TURKEY IN VIEW OF ITS BILIOUSNESS CAN’T BE A MEDIATOR IN KARABAKH ISSUE

YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). “Nagorno Karabakh was always the
Armenian territory. Other regions remain the problems of Nagorno
Karabakh and Azerbaijan,” said RA Minister of Foreign Affairs Vartan
Oskanian in his interview to the Turkish “Zaman” newspaper of January
25, whose translation was published in the “Azg” (“Nation”)
newspaper. According to the RA Foreign Minister, in the USSR times
Karabakh was included into the territory of Azerbaijan, but when the
war between Karabakh and Azerbaijan started, Armenian, naturally,
supported Karabakh. The issue of other regions, according to Oskanian,
is discussed between Armenia and Azerbaijan by the simple reason that
the Azeris avoid negotiations with Karabakh. Minister Oskanian
stressed that the statement of Prime Minister of Turkey Erdogan that
Armenia doesn’t recognize the Kars agreement was a surprise for
him. According to the Minister, none of the leaders of Armenia has
made statements on the occasion of this agreement up to day. “We are
among the countries-legal successors of the USSR. All the agreements
signed between the USSR and third countries remain valid until new
agreements are signed and the statement on the recognition of the
previous agreements as invalid is made,” he said. Presenting the
approach of the Armenian side to the condition on going out from the
“occupied territories” of Azerbaijan suggested by Turkey, Oskanian
mentioned that Turkey can’t reduce the Nagorno Karabakh problem
exclusively to the territorial argument, as the essence of the problem
is in status. “There were no Azeri territories controlled by the
Armenians before the Karabakh conflict. Control was set after the
raising of the Karabakh problem. The Turkish side is mistaken in the
issue of the cause-effect relation. It should be separated from the
reason for the elimination of consequence.” Hence, Turkey can’t raise
the issue of territories as a condition. “We want the problem to be
resolved, but we also want the universal approach to be shown.” Turkey
can’t be a mediator in the Karabakh problem because of its
biliousness, stressed the RA Minister of Foreign Affairs. For example,
Russia, according to Oskanian, doesn’t lay down conditions from the
viewpoint of the settlement of the problem and shows neutrality:
“Turkey constantly makes a suggestion on mediation, and we hold
bilateral meetings. From the viewpoint of these meetings we have no
problems, but mediation is another thing.” As for the recognition of
the Genocide, Minister Oskanian mentioned that there are no
territorial pretensions or the issue on compensation in the foreign
political agenda of Armenia: “We only long for the Genocide to be
recognized by the international community and Turkey. The 1915 events
are the evident Genocide. In spite of it Armenia has never demanded
that Turkey should recognize the Genocide with the purpose of the
regulation of relations. The issue may be resolved through a dialog,
but how to do it, if the diplomatic relations are absent?” Answering
the question: “Will Turkey recognize this statement (Genocide) for
joining the European Union?” Minister Oskanian mentioned: “We and
Turkey have two important problems: the Genocide and the opening of
the borders. The recognition of the Genocide is not a condition, but
the opening of the borders is a condition for the regulation of our
relations. Nobody can speak about the normal relations, when the
borders are closed. An on the contrary, without the recognition of the
Genocide it is possible to adjust the relations. We put the issue of
the borders to the EU agenda. It has already become an issue of the
agenda for the EU, and the Genocide is a common and moral issue. The
EU demands that Turkey should resign itself with this issue someway,”
said Oskanian. He also expressed hope hat these issues will be put
before Turkey at the end of this year, when the negotiations with the
European Union start. Nevertheless, according to him, “we can’t expect
progress during 10-15 years till Turkey joins the EU. We hope that
Turkey will open the border with Armenia soon.” According to Oskanian,
there is nothing more to be said on the issue of the Genocide. This
theme is studies, the great work is carried out, the real essence of
the 1915 events is shown. “Even if the scientists sit down at the one
table, the approved opinion will not change in any case. The
scientists have already done their part and completed it. At this
moment it is demanded that the Turkish government should get down to
business. Why are you afraid to discuss the issue of the Genocide?”

3 POLITICAL FIGURES MAKE JOINT STATEMENT CONDEMNING ARMENIA’S FOREIGN
POLICY
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). Armenia has no strategy (national
ideas and goals) in the sphere of foreign policy and it “plays
complementarism.” The January 28 joint statement of Vazgen Manukian,
Chairman of the National-Democratic Union, Ashot Manucharian,
Political Secretary of the Union of Socialist Forces, and Paruyr
Hayrikian, Chairman of the National Self-Determination Union, said
this. The statement was publicized by Paruyr Hayrikian at the press
conference held the same day. According to the statement, “yielding to
the provocation of one of the numerous levers of systematized foreign
policy of Turkey, representative of Turkish press (correspondent of
the Zaman newspaper: NT), Vardan Oskanian, RA Foreign Minister,
declared that the Republic of Armenia has nothing against the Kars
treaty.” According to P.Hayrikian, Turkish Prime Minister Erdoghan is
sure that no sensible Armenian should accept the Kars treaty of 1921
legalizing the Armenian Genocide but “instead of accepting and
continuing the thought of the Turkish Prime Minister our Minister
commits mistakes, which are difficult to understand.” In Hayrikian’s
opinion, today’s Armenia may be considered as Armenia of “outpost”
period, and the statesmen as “little members of Komsomol” looking
towards Moscow who only strive for preserving their power. According
to him, the pan-Armenian interests are ignored on the international
arena and everything is moved to the Karabakh (“not Artsakh”) plane,
as a result of which Artsakh itself will gain nothing. Hayrikian
declared that the Turkish diplomacy managed to lead the
Armenian-Turkish relations to Turkey’s demanding lands from
Armenia. In his estimation, today the state committing a Genocide and
seizing the historical lands of Armenia puts forward a condition to
Armenia, again to surrender the territories if not in favor of Turkey
by the example of the Moscow-Kars treaty of 1921 then in favor nof
Azerbaijan as it was done in case of Nakhichevan. According to
Hayrikian, today they also demand Artsakh and Armenia has no power
resisting this. “We only defend ourselves.” According to the
statement, “not only every pupil” but the President of Armenia and his
supporters should know that “the Genocide was summed up and fixed by
the Moscow treaty of 1921 and its copy, Kars treaty.”

ARDARUTIUN BLOC CONSIDERS PACE RESOLUTION ADOPTED ON THE BASIS OF
DAVID ATKINSON’S REPORT TO BE VERY DANGEROUS FOR ARMENIA
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). The Ardarutiun (Justice) bloc
considers that the PACE Resolution adopted lately on the basis of
David Atkinson’s report is very dangerous for Armenia. Ruzan
Khachatrian, Spokeswoman of the bloc, informed a Noyan Tapan
correspondent that the issue was discussed during the joint session of
the bloc and NA Ardarutiun faction held the same day. It was
established that though the high-ranking officials and political
statesmen continue insisting that the Resolution has no legal force
one shouldn’t underestimate the political importance of the Resolution
and its further influence on the legal settlement of Karabakh
problem. The members of the Ardarutiun faction agreed to the
estimation, according to which the adoption of the Resolution not
favorable for Armenians is the result of foreign and home policy
carried on by the Armenian authorities during the previous years. On
the eve of the NA spring session the bloc confirmed its intention to
continue boycotting the work of the parliament. At the same time its
was mentioned that the Ardarutiun faction will participate in the
discussion of issues of political importance. In particular, a
decision to participate in the discussion of the bill “On Return of
Deposits” submitted by the bloc and included into the NA agenda was
pronounced. According to Ruzan Khachatrian, the members of the bloc
condemned the conduct of Arshak Sadoyan, Chairman of the Union of
National Democrats. Touching upon the statements made by the latter
during the previous week, the participants of the session said that
according to the regulations of the Ardarutiun faction, each member of
the faction having a special opinion may express it but he has no
right to undertake activity or propaganda contradicting the decision
made by the faction, which is done by Sadoyan venturing insulting
statements. Sadoyan accused one of his colleagues in press saying
that the latter “sold himself” to the People’s Party of Armenia.
During the session of the bloc it was mentioned that one may speak so
only about his opponents and a question was raised if Arshak Sadoyan
perceives PPA as his opponent. Answering this Sadoyan declared that
his thought was represented out of any context in press and some mass
media (in particualr, the Aravot and Haykakan Zhamanak newspapers)
just spread a slander he never said. He assured that he didn’t want to
insult anybody or oppose the bloc and he treats the members of the
bloc with great respect. He said he regretted that everything was
interpreted this way. The Spokeswoman said that as according to the NA
regulations there are no mechanisms permitting to dismiss from a
faction Arshak Sadoyan may only himself pronounce a decision to leave
the faction. But the latter declared that he won’t leave the faction
and will continue working.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PRESS RELEASE
Department of Armenian Studies, Haigazian University
Beirut, Lebanon
Contact: Ara Sanjian
Tel: 961-1-353011
Email: [email protected]
Web:
HAGOP CHOLAKIAN LECTURES AT HAIGAZIAN UNIVERSITY ON THE HISTORY OF
ARMENIANS IN THE ORONTES RIVER MIDDLE VALLEY
BEIRUT, LEBANON, Friday, 28 January 2005 (Haigazian University
Department of Armenian Studies Press Release) – Hagop Cholakian, a
seasoned Armenian educator and author based in Aleppo, Syria, was the
guest of Haigazian University on the evening of Friday, 5 November 2004.
He delivered a public lecture entitled ‘The History of the Armenians in
the Orontes River Middle Valley’. The talk was organized by the
university’s Department of Armenian Studies.
Alongside his distinguished career as a teacher and author of a number
of textbooks of the Armenian language, Cholakian is a poet and has a
number of academic publications in the field of Armenian Studies. He
received his university education in Yerevan. His lecture was the
summary of his doctoral dissertation defended at the Institute of
Archeology and Ethnography in the Armenian National Academy of Sciences
in 2002.
Cholakian told the audience, at the beginning of his lecture, that
classical sources attest that Armenians lived in the city of Antioch, as
well as in nearby villages scattered throughout the Orontes River
Valley, as early as late Roman times. Armenians continued to live in the
area in the Byzantine era, and the Armenian population of the area
actually increased during the period of Arab domination. When the
Byzantine Empire recovered the area as a consequence of decline of Arab
military might, it transferred there new waves of Armenians. Some
governors of Antioch were Armenians in the 10-11th centuries. Philaretus
Varazhnuni, a former Armenian commander in the Byzantine army, briefly
captured Antioch in 1078, before the city passed on to the Seljuks.
Citing mostly contemporary Arab sources, Cholakian spoke in detail about
the assistance rendered to the Crusaders in 1097-98 by the Armenian
population of Antioch and the neighboring villages and fortresses. The
lecturer surmised that these Armenians were probably hoping to establish
an Armenian state with the help of the Crusaders, for, once they
witnessed the confiscation of their fortresses by the Crusaders and
realized that the latter had come to Antioch to stay, the Armenians of
Artah rebelled and got in touch with the Rawan, the Muslim ruler of
Aleppo, as early as 1103, seeking on this occasion the latter’s
assistance against the Crusaders. During the ensuing decades, some
Armenians fought as mercenaries for the Crusader Principality of
Antioch, and when Saladin advanced into the area in 1188, the fortresses
of Kifr Tebbin (modern Hamameh) in the Shughr area, which was controlled
by an Armenian, surrendered without a fight. Some scholars believe that
the present Muslim inhabitants of Hamameh are the descendants of
Islamized Armenians. Armenian sources refer to three separate dioceses
of the Armenian Church in this area in the twelfth century, based
respectively in Laodicea (modern Lattakia), Apamea and Antioch.
Cholakian outlined how the Armenians of the region suffered during the
period of Mamluk and Ottoman dominion. Many villages vanished and their
inhabitants migrated. All Armenian monasteries disappeared during this
period. By the mid-nineteenth century, Armenians of the area had
retreated into five relatively small enclaves: around the town of Beilan
near the Bay of Alexandretta; the region of Musa Dagh; around the
village of Kessab; on the Nusayri mountains east of the town of Lattakia
(including the villages of Aramo and Ghnaymiyyah); and along the Orontes
Valley (including the villages of Qnay and Yaqubiyyah). Armenians in
these clusters shared a common dialect and many similar customs.
Although the Armenians of the Orontes River Middle Valley had adopted
Arabic as their mother tongue by the mid-nineteenth century, they still
used a number of Armenian words in their vocabulary and children’s play
songs.
In the second half of the nineteenth century, said Cholakian, the apathy
of the Armenian Church leaders in Cilicia, Jerusalem and Aleppo made it
relatively easy for Protestant and Catholic missionaries to convert a
significant number of Armenians in the area. The lecturer cited a number
of instances where individuals manipulated the opportunities for
conversion to push for their material interests. Cholakian argued that
these conversions also caused assimilation among many Armenians living
in the area.
The region was heavily affected during the massacres of Armenians in
Cilicia in 1909, said the lecturer. However, the Roman Catholic
missionaries in Yaqubiyyah and Qnay managed to prevent massacres in
those villages by arranging for the arrival of Ottoman troops from
Antioch, an event which encouraged a new wave of Latinization among the
local Armenians.
Cholakian stated that all Armenians in the region were deported during
the genocide of 1915, except a few villages in Musa Dagh, which resisted
until their rescue by Allied ships. The Armenians of Yaqubiyyah and Qnay
were not deported. The exact reason behind their avoiding the sad fate
of their ethnic kin in the region is not known. The local Roman Catholic
priests claim that these Armenians escaped deportation because they were
registered as Christians of the Latin rite. Other Armenians of Latin
rite from Kessab and Beilan were deported, however. The deportees, who
survived the ordeal, returned to their villages after the armistice
signed in late 1918, only to clash with the local Muslims, who made them
scatter into the neighboring Christian villages until 1923.
The last part of Cholakian’s lecture dealt with the attempts of the
Armenian Church to reassert its presence in the area. In 1923, for
example, Catholicos Sahak II of Cilicia, now based in the new state of
Syria, tried to revive the activity of the Armenian Church in Kessab. In
1928, the Armenian Prelacy of Aleppo sent an Arabic-speaking priest to
Yaqubiyyah. He reopened the old Armenian church in the village and
helped the majority of the local Armenians return to the fold of their
old Church. Yaqubiyyah soon got an Armenian school as well, and, in
1954, a new church was built. A number of Armenian students from
Yaqubiyyah studied in Soviet Armenia from the mid-1950s and played an
important role in reviving Armenian cultural life in the village after
their return. Today, speaking the Armenian language has again become the
norm for the Armenians living in Yaqubiyyah. Some Armenian villagers of
Latin rite in Qnay, too, are now sending their children to an Armenian
school nearby, and the speaking of the Armenian language is also on the
increase in Qnay. Past Armenian migrants of Latin rite from these two
villages have not undergone similar re-Armenization, however. Finally,
the Armenians of Beilan and Musa Dagh (except the village of Vakif) all
migrated when the French mandatory authorities ceded the sanjak of
Alexandretta to Turkey in 1939.
During the question-and-answer session that followed, Cholakian surveyed
a number of suggested etymologies regarding the place names Ghnaymiyyah,
Qnay and Yaqubiyyah that are in circulation today. He also pointed out
that Armenians from Yaqubiyyah are active in the cultural life of Syria.
Cholakian commended the role played by Cardinal Gregory Peter Agagianian
in 1946 when he arranged that the Armenians of Latin rite living in
Kessab should join the Armenian Catholic Church, which uses the Armenian
language in its church services. Since the Armenian language is now
taught in Syria as a language of religious rites, Latin rite schools
cannot teach the Armenian language, because the Latin Church does not
use Armenian in church services. Moreover, all Armenians of Latin rite
from Kessab and Musa Dagh who had migrated to South America before 1946,
have not maintained links with the Armenian Catholic churches on that
continent. Cholakian also praised the work of Sister Marie Jeanne
Topalian, an Armenian Catholic nun, who teaches Armenian songs to
children among the Arabic-speaking Armenians in Qnay and encourages
parents to send their children to the nearest Armenian school. He
concluded that the Armenian Church should learn lessons from the fate of
the Armenians of the Orontes River Valley and become more active among
its flock so as to preserve Armenian national unity. Finally, a member
of the audience pointed out that the first ever Armenian Diasporan
student to study in a Soviet Armenian institution of higher learning in
the post-Stalin period was from Yaqubiyyah.
Haigazian University is a liberal arts institution of higher learning,
established in Beirut in 1955. For more information about its activities
you are welcome to visit its web-site at <;. For additional information on the activities of its Department of Armenian Studies, contact Ara Sanjian at

WORLD-FAMED BARITONE RENATO BRUZON TO PERFORM WITH ONLY CONCERT IN
YEREVAN ON FEBRUARY 5

YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). World-famed baritone Renato Bruzo
will perform with the only concert at the “Aram Khachatourian” concert
hall in Yerevan on February 5. The Yerevan concert of the famous
singer, who arrives in Armenia for the first time, was initiated by
Eduard Topchian, the head conductor of the State Philharmonic
Orchestra of Armenia. David Terzian, the Deputy Director of the
orchestra, told NT’s correspondent that the negotiations with Bruzo
started last year, but the agreement was recently reached. Arias and
overtures from Juzeppe Verdi’s operas will be performed at the
concert. According to D. Terzian, the cost of tickets for the concert
will make from 3,000 to 10,000 drams (6-20 dollars). “We have
established all the conditions for the Armenian spectators to have an
opportunity to hear the world-famed baritone,” he said. The State
Philharmonic Orchestra of Armenia is also going to organize a concert
of world-famed tenor Placido Domingo in Yerevan dedicated to the 90th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The negotiations are being
carried on between Eduard Topchian and the manager of the famous
singer for several months now. The performance of the operas of Verdi
and Donizetti brought fame to Renato Bruzon. For the first time he
appeared on the scene in Spoletto in 1961 in the role of count de Luna
(“Troubadour”). Bruzon performed in almost all the famous opera
scenes. The singer is the soloist of “La Scala” and “Metrapoliten”
theaters. In 2004, Bruzon acquired the title “The Best Performer of
the Role of Simon Bokanegra for the Recent Years”.

NUMBER OF SERVICEMEN AWARDED ORDERS, MEDALS AND RANKS ON OCCASION OF
ARMY DAY
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). On January 28, the RA President
Robert Kocharian signed decrees on awarding orders, medals and ranks
to a number of servicemen on the occasion of Army Day. According to
the President’s press service, the RA Deputy Minister of Defence
Lieutenant General Artur Aghabekian has been awarded the Vardan
Mamikonian Order for his significant contribution to the establishment
of the RA Armed Forces. Assistant to the RA Minister of Defence
Colonel Hayk Kotanjian has been conferred a rank of Major General.
Khachatur Khachatrian and Komitas Muradian have been awarded the
Combat Cross of Second Degree for courage and devotion in military
service. The Valor Medal has been awarded to Radik Avetisian
(posthumously), Gagik Avsharian, Gurgen Margarian (posthumously),
Samvel Vishtunts (posthumously) and Albert Karamian. The Combat
Service Medal has been awarded to Sergei Arstamian, Armen Apoyan,
Karen Babayan, Armen Barkhudarian, Alexander Beglarian, Artak
Budaghian, Alexander Grigorian, Garik Grigorian, Nikolai Grigorian,
Khachatur Gevorgian, Garik Demirchian, Boris Davidov, Mihran
Khazhoyan, Gurgen Khachatrian, Eduard Karapetian, Albert Hayrapetian,
Artur Madatian, Yuri Matevosian, Artak Makhsudian, Vladik Mangasarian,
Igor Martirosian, Suren Martirosian, Erik Mkrtumian, Jahangir Papian,
Arshaluys Chobanian, Petros Sahakian, Ashot Sargsian, Armen Seyranian,
Artur Simonian and Setenik Papazian.

ST. SARGIS FESTIVAL MARKED IN ARMENIAN DIOCESE OF DAMASCUS AND REQUIEM
HELD IN MEMORY OF ARMENIANS PERISHED IN BAKU IN JANUARY 1990
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). Armenia has no strategy (national
ideas and goals) in the sphere of foreign policy and it “plays
complementarism.” The January 28 joint statement of Vazgen Manukian,
Chairman of the National-Democratic Union, Ashot Manucharian,
Political Secretary of the Union of Socialist Forces, and Paruyr
Hayrikian, Chairman of the National Self-Determination Union, said
this. The statement was publicized by Paruyr Hayrikian at the press
conference held the same day. According to the statement, “yielding to
the provocation of one of the numerous levers of systematized foreign
policy of Turkey, representative of Turkish press (correspondent of
the Zaman newspaper: NT), Vardan Oskanian, RA Foreign Minister,
declared that the Republic of Armenia has nothing against the Kars
treaty.” According to P.Hayrikian, Turkish Prime Minister Erdoghan is
sure that no sensible Armenian should accept the Kars treaty of 1921
legalizing the Armenian Genocide but “instead of accepting and
continuing the thought of the Turkish Prime Minister our Minister
commits mistakes, which are difficult to understand.” In Hayrikian’s
opinion, today’s Armenia may be considered as Armenia of “outpost”
period, and the statesmen as “little members of Komsomol” looking
towards Moscow who only strive for preserving their power. According
to him, the pan-Armenian interests are ignored on the international
arena and everything is moved to the Karabakh (“not Artsakh”) plane,
as a result of which Artsakh itself will gain nothing. Hayrikian
declared that the Turkish diplomacy managed to lead the
Armenian-Turkish relations to Turkey’s demanding lands from
Armenia. In his estimation, today the state committing a Genocide and
seizing the historical lands of Armenia puts forward a condition to
Armenia, again to surrender the territories if not in favor of Turkey
by the example of the Moscow-Kars treaty of 1921 then in favor nof
Azerbaijan as it was done in case of Nakhichevan. According to
Hayrikian, today they also demand Artsakh and Armenia has no power
resisting this. “We only defend ourselves.” According to the
statement, “not only every pupil” but the President of Armenia and his
supporters should know that “the Genocide was summed up and fixed by
the Moscow treaty of 1921 and its copy, Kars treaty.”

NUMBER OF SERVICEMEN AWARDED ORDERS, MEDALS AND RANKS ON OCCASION OF
ARMY DAY
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). The Ardarutiun (Justice) bloc
considers that the PACE Resolution adopted lately on the basis of
David Atkinson’s report is very dangerous for Armenia. Ruzan
Khachatrian, Spokeswoman of the bloc, informed a Noyan Tapan
correspondent that the issue was discussed during the joint session of
the bloc and NA Ardarutiun faction held the same day. It was
established that though the high-ranking officials and political
statesmen continue insisting that the Resolution has no legal force
one shouldn’t underestimate the political importance of the Resolution
and its further influence on the legal settlement of Karabakh
problem. The members of the Ardarutiun faction agreed to the
estimation, according to which the adoption of the Resolution not
favorable for Armenians is the result of foreign and home policy
carried on by the Armenian authorities during the previous years. On
the eve of the NA spring session the bloc confirmed its intention to
continue boycotting the work of the parliament. At the same time its
was mentioned that the Ardarutiun faction will participate in the
discussion of issues of political importance. In particular, a
decision to participate in the discussion of the bill “On Return of
Deposits” submitted by the bloc and included into the NA agenda was
pronounced. According to Ruzan Khachatrian, the members of the bloc
condemned the conduct of Arshak Sadoyan, Chairman of the Union of
National Democrats. Touching upon the statements made by the latter
during the previous week, the participants of the session said that
according to the regulations of the Ardarutiun faction, each member of
the faction having a special opinion may express it but he has no
right to undertake activity or propaganda contradicting the decision
made by the faction, which is done by Sadoyan venturing insulting
statements. Sadoyan accused one of his colleagues in press saying
that the latter “sold himself” to the People’s Party of Armenia.
During the session of the bloc it was mentioned that one may speak so
only about his opponents and a question was raised if Arshak Sadoyan
perceives PPA as his opponent. Answering this Sadoyan declared that
his thought was represented out of any context in press and some mass
media (in particualr, the Aravot and Haykakan Zhamanak newspapers)
just spread a slander he never said. He assured that he didn’t want to
insult anybody or oppose the bloc and he treats the members of the
bloc with great respect. He said he regretted that everything was
interpreted this way. The Spokeswoman said that as according to the NA
regulations there are no mechanisms permitting to dismiss from a
faction Arshak Sadoyan may only himself pronounce a decision to leave
the faction. But the latter declared that he won’t leave the faction
and will continue working.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

ARDARUTIUN BLOC CONSIDERS PACE RESOLUTION ADOPTED ON THE BASIS OF
DAVID ATKINSON’S REPORT TO BE VERY DANGEROUS FOR ARMENIA
YEREVAN, January 28 (Noyan Tapan). On January 28, on the occasion of
the 13 anniversary of the formation of the Armenian Army, the RA
National Assembly Chairman Artur Baghdasarian awarded the Medal of
Honor to the RA Defence Minister Serge Sargsian, as well as NA
diplomas the RA President Advisor, Chief Military Inspector of the RA
Armed Forces Colonel General Gurgen Dalibaltayan, the Deputy Minister
of Defence Lieutenant General Alik Mirzabekian, the Deputy Minister of
Defence on Rear, Chief of the RA Armed Forces Rear Lieutenant General
Gurgen Melkonian, Head of the Defence Ministry’s Military Police
Department Major General Vladimir Gasparian, as well as a miltary unit
commander Major General Garegin Gabrielian. Noting that a new
tradition was initiated at the National Assembly, Artur Baghdasarian
congratulated, on behalf of the parliament, the servicemen awarded and
wished them good health, will and determination in implementing
reforms in the army and ensuring defence potential. The NA Chairman
expressed satisfaction with the efforts put by the Armenian people,
officers and soldiers into the establishment of the Armenian army, and
expressed hope that they will not spare effort and energy for further
strengthening of the Armenian army. According to the National
Assembly’s PR Department, the RA Defence Minister Serge Sargsian
expressed gratitude to Chairman of the National Assembly and the
parliament for showing a warm and considerate attitude to the army. He
pointed out that the 28 of January has started to enter the public
life as a holiday and it will become a national holiday in 3-4
years. The Defence Minister also expressed gratitude for the attention
to army-related laws and assured the Armenian Army is efficient and
ready to honorably defend the borders of the country.

SEYRAN OHANIAN: WE MAY SURELY SAY THAT AZERBAIJAN ISN’T ABLE TO SOLVE
ANY ISSUE BY MILITARY FORCE
YEREVAN, January 27 (Noyan Tapan). During the January 26 sitting the
RA NA Standing Commission on Social, Public Health and Nature
Protection Issues discussed the draft laws “On the Introduction of
Amendments into the laws “On Education of Persons Needy in Special
Conditions of Education”, “On Administrative Offences”, as well as “On
the Introduction of Amendments into the law “On Foodstuffs
Security”. According to the press service of the RA National Assembly,
the discussed issues are included into the agenda of the four-day
sittings of the parliament with the positive conclusion of the
Commission. The draft laws “On Ecological Control”, “On the
Introduction of Amendments into the RA Water Code” were also
positively approved. RA Deputy Minister of Defense Artur Aghabekian
submitted the “Protocol on Children’s Participation in Armed
Conflicts”, which is an attachment to the Convention “On Children’s
Rights” signed in New York on May 25, 2000. According to the Protocol,
the necessity of the provision and security of children during the
armed conflicts is determined. It was mentioned that the Ministry of
Defense considers joining to the document as expedient: according to
the Ministry of Justice, the protocol doesn’t contradicts to the RA
law, and according to the conclusion of the Ministry of Finances,
Armenia’s joining to the protocol doesn’t foresee financial
obligations. The protocol with the positive conclusion will be
discussed during the four-day sittings of the RA National Assembly.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress