ARKA News Agency
March 2 2005
Head of CIS Executive Committee meets with RA Deputy Foreign Minister
Customs sector remains in center of President’s attention
RA President meets with UAR President
Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee Vladimir Rushailo arrives in
Yerevan
Karabakh conflict assumes character of cold war – head of
National-Democratic Union of Armenia
PPA for strategic alliance with Russia
RA Central Bank Chair Tigran Sargsyan reelected
Vladimir Zhirinovsky: The Scenario of `Orange’ Revolution May Take
Place in Armenia
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HEAD OF CIS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETS WITH RA DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. Head of the CIS Executive Committee
Vladimir Rushailo has met today with RA Deputy Foreign Minister
Gegham Garibjanyan. The Press and Public Information Department, RA
Foreign Office, reports that Rushailo presented the issues put on the
agenda of a meeting of the Council of the CIS Foreign Ministers,
which is to be held in Minsk, Belarus, on March 18. The sides also
discussed issues of reforms of the CIS and of arrangements to
celebrate the 60th anniversary of Victory in the Great patriotic War.
P.T. -0–
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CUSTOMS SECTOR REMAINS IN CENTER OF PRESIDENT’S ATTENTION
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian held a
working meeting today with Chief of the Ra Customs Committee Armen
Avetisyan. The RA presidential press service reports that Avetisyan
reported to the President on the execution of previously received
instructions. The sides discussed the Committee’s further activities,
particularly issues of the planned surveys aimed to reduce the share
of the shadow sector on the consumer goods market. President
Kocharian stressed that the customs sphere will remain in the center
of his attention. P.T. -0–
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RA PRESIDENT MEETS WITH UAR PRESIDENT
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharian held a
meeting today with President of the Union of Armenians of Russia
(UAR) and of the World Armenian Congress (WAC) Ara Abramyan. The Ra
presidential press service reports that the sides addressed issues of
holding arrangements to mark the 90th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, the 1600th anniversary of creation of the Armenian
alphabet, as well as of celebrations of 2005 as a year of Russia in
Armenia. P.T . – 0–
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CHAIRMAN OF THE CIS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE VLADIMIR RUSHAILO ARRIVES IN
YEREVAN
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee
Vladimir Rushailo arrived in Yerevan today. He informed the reporters
in Yerevan Zvartnots Airport that the visit is of working character
and he plans to conduct a number of meetings, including those with
political authorities of Armenia. `Issues to be discussed are the
execution of the decisions of the summit of CIS Heads of State
Council in Astana ‘, said Rushailo. He also said that a number of
important sessions are being prepared now, in particular, the session
of CIS Foreign Ministers Council on March 18 in Minsk and the session
of CIS Head of State is scheduled to be held in the end of April in
Tbilisi. In addition, the session of CIS Heads of State Council will
be held in Kazan. According to Rushailo, the agenda of talks includes
discussions on execution of decisions dedicated to celebrations of
60th anniversary of Victory in great Patriotic War. Meetings with RA
President Robert Kocharian, Premier Andranik Margaryan, Defense
Minister and Secretary of the Security Council Serge Sargsian, Deputy
Foreign Minister Gegham Garibjanyan are scheduled in the framework of
Rushailo’s visit to Armenia. Rushailo will also meet with veterans of
Great Patriotic War and workers of the rear. L.V.–0–
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KARABAKH CONFLICT ASSUMES CHARACTER OF COLD WAR – HEAD OF
NATIONAL-DEMOCRATIC UNION OF ARMENIA
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. Karabakh conflict assumes cold war
character, as stated Vazgen Manoukyan, the leader of
National-Democratic Union of Armenia. According to his forecast, the
settlement of the conflict will be delayed for tens of years and both
sides will be waiting for the `collapse of the other’. `Karabakh
issue can be settled neither by external force, nor by mutual
concessions ‘, noted Manoukyan.
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PPA FOR STRATEGIC ALLIANCE WITH RUSSIA
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. The People’s Party of Armenia (PPA) is for
a strategic alliance with Russia, PPA Chairman Stepan Demirchayn told
a press conference. However, he stressed that he is against the
formula `enterprises against debt’, which resulted in the giants of
Armenian industry being transferred to Russia. The enterprises remain
idle.
On December 4, 2002, as part of Armenian-Russian economic
cooperation, the RA Parliament ratified an agreement transferring to
Russia five Armenian enterprises against Armenia’s $93mln national
debt to Russia. The enterprises transferred to Russia are: the `Mars’
CJSC, Yerevan Research Institute of Mathematical Machines CJSC,
Yerevan Research Institute of Automated Control Systems CJSC, Yerevan
Research Institute of Materials’ Science, and the Hrazdan TPP. P.T.
-0–
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RA CENTRAL BANK CHAIR TIGRAN SARGSYAN REELECTED
YEREVAN, March 2. /ARKA/. Armenian National Assembly reelected RA CBA
Chair Tigran Sargsyan for a seven-year term by secret vote. According
to the Head of Parliamentary Counting Commission Gagik Melicyan, 92
MPs participated in the vote, of which 86 cast their votes for and 4
against his candidacy. Two ballots announced invalid. After his
reelection, Sargsyan thanked Armenian President Robert Kocharyan for
putting forward his candidacy and lawmakers for approving it. He
promised to justify confidence. `I’ll try to strengthen this
confidence and hope that cooperation with the Parliament will promote
the country’s economy flourishing’. Sargsyan said. He stressed that
Armenia would face new challenges and the country must be prepared
for them. `I hope the confidence in me will enable me to resist these
challenges’, he said.
Under clause N 18 of the Law on Central Bank, the Chair of the
Central Bank is being nominated by Armenian President for a
seven-year term and approved by National Assembly.
Current head of CBA Tigran Sargsyan took office in March 4, 1998.
M.V. -0–
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VLADIMIR ZHIRINOVSKY: THE SCENARIO OF `ORANGE’ REVOLUTION MAY TAKE
PLACE IN ARMENIA
MOSCOW, March 2. /ARKA/. The scenario of `orange’ revolution may take
place in Armenia, the Leader of LDPR faction of RF State Duma, Deputy
Chairman of RF State Duma Vladimir Zhirinovsky stated to ARKA’s
reporter in Moscow. According to Zhirinovsky, some circumstances may
contribute to it: small population, hence it would be easier to
bribe, Georgian factor, where the revolution has already happened, as
well as hostile neighborhood of Turkey and Azerbaijan. `Armenia is in
a difficult state, it’s surrounded with enemies from three borders,
and Azerbaijan and Turkey are implacable enemies of Armenia ‘, he
said.
With regard to Middle Asia, Zhirinovsky said that he didn’t
anticipate any revolutionary upheavals there: those countries are
ruled by the regimes that firmly hold the engines of power and do not
allow left powers and strong pro-western opposition. That’s why,
according to him, everything will be there `all right, including
Azerbaijan, where lham Aliyev adheres to the policy of his father, a
man quite experienced in policy’.
On the whole, according to Zhirinovsky, LDPR is not going to support
`any revolution in any way’. `I am against any `orange’ versions and
against CIS’, he said. Zhirinovsky doesn’t like the CIS, as it `lives
at the expense of Russia’. Transcaucasia is not an exception, and his
attitude to Transcaucasia is quite critical, since `emigrants from
there occupy scarce work places and take out Russian capital’. Thus,
according to Zhirinovsky, 2 mln of Azerbaijanis living in Russia
currently take about USD 2 bln away from the country, Georgians –
about USD 1 bln. And with regard to Azerbaijani oil and Georgian
tangerines used before, `the country was different then’, Zhirinovsky
said. `We separated and live now in different apartments, different
states, and if it’s not convenient, then we should look for other
types of cooperation ‘, he said. In his opinion, such should be
mutually advantageous union on voluntary basis, obliteration of all
borders, adoption of dual citizenship, two state languages, that is
Russia and local language, and a single type of currency- Russia
Ruble. A.H. -0–