Author: Chakhmakhchian Vatche

ANSAmed

Oct 2, 2009â?

Jewish Telegraphic Agency

TURKEY-UE: DAVOTOGLU IN BRUSSELS, RESTART NEGOTIATIONS

(ANSAmed) – BRUSSELS – Agreements must be respected, whatever the
outcome of the Irish referendum may be. The European Union is
definitively bound for historic and geographic reasons to Turkey and
this necessitates a political response: there will not be a future
role as a global power for Europe without Ankara. And once these
economic ties are established, the commitment made in 2004 must be
honoured, which promised access to the 27-member EU. This was the
message launched by Turkish Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, in his
speech to a conference organised in Brussels by the European Policy
Centre, before meeting with European Commission President, Jose’
Manuel Barroso. According to Davutoglu, the EU cannot barricade itself
behind the current boundaries of the 27-member states because ”there
is no Great Wall of China between the EU and non-EU countries”,
explaining how Turkey plays a key role geopolitically on more than one
common front with Europe:
”Turkey is a European country, but also the Balkans, the
Mediterranean, Asia, and the Middle East, and at this point, the
Gulf”. Essentially, ”the crisis demonstrated that no prosperity is
permanent and having a global vision means challenges. Ankara ”in the
past 7 years has worked on a proactive foreign policy. Our principle
is economic integration with our neighbours,” explained the minister,
”and this provides a prospect of stability. Economic interdependency
and cultural co-existence are the best path to achieve peace”. Then
he posed a question: ”It is better to join Turkey’s potential to that
of the EU or keep them separate? Differently from 10 years ago,”
said the minister, ”I believe that at this point we are all certain
that we provide stability”. Without forgetting about their common
destiny on other fronts, from energy security to environmental issues:
”Turkey provides only advantages,” concluded the minister. The
Nabucco project, which is strategic for Ankara, would not compromise
EU-Russia relations, simply because it is complementary to
others. ”We are not thinking about two competing energy policies,”
he added, ”since we buy energy from Russia. We are talking about
different gas pipelines: one goes from north to south and the other
goes from east to west.” There are only two elements that complicate
the panorama: Cyprus and Armenia, for which we will ”continue to do
everything possible” and negotiations are continuing. This does not
take away from the fact that Cyprus’ entry into the EU has left a bad
taste in their mouth. ”If the Cyprus issue had been resolved back
then,” said Davutoglu, ”today there would not be a problem with the
Customs Union, with Turkey’s ports and airports not being open to
Greek-Cypriots and the embargo against Turkish Cypriots. But Ankara is
not giving up and hope that negotiations to enter into the EU will be
restarted after having evaluated their ”continued efforts” on a
diplomatic level. Certainly ”we will not recognise Greek Cyprus if
the matter is not resolved,” concluded Davutoglu. And as for the
result of the Irish referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon, ”we are not
worried because the European leaders’ commitment to grant access to
Turkey was assumed in 2004 and ”agreements must be
respected”. (ANSAmed).

SUU STUDENTS MEET IRANIAN LEADERS IN BIG APPLE
Dennis Busch

SUU Journal Online
10/1/09

Members of the Iranian Parliament and delegation to the United
Nations meet in New York City where a group of SUU students traveled
to meet them.

This last week I had a unique opportunity with 11 other students
from SUU and the Michael O. Leavitt Center for Politics & Public
Service to travel to New York City to meet with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
the controversial figure and President of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The week’s events, which were organized with the Foundation for
Interreligious Diplomacy, allowed us to engage Iranian leaders on
a myriad of topics from foreign policy, nuclear development, human
rights violations and even the holocaust.

The meeting with Ahmadinejad on Sept. 23 was probably the most secure
event I have attended in my life, with so many Secret Service agents
you would have thought Lady Bird Johnson was coming.

Soon after we all got through security and inside The Barclay, the
street in front of this ornate hotel was filled with impassioned
protestors waving signs and chanting about their dissatisfaction with
Ahmadinejad’s regime and with us for meeting with him.

While waiting in a reception room before being allowed to enter the
ballroom, we were presented with literature about the tourism industry
of Iran, the successes of Ahmadinejad and a ridiculous brochure about
the evils of Zionist states – a must-read for every anti-Semite.

As we were finally led into the ballroom, we were informed that
because delays at the U.N., we would have to wait even longer for
the president to take our questions.

Former Iranian Vice President, Parviz Davoodi, filled this long gap
by talking about the amazing things Iran and its people have done,
lacing his talk with all the flair and excitement of a Harry Reid
filibuster speech.

Whe nd the first question was about the mistreatment and imprisonment
of Afghan refugees.

Ahmadinejad replied that information was incorrect and that the UN
High Commissioner on refugees had commended Iran on their treatment
of refugees.

However, he then instructed the Iranian state television, the only
press covering the event, not to broadcast the answer to the question
stating that it would "make their Afghani brothers sad to hear."

The state press selectively did not record several of the president’s
answers, including his anything-but-brief response on a question about
the Holocaust, and his questioning of some of the facts surrounding
the Jewish genocide.

One of the last questions asked to Ahmadinejad was what he would do
in response to President Barack Obama’s assertions that as a neighbor
of Afghanistan, Iran should play a role in stabilizing the area.

The president claimed that since the NATO forces entered Afghanistan,
drug production has increased, and the area has become unstable. He
went on to assert that any country is wrong if they think that military
force will bring about stability.

In total, he answered about 20 questions and talked with us for almost
three hours.

In addition to UVU and Westminster College, the other schools
in attendance included Columbia, Rutgers, NYU and Yale, and not
surprising, Utah students held their own amongst the Ivy Leaguers.

On Friday, we had the additional opportunity to meet and ask
questions with four religious minority members of the Parliament
of Iran representing Assyrian Christians, Armenian Christians,
Zoroastrians and Jews.

Ciamak Moresadegh, the Jewish MP essentially said Ahmadinejad is wrong
about the Holocaust, and that it is a scientific fact that affected
all Jews of the world.

These religious minorities, which are recognized by the constitution,
also stressed that Baha’, the largest non-Islamic faith in Iran,
is not a religion at all, and thus does not receive support nor
protection from the government.

While there were questions about nuclear cilities and foreign policy,
they were largely centered on religious freedom, and at one point,
a representative of the Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations said
in regards to the peaceful nature of Iran, "If Joseph Smith had been
amongst Muslims, he would have been safe."

Overall, the event appeared to be a political stunt, aimed at
making the president look like he was reaching out for diplomacy and
supporting his people.

Many reports prior to the event indicated that the religious minority
MPs were strongly urged to attend in an effort to make the Ahmadinejad
regime look better on issues of religious freedom.

Our meeting with human rights groups beforehand only further
underscored that the meeting would be a public relations stunt, and
that we should show our solidarity with the reformers in the country
as much as possible, including wearing green.

Regardless of what the implications are of our attendance, I am glad

we went. I personally learned so much. Even if I end up on some no fly
list, I think my first hand experience with diplomacy has been worth
it. And even more, SUU students were participating in an event that
made national news, and is the ultimate path to peace in the region –
interfaith and intercultural dialogue.

Dennis Busch is the Opinion editor of the University Journal and
member of the Michael O. Leavitt Institute for Public Policy.

UZBEK TOPS PGMA CUP CHESS; ANTONIO, DIMAKILING TOP RP FINISHERS

GMA news.tv
10/01/2009 | 11:49 AM

GM Anton Filippov of Uzbekistan emerged as the champion in the fourth
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Cup international chess championship
Wednesday at the Duty Free Fiesta Mall in Parañaque City.

Filippov, seeded third with an ELO of 2595, subdued IM Richard Bitoon
of the Philippines in the eighth round late Tuesday and drew with top
seed GM Mikhail Mchedlishvili of Georgia in the final round to finish
with a nine-round aggregate of 6.5 points on four wins and five draws.

Four other players – GMs Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son of Vietnam, Ehsan
Ghaemmaghami of Iran, Merab Gagunashvili of Georgia and Gopal Nayanan
of India – also finished with similar scores of 6.5 points but lost
the title to Filippov in the tiebreak.

Truong Son, who held the solo lead after the seventh round, settled
for back-to-back draws with Mchedlishvili and Gagunashvili in the
eighth and ninth rounds.

Ghaemmaghami, the lone Iranian player in the field, made the biggest
jump when he defeated GM John Paul Gomez of the Philippines in the
eighth round and GM Tigran Kotanjian of Armenia in the ninth to finish
in a tie for first place.

Gagunashvili beat GM Meng Kong Wong of Singapore and halved the
point with Nguyen, while Nayanan drew with Kotanjian in the eighth
and trounced GM Darwin Laylo of the Philippines in the final round.

The five players, however, earned US$4,000 each out of the total
prize fund of $40,000 in the tournament organized by the National
Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP).

Mchedlishvili, the highest-rated player here with an ELO of 2613,
finished in sixth place with six points in a tie with GMs Rogelio
Antonio, Jr. and Oliver Dimakiling of the Philippines.

Filipino GM Rogelio "Joey" Antonio, Jr. during the President GMA Cup
international chess championship in Parañaque City.Jeff Venancio
Antonio, one of three players who will represent the country in the
World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia next month, drew w n nipped
compatriot GM-elect Ronald Dableo in the final round.

Dimakiling drew with Dableo in the eighth round and won over No. 16
Pyotr Kostenko of Kazakhstan in the final round to join Antonio as
the highest-placed Filipino players.

Mchedlishvili, Antonio and Dimakiling pocketed $1,333 each.

Nine other players, led by Filipino GMs Jayson Gonzales, Buenaventura
"Bong" Villamayor and Gomez and IM Richard Bitoon, finished in ninth
to 17th places with 5.5 points. They received $933 each.

Also in the group were Kotanjian, Ismagambetov, GM Das Neelotpal of
India and Emmanuel Senador.

Laylo, the reigning Asian Zone 3.3 champion, and Dableo, the country’s
newest GM, led four other players with five points.

Defending champion, GM Eugene Torre, who won the title in a three-way
tie last year, withdrew after the seventh round. He finished with
2.5 points on five draws and two losses. – GMANews.TV

HEAD OF THE GEORGIAN TIMES: ARMENIANS AND GEORGIANS SHOULD NOT ALLOW FOR SOMEONE THIRD TO SOUR OUR RELATIONS

ArmInfo
2009-10-01 16:18:00

ArmInfo. Armenians and Georgians should not allow for someone third
to sour the Armenian-Georgian relations creating a corresponding
situation in relations between our two brother peoples, President of
the Georgian Times Media Holding, Chairman of the Public Commission
of Georgian-Russian Relations Malkhaz Gulashvili told ArmInfo. he said.

According to Gulashvili, the Georgian community shows an extreme
concern over this topic and does not wish for this conflict at an
early stage to be further continued. M. Gulashvili resumed.

HUNCHAKIAN PARTY TO ACCELERATE ACTIVITIES

News.am
15:58 / 09/29/2009

Armenian nation will witness the acceleration of Social Democrat
Hunchakian Party in the near future and the expectations of party
activities will be justified, Hunchakian party member and former
MP to Lebanese Parliament Yeghia Cherechyan stated at the Yerevan
press conference.

According to him, presently Armenian parties act rather passive and
do not live up to the Armenian nation’s expectations. "The reason
for the inactivity lies in early 90s’ mistakes, but today they are
being corrected," former Parliamentarian noted, adding the situation
changed dramatically-party offices open in Armenian marzes, the number
of party members increases mainly due to youth and intellectuals’
involvement. "I happened to talk to some new Hunchaks and the fact
that they are enrolled for ideological reasons, that is Hunchakian
Party is in opposition, pleases me," Cherechyan concluded.

ARMENIAN FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER MEETS THE USA SECRETARY OF STATE IN NEW YORK

ARMENPRESS
Sep 29, 2009

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 29, ARMENPRESS: Armenian Foreign Affairs Minister
Edward Nalbandian delivered an extended speech during the 64th session
of the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization.

Media Relations department of Armenian Foreign Ministry told Armenpress
that in his speech the Armenian Foreign Affairs Minister referred
to a number of international and regional issues and approaches of
Armenia towards their regulation. He presented the process of Artsakh
conflict troubleshooting and the approaches of the Armenian side.

>From the most authoritative international rostrum Edward Nalbandian
spoke about the process of regulation of Armenian-Turkish relations
which started on the initiative of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

On the same day Edward Nalbandian met the USA Secretary of State
Hilary Clinton which is the second meeting of the heads of foreign
affairs departments within this year.

Greeting the Armenian Foreign Minister the USA Secretary of State
noted that the United States is partner to Armenia in the democratic
reforms as well as in the economic development sphere. Mrs. Clinton
characterized the Armenian-USA relations as holistic, representative
and deep. On behalf of USA Administration the Secretary of State
Clinton expressed readiness to continue the multilateral cooperation
with the Armenian President, Government and the Foreign Minister.

Referring to Armenian-Turkish relations Hilary Clinton highly assessed
the efforts of Armenia towards regulation of relations with Turkey
and reconfirmed the USA position that regulation of relations between
Armenia and Turkey must be without preconditions and within reasonable
timeframes.

Edward Nalbandian expressed gratification on regular Armenian-USA high
level intercourse and underscored that attaching importance to further
fortification of relations with the USA Armenia will be consistent
to develop and deepen the friendly partnership with the US Minister
Nalbandian expressed gratitude for the USA Support to the process of
regulation of Armenian-Turkish relations. During the discussion of the
Artsakh issue as a co-chairing state in the OSCE Minsk Group Edward
Nalbandian signified the role of USA in the conflict negotiations.

Heads of foreign affairs departments of Armenia and USA also exchanged
thoughts on issues of bilateral interest.

ARMENTEL ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF NEW ‘FOR YOU’ TARIFF

ArmInfo
2009-09-29 10:48:00

ArmInfo. ArmenTel CJSC (Beeline trademark) announces launch of a new
‘For You’ tariff.

‘The new tariff plan gathers the best proposals for our clients:
popular prices for calls in the home network and other operators’
network, low tariffs for SMS and MMS messages inside the network,
as well as for GPRS-Internet’, ArmenTel CJSC Director General Igor
Klimko said. A minute of an outgoing call for subscribers of ‘For You’
tariff plan inside the network costs 19 drams, and the calls to the
numbers of other mobile operators or to the fixed network numbers
make up 39 drams. Beeline SMS- message inside the network cost 9
drams, and MMS-messages – 19 drams. These are the lowest prices in
the market which are not conditioned by the number of the previously
sent messages, the time of the day or other limitations.

SMS-messages to the numbers of other operators, including the
internationals ones, cost 20 drams, and MMS-messages – 50 drams. ‘For
You’ tariff also provides moderate tariffs for the mobile Internet:
1 MB of the data sent/received costs 29 drams.

ArmenTel CJSC (Beeline brand) is the subsidiary of VimpelCom Group. The
VimpelCom Group consists of telecommunications operators providing
voice and data services through a range of wireless, fixed and
broadband technologies.

The Group includes companies operating in Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Georgia and Armeniaas well as Vietnam
and Cambodia, in territories with a total population of about 340
million. The Group companies provide services under the "Beeline"
brand. VimpelCom was the first Russian company to list its shares on
the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE"). VimpelCom’s ADSs are listed on
the NYSE under the symbol "VIP".

ARMENIA: YEREVAN IN UPROAR OVER PROTOCOL SIGNING DATE WITH TURKEY
Marianna Grigoryan

nsightb/articles/eav092809b.shtml
9/28/09

EURASIA INSIGHT

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s announcement that
Turkey and Armenia on October 10 will sign protocols on diplomatic
normalization ties is having an unsettling effect on domestic politics
in Yerevan. Some Armenian opposition politicians are complaining
that the signing-date announcement makes a mockery of a parliamentary
debate on the issue, scheduled to take place on October 1.

Prime Minister Erdogan’s statement went no further than to set a
signing date for the protocols, according to media reports. Further
steps remain. Under the terms of the agreement, the signed
protocols would require ratification by the Turkish and Armenian
parliaments. Both sides have pledged to open their border, closed
since 1993, within two months of the protocols’ ratification. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

The Armenian Foreign Ministry has not commented on Erdogan’s
announcement. The spokesperson for Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’s
Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), however, stated that the decision
in no way diminishes the significance of the planned parliamentary
debate. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.]

"The discussions go on, but they are not aimed at changing
the authorities’ views; these are public hearings," said Eduard
Sharmazanov. "Authorities would never sign a document contradicting
our national interests, nor would they [normalize] relations with
pre-conditions," he said, referring to Turkish calls for Armenia to
withdraw troops from territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. [For
background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Back on September 1, Turkish and Armenian leaders announced that six
weeks of "political consultations" would take place before the signing
of the two protocols. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.]
On September 17, President Sargsyan held a round-table discussion with
leading Armenian politicians. The president at that time pledged that
he would take personal responsibility for sorting out any lingering
causes of concern for Armenian politicians. "I am going to solve
issues," Sargsyan was quoted as saying. "If in order to solve a
certain issue, we have closed a certain door, please, show me."

The parliamentary debates were expected to broaden that
discussion. Even so, some important opposition groups, especially
former president Levon Ter-Petrosian’s Armenian National Congress
(ANC), continue to shun government-sponsored discussions. The ANC
insists the government has already made up its mind.

ANC coordinator Levon Zurabian suggested that Sargsyan is not
interested in hearing the opinions of his political opponents. The
supposed political dialogue in Armenia is a sham, Zurabian contended,
held "in order to get support from the international community."

On October 1, President Sargsyan is scheduled to embark on a week-long
"listening tour" that will take him to Paris, New York, Los Angeles,
Beirut and Rostov-on-Don. In each city, he is scheduled to meet with
representatives of local Armenian communities and get their input on
the protocols.

One senior ANC member who supports the protocols calls the trip a
further sign that the government has not "moved a finger to make the
people a participant" in the reconciliation process with Turkey. "It’s
very insulting when, instead of substantiating his policy within his
own society, Serzh Sargsyan is trying to do it abroad," said Suren
Surenyants, a board member for the Republic Party, a member of the ANC.

The RPA spokesperson, Sharmazanov, countered that the listening tour
demonstrated Sargsyan’s desire to take all opinions into account. "This
step of the president shows that he is a supporter of unity, the
all-Armenian leader," argued Sharmazanov. "Armenians abroad have
serious concerns [about this issue]. He’s going to explain and to
present everything soberly."

The director of the Yerevan office of one influential Diaspora
organization, the Armenian Assembly of America, agrees that Sargsyan’s
trip is critical. "Diaspora Armenians feel that [Armenia] is their
motherland, and we have an important role to play here," Arpi
Vardanian said.

Now that Turkey and Armenia seem set to sign the reconciliation
protocols, at least one Armenian political party is vowing to
fight ratification. "We hope something can still be changed,"
commented Artashes Shahbazian, parliamentary faction secretary for the
nationalist Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun. For the
past 13 days, the party has been staging protests throughout Yerevan,
as well as a hunger strike in front of government offices in Republic
Square. "We’ll continue our fight and protests for the benefit of
our country," Shahbazian said.

Editor’s Note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter based
in Yerevan.

SAMVEL FARMANYAN: WE’LL INFORM IF THERE IS CLARITY ABOUT THE NEXT STAGE OF THE PROCESS

armradio.am
28.09.2009 18:02

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared that the
Armenian-Turkish protocols will be signed on October 10 or 11.

Commenting on the statement, President’s Spokesman Samvel Farmanyan
said: "In case there is clarity about the next stage of the process,
we’ll inform about it."

GMA news.tv

Pinoy GMs Paragua, Dableo make presence felt

09/26/2009 | 12:47 PM

Filipino players made their presence felt in the fourth President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Cup international chess championship with GM
Mark Paragua and GM-elect Ronald Dableo leading the charge with
impressive victories over their higher-rated foreign rivals at the
Duty Free Fiesta Mall in Parañaque City.

Paragua, ever so eager to regain his billing as the country’s top
player, pulled the rug from under second seed GM Gopal Nayanan of
India in the biggest upset win so far in the tough, six-day tournament
featuring 56 players.

Dableo, who nailed his third and last GM norm during the Kuala Lumpur
Open last month, shocked sixth seed GM Merab Gagunashvili of Georgia
to boost his chances for the title and the top prize of US$6,000.

Filipino GM Rogelio `Joey" Antonio, Jr., left, prepares his next move,
during the GMA Cup international chess championship at the Duty Free
Fiesta Mall in Parañaque City. Jeff Venancio
Seeded only 15th with an ELO of 2501, Paragua, also whipped Rainier
Labay, while No. 23 Dableo (2417), humbled Angel Cordero for a leading
2 points apiece.

Dresden Olympiad sensation GM John Paul Gomez trounced Conrado Diaz in
the first round and subdued Emmanuel Senador in the second, while IM
Barlo Nadera outclassed Lyndon Lumancas and upset No. 10 seed GM
Darwin Laylo to join Paragua and Dableo in the lead pack.

No. 25 seed GM Meng Kong Wong of Singapore emerged as the only foreign
player with perfect score of two points after beating Danilo Jorda and
No. 8 GM Tigran Kotanjian of Armenia.

Seventeen players, led by top seed GM Mikhal Mchedlishvili of Georgia
and World Cup-bound GM Rogelio Antonio, Jr., stayed within striking
distance with 1.5 points out of a possible two.

Mchedlishvili, the highest-rated player here with an ELO of 2613, was
held to a draw by David Eorta in the first round but bounced back to
beat Reggie Olay in the second.

Antonio, the highest-rated Filipino player in the absence of GM Wesley
re crushing FM Haridas Pascua the following round.

The other notable players in the 17-player second group were GM Anton
Fillipov of Uzbekistan, who dumped Edgardo Garma in the opening round
and drew with No. 16 GM Pyotr Kostenko of Kazkahstan; No. 4 GM Nguyen
Ngoc Truong Son of Vietnam, who beat FM Leonardo Carlos and drew with
GM Buenaventura `Bong" Villamayor;

GM Ehsan Ghaemmaghami of Iran, who overwhelmed Daniel Causo and drew
with Tirto of Indonesia; and GM Jayson Gonzales, who split the point
with Albert Rivera and won over Rolando Andador.

Defending champion GM Eugene Torre had a slow start, drawing with
compatriots No. 38 Ali Branzuela and No. 40 Allan Macala.

Mchedlishvili and Duty Free deputy general manager Lorenzo Formoso
made the ceremonial moves during the short but colorful opening
ceremony while NCFP president Prospero Pichay formally declared the
tournament open.

A one-minute silent prayer for former chess writers Odette Alcantara,
Roger Flores and Boy Manuel was also observed during the opening
rites. – GMANews.TV