me your weekly
bulletin, “Cogs & Notches.”

I was one of your rotary members for 15 years, and I appreciate being
remembered. I especially enjoy Dr. Jack Schulman’s articles, which
are newsy and humorous.

Former Delaware County personality Al Alberts has published his
autobiography entitled, “My Song, The Words and the Music of My
World.” Al and his wife, Stella, produced the Al Alberts Showcase on
WPVI Channel Six for a record 32 years. Al also was the lead singer
for the Four Aces, a very popular vocal group, during the past 30
years.

The Alberts, who reside in Port Charlotte, Fla., where Al conducts a
syndicated radio show called “Harmony.” His latest recording is “If I
Never Sing Another Song.” And on a personal note, I wrote the lyrics
for “Philadelphia, My Home Town,” which Al recorded some 20 years
ago.

John Tajirian of Drexel Hill, who publishes Tijirian’s Bulletin, a
religious periodical, produced a special Christmas edition which
highlighted many interesting anecdotes about the birth of Jesus
Christ and included a few episodes about His youth, not too well
known. As an Armenian, Tajirian, has also published a 12-part series
about the Turkish occupied region of Armenia.

Al Raymond, a friend and Broomall neighbor, wrote a very interesting
article in our NEWS about the history of the big bands. As a big band
leader and former teacher for many years who once was a member of
several well known orchestras in America, he is very well versed on
the subject. In fact, he authored three books on the subject.

During the drop in popularity of big bands, Raymond stood alone in
our area and continued to thrive. He did his best to help revive the
sad situation. Perhaps his articles may help somewhat to bring back
some real music. As a big band enthusiast, I feel that an entire
generation of young followers of music have sadly denied the
magnificent sounds of orchestras like Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller,
The Dorseys, Artie Show, Harry James, and dozens more professional
and talent hands.

Joan Toeniessen, a former editor of our NEWS who we thought would
retire to a life of quiet and leisure, is busier than ever. The
former president of the Ardmore Rotary and her husband of 48 years,
Lowell, have been on the traveling treadmill to visit their married
offspring and their grandchildren. There are so many of them whose
names and activities I will omit the interest of space.

Suffice it to say they are all well and talented in various ways.

Only recently, Will, Andrew, Michael and Bill, of the Toeniessen
clan, played in the Woodland String Band during the Mummers parade.

To reach all of the Toenniessen family tree members, Mom and Pop’s
travel agenda included stops in Virginia, New York, New Jersey,
Illinois, Maine and Minnesota, finally heading for Clearwater, Fla.,
to spend several weeks watching their favorite Phillies during their
spring training days.

When all the traveling is finished, Joan will come home to continue
with her writing, rotary, and her volunteer work with hospice. So, a
retirement from work may have meant that she was even busier than
before.

Hey, that sounds like an oxymoron.

Joe DeFeo has written for NDC for almost 50 years.

ASBAREZ ONLINE
TOP STORIES
01/12/2005
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1) Oskanian Holds Press Conference after Meeting with Azeri Counterpart
2) Schwarz Joins Congressional Armenian Caucus
3) Turkey Criticized by Europe’s Rights Court over Treatment of Journalist
4) Kocharian, Vardanian Prioritize Social Sector

1) Oskanian Holds Press Conference after Meeting with Azeri Counterpart

YEREVAN (Armenpress/RFE-RL)–Foreign Affairs Minister Vartan Oskanian revealed
during a press conference on Wednesday that 2005 could prove to be decisive
for
the resolution of the Mountainous Karabagh conflict.
“The second phase of the Prague process will be qualitatively different from
the previous phases,” he said, referring to his face-to-face meeting with
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov on Tuesday.
“A serious political will and consistency must be displayed here. The year
will be quite intensive,” he told a news conference Yerevan.
Without divulging details about his meeting with Mammadyarov and separate
talks with international mediators also held in Prague on Tuesday, Oskanian
said that the conflicting parties have yet to reach a full agreement on “the
framework of issues” that have been the main subject of their discussions
since
last spring.
Noting that the Azeri press very often releases inaccurate information,
Oskanian stressed, “We have entered a more serious round in the negotiation
process and in order not to put the other side in a difficult position we must
be careful in our statements.”
Mammadyarov was similarly reserved in publicly commenting about the meeting.
“We are happy with the current level of discussions,” Azeri media quoted
him as
saying. “The main result of the meeting is that the parties agreed to continue
negotiations in a positive spirit.”

2) Schwarz Joins Congressional Armenian Caucus

Detroit, MI (ANCA)–Newly elected Rep. John “Joe” Schwarz has become the
newest
member of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues. Schwarz’s entrance into
the Caucus brings its membership to over 140.
During Schwarz’s campaign for Congress last year, the ANC of Michigan
played a
key role in supporting the candidate by introducing him to members of the
local
Armenian-American community, as well as co-sponsoring a fundraiser with
Armen-PAC and AAPAC of Michigan last June before Michigan’s August primary
election. Schwarz’s 7th Congressional District stretches from Western
Washtenaw
County near Ann Arbor to Coldwater, near the Indiana border.
With Schwarz’s Caucus membership, Michigan’s 15-member Congressional
delegation will now have 13 Caucus members. “I am very appreciative for the
superb support given to my candidacy for Congress by the Michigan
Armenian-American Community, and I look forward to being an active Member on
the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues,” said Schwarz. “As a student of
history, I have always been fascinated by the history, the great trials and
tribulations, and the pride in heritage of the Armenian People.”
“We welcome Joe’s membership in the Armenian Issues Caucus and look
forward to
working with him on a number of issues of special concern to his
Armenian-American constituents,” said Georgi-Ann Oshagan, ANC of Michigan
chairwoman. “Joe promised us here in southeastern Michigan that he would
immediately join the Caucus if elected, and he kept that promise.”
Schwarz is a practicing physician and served in Vietnam in the US Navy. He
also worked for the Central Intelligence Agency. Schwarz was most recently a
state senator from Battle Creek, and is a former city commissioner and
mayor of
Battle Creek.
Founded in 1995, the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues is a bipartisan
forum for the discussion of policies to foster increased cooperation between
the United States and Armenian governments and to strengthen the enduring
bonds
between the American and Armenian peoples. It was founded by Congressmen Frank
Pallone (D-NJ) and John Porter (R-IL) and is currently co-chaired by Rep.
Pallone and Michigan Republican Joe Knollenberg.

3) Turkey Criticized by Europe’s Rights Court over Treatment of Journalist

STRASBOURG (AFP)–Turkey was criticized by the European Court of Human Rights
on Tuesday over its treatment of a journalist who reviewed books about the
sensitive Kurdish southeast of the country.
One of the books reviewed by Attila Halis in January 1994 was written by
convicted Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan, who for many years was
Turkey’s
most wanted man. Ocalan was captured by Turkish undercover agents in Kenya in
1999, brought back to Turkey, and sentenced to death. His sentence was later
changed to life in prison.
Rebels from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have been held responsible by
Ankara for a 15-year civil conflict that claimed more than 30,000 lives in
southeast Turkey.
Halis was given a one-year jail sentence and a heavy fine in March 1995 for
disseminating propaganda after a trial presided over by a Turkish military
judge.
After losing an appeal, Halis went on the run, but the Turkish police caught
up with him in March 2002. His sentence was finally suspended in July the same
year.
The European court declared that Ankara had violated the European Convention
on Human Rights in two areas: the right to freedom of expression and the right
to a free and fair trial.
“The applicants conviction was disproportionate to the aims pursued and,
accordingly, not necessary in a democratic society,” the court declared.
The article was never actually published, as the January 2, 1994 edition of
the paper, Ozgur Gundem, was seized before it was distributed.
At a historic summit in Brussels in December, Turkey was invited by the
European Union to begin membership talks in October; however, the country was
advised that it must ensure that recent legislation adopted to improve human
rights was applied at all levels.
The president of the European Court of Human Rights Luzius Wildhaber recently
declared that Turkey’s once widely faulted legal practices were approaching
European standards.

4) Kocharian, Vardanian Prioritize Social Sector

YEREVAN (Yerkir)–President Robert Kocharian and Labor and Social Affairs
Minister Aghvan Vardanian discussed social sector reforms on Tuesday, and
announced that their 2005 priorities include reforming the pension system.
They
proposed the introduction of a mixed system that combines public and private
sources to finance pensions.
Vardanian said the two also discussed the introduction of Social Security
cards to the country, noting that 2.2 million people have applied, and 1.6
million have already been issued cards.
The Social Security Foundation was also reviewed at the meeting, the minister
said, adding that beginning this year, the social security tax will be
collected by the Tax Inspectorate.

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Investment Opportunities in Armenia’s Construction Sector

BISNIS: Construction Industry Update
January 12, 2005

— BISNIS Search for Partner Lead
— Armenia: The Imported Building Materials Market

*************************************************************************
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in Armenia. The company’s annual turnover totaled $12 million in 2003.
The company is the distributor of a number leading European and American
producers of building materials. The company owns 17,000 sq.m. of land
located near the capital city of Yerevan where it plans to establish a
large trade center specializing in the wholesale and retail distribution
of building materials. The total project cost is $4 million. The company
seeks a U.S. partner that would co-invest in the project. Comfort R&V
will finance 50% of the total project cost.

Company web site:

Location: Yerevan, Armenia

Lead Link:

**Note** These opportunities are provided solely as an informational
service and do not represent an endorsement by the U.S. Department of
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*************************************************************************
ARMENIA: THE IMPORTED BUILDING MATERIALS MARKET

1. This cable reviews the market for imported building materials in
Armenia as of December 2004.

The report describes the market size and U.S. market share in Armenia,
and lists major market suppliers and best sales prospects for U.S.
companies. It also includes a list of major importers and key contacts
in the building products sector. End Summary.

Full text available at:

*************************************************************************
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********** Provided by: ************************************************** **
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U.S. Department of Commerce
Tel: 202/482-3729, Fax: 202/482-2293
e-mail: [email protected]

Armenian minister says no Karabakh settlement without compromises

Arminfo
12 Jan 05

YEREVAN

The latest meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers
in Prague on 11 January was held in a good atmosphere, Armenian
Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan told a news conference today.

The minister reiterated earlier reports that a series of issues had
been outlined as a result of last year’s Prague meetings and these
issues would lay the foundation for further meetings, which was
confirmed during the meeting of the OSCE foreign ministers in Sofia
6-7 December 2004 . The minister added that an attempt was made in
Prague to start such discussions around these issues.

“Yes, there is such a range of issues, but it has to be said that
there is no final agreement on some of them yet. The Prague meeting
has shown that there is still a need for greater consolidation, and
the main objective of the meeting was to try to consolidate these
issues,” the minister said.

At the same time, Oskanyan pointed to some progress but added that the
process has not yet been completed. Neither is it known when the next
meeting will be held, the minister said.

The minister stressed the importance of being more careful with
statements. He said it is easy to make a statement or to speak about
successes. Each side is pursuing its own interests in the negotiations
and no-one will make statements against their own interests.

“The issue can be resolved only when both sides, and eventually
Karabakh which will be part of the process, make compromises. Without
that it is not worth expecting us to sign a document which would
reflect the wishes of all sides. It is premature to talk about
that. It is also premature to say in which direction the process is
going, because all aspects of the issue are being negotiated. It will
soon become clear how they will eventually ‘be packaged’ and agree
with each other. But so far we haven’t started the process yet. All
the questions are being discussed and each side is providing its own
comments. We think we have entered a more serious stage in the
negotiations and at this phase it is necessary to make more reserved
statements in order not to put the other party in a difficult
situation or not to get into such a situation oneself,” the minister
said.

The foreign minister also noted that the Azerbaijani press was full of
misinformation.

“There is a disgraceful situation in the Azerbaijani press today,” the
minister said. He believes that such an assessment is based on an
analysis. For instance, he said the statements some Azerbaijani
newspapers put into his mouth were wide of the mark.

“After the Prague meeting I gave a brief interview to Radio
Liberty. Anything beyond that interview is wide of the mark,” the
Armenian foreign minister said.

Armenian minister insists on severe punishment for Azeri officer

Arminfo
12 Jan 05

YEREVAN

Armenia will insist that Azerbaijani military officer Ramil Safarov be
punished with the utmost rigour of the Hungarian law.

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan told a news conference today
that Armenia’s stance on the issue had been clear from the very
beginning: this is a criminal matter which should not be given a
political undertone.

“Armenia will be consistent is seeing to it that the criminal is
punished with the utmost rigour of the Hungarian law,” the minister
stressed.

To recap, on 19 February 2004, the Azerbaijani officer, Ramil Safarov,
hacked his Armenian counterpart Gurgen Markaryan to death while the
latter was asleep. The Hungarian authorities have charged Safarov with
murder.

The legal hearings are expected to resume in February.

Armenian Foreign Ministry notes progress in regional ties in 2004

Arminfo
12 Jan 05

YEREVAN

According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry’s report on the results of
2004, which was made public today, last year saw some progress in
Armenia’s relations with its South Caucasus neighbours.

Under the document, significant progress was registered in the
development of Armenian-Georgian relations. A number of top-level
visits were paid and a meeting of the bilateral intergovernmental
commission was held. Together with economic issues, the sides focused
on the establishment of a regional security system, confidence
building measures in conflict solution, etc.

In the domain of Armenian-Iranian relations, the sides continued their
dialogue towards developing bilateral relations even further and
implementing mutually beneficial economic projects.

The document says there was no progress in Armenian-Turkish relations
in 2004. Turkey continues to make the problem of opening the
Armenian-Turkish border and normalizing relations with Armenia
conditional on a number of things, while Armenia stands for the
establishment of normal relations with Turkey without any
preconditions. In 2004, the Armenian and Turkish foreign ministers met
in New York to discuss bilateral problems, while the foreign ministers
of Armenia, Turkey and Azerbaijan also held a trilateral meeting on
the sidelines of the NATO Istanbul summit.

As regards relations with Azerbaijan, the report says that apart from
the discussions over the Karabakh conflict these relations were
maintained within the confines of international organizations and
certain contacts at the level of public organizations. The report adds
that the obstacles put up by the Azerbaijani side to bar the Armenian
side from NATO’s Cooperative Best Effort-2004 exercises in Baku led to
their cancellation.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Azeris protest at “pro-Armenian” Dutch documentary

Bilik Dunyasi news agency, Baku
12 Jan 05

BAKU

A short-length documentary by Dutch filmmaker (?Susan Kroeger), “Hope
dies last”, has caused serious discontent of Azerbaijani diaspora
organizations in the Netherlands.

The press service of the state committee for Azerbaijanis living
abroad said that the documentary tells a story of three Armenian and
two Azerbaijani soldiers who went missing in the Karabakh war during
the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. After its presentation in
Amsterdam, over 100 members of the Dutch-Azerbaijani society and
Azerbaijani diaspora organizations exchanged views on the developments
in the documentary with representatives of the Dutch Council of
Churches and the Dutch Red Cross Society. Members of Armenian diaspora
organizations also joined the debates. Our compatriots strongly
protested at the facts that the narration and the end of the
documentary are related to Armenia and 21 minutes of the documentary
are about Armenia and only eight minutes about Azerbaijan.

Other causes of discontent were the choice of music, a sharp
disproportion in the presentation of the parents of the missing
soldiers, the video of Armenian and Azerbaijani cities and reference
to towns and villages in Karabakh using Armenian names.

During the debates, the Azerbaijanis strongly condemned the film and
said that its content was inaccurate and pro-Armenian. They stressed
that it was inadmissible to demonstrate such a film. Dutch experts
also supported our compatriots.
From: Baghdasarian

European bank invests in Armenian private construction company

Arminfo
12 Jan 05

YEREVAN

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has
allocated 850,000 euros to buy 28 per cent of shares of the Armenian
closed joint-stock construction concern Shen Concern, the deputy
director of the concern, Ara Asratyan, told our correspondent today.

He said that it was the first time the EBRD invested in a private
production enterprise in Armenia. He pointed out that the bank’s
investment had been channelled into the production of concrete
products and other construction materials, which are chiefly sold in
the republic. Asratyan added that the European bank had been
monitoring the operations of the company for the last two years and
made a decision to establish long-term cooperation with the
enterprise.

The contract has been concluded with the EBRD for five years and
envisages more investment in the production of construction materials
in Armenia. It is expected that after making fresh investment in April
2005, the European bank will own over 36 per cent of Shen Concern
shares. The deputy director pointed out that Shen Concern’s revenue
amounted to 1.5bn drams (3m dollars) in 2004.

The current investment portfolio of the European bank in Armenia
totals 60m euros. Armenia became a member of the EBRD in 1992.

Russia remained top priority in Armenian foreign policy in 2004, ministry
says

Arminfo
12 Jan 05

YEREVAN

The development and expansion of relations with the Russian Federation
continued to be the highest priority in Armenia’s foreign policy in
2004, says the Armenian Foreign Ministry’s report on the results of
last year.

The document says that Armenian-Russian cooperation developed and
expanded in the military-political, trade, economic and humanitarian
spheres last year, and within the CIS and the Collective Security
Treaty Organization.

Top-level meetings were held as part of three working visits of the
Armenian president to Russia, an official visit of Armenian Prime
Minister Andranik Markaryan, and visits to Armenia by the chairmen of
both houses of the Russian parliament, Sergey Mironov and Boris
Gryzlov. Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan paid an official
visit to Moscow in July. During the negotiations held the sides spoke
about bilateral cooperation at the international level and ways of
resolving the Nagornyy Karabakh problem.

Issues of economic partnership were discussed at a meeting of the
Armenian-Russian intergovernmental commission at the end of the
year. In an effort to expand the economic partnership between legal
entities and individuals of the two countries, an Armenian-Russian
association of business cooperation was set up and over 100 companies
from both countries have already joined it.

A wide range of military and military-economic issues was discussed
during a visit to Armenia by Russian Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov
and during the first meeting of the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental
commission for military and technical cooperation in September.

As part of a cooperation programme between the two countries’ culture
ministries, days of Russian culture were held in Armenia in April
2004, while a week of Armenian films was held in Moscow in March. The
agreement was reached to declare 2005 the year of Russia in Armenia
and 2006 the year of Armenia in Russia.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress