CHAIRMAN OF GEORGIAN TIMES: ARMENIA AND GEORGIA SHOULD HAVE COMMON MECHANISM IN MEDIA SPHERE

Noyan Tapan

Feb 9, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, NOYAN TAPAN. Neither Armenia nor Georgia needs
new conflicts and new wars, while some forces try to instigate them
between the two countries. Malkhaz Ghulashvili, the Chairman of
the Georgian Times media holding, expressed such an opinion at the
February 9 Yerevan-Tbilisi TV bridge organized by the Novosti-Armenia
information agency. According to M.

Gulashvili, in order to avoid conflicts the Armenians and Georgians
should work out a common mechanism of rules, especially in the media
sphere, where information wars have become frequent recently.

Gegham Manukian, Yerkir Media TV company’s information
programs Director, in his turn, said that today there are two
fronts in the South Caucasian information sphere, Armenian and
Georgian-Azeri. According to him, today not only Azeri, but also
Georgian press publishes false information about Armenia. G. Manukian
gave as an example the news that allegedly Armenia has purchased
a great amount of arms and ammunition from Russia lately. Another
participant of the discussion, expert Samvel Martirosian said that
the other day the Georgian Times newspaper published the results
of a dubious journalist investigation, according to which, Armenia
has really purchased arms from Russia. According to S. Martirosian,
a document was introduced within the framework of that investigation,
the illiterate structure of which can confirm any serviceman.

M. Gulashvili said that an employee of the RF Defence Ministry has
conveyed the above mentioned information to them. He repeated his
conviction that in the information sphere Armenia and Georgia should
find a way of cooperation, which will give a possibility to introduce
clarity in all issues. "Only in that way we will find out whether
Armenia received arms from Russia or the Russian Defence Ministry’s
employee told us a lie," M. Gulashvili concluded.