Author: Chakhmakhchian Vatche

1000 CITIES, 1000 LIVES CAMPAIGN FOR WORLD HEALTH DAY 2010

Aysor
April 7 2010
Armenia

Each year on April 7 the world celebrates World Health Day. This
day marks thousands of events, which are being held to lay stress on
importance of health for productive and happy lives.

The ‘1000 cities, 1000 lives’ campaign for World Health Day 2010
calls upon all cities worldwide to open up portions of streets to
the people to promote health activities for one day during the week
of 7-11 April 2010.

At today’s press conference UN Resident Coordinator Ms. Dafina Gercheva
called for Armenian government to follow the campaign.

"This year’s Health Day is an event, aimed at marking the issue of
urbanization, as the process has been taking place very active for
last 30 years, and more than half of people of the globe are living
in tows. People have left their villages and moved to towns; however,
not all towns can receive so many people," said Dafina Gercheva.

In view of these wide-ranging challenges, the ‘1000 cities, 1000 lives’
campaign highlights the effect of urbanization on people’s health both
in global and individual senses. Its goal is to call for all public to
coordinate their efforts with governments to overcome these challenges.

"The joint efforts are elements of significant importance, that
effect and help to improve the health quality for urban population,"
said Dafina Gercheva.

Referring to numerous problems, related to the health issues, Chief of
the Yerevan Office of the World Health Organisation Elizabeth Danielian
said: "There are various factors, effecting health. And ignoring
these factors means that no one organisation can reach its goals."

ADVISOR TO TURKISH PM: U.S PRESIDENT AND TURKISH PM TO HOLD UNOFFICIAL MEETING

Trend
April 7 2010
Azerbaijan

U.S President Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
will meet in Washington. But it will not be formal, advisor to Turkish
Prime-Minister on Eurasia Geybulla Ramazanoglu told Trend.

"The information that Obama and Erdogan will not meet, is wrong. The
meeting will take place, but it will not be official," Ramazanoglu
said over phone from Ankara.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs asked the question about the
bilateral meeting between Obama and Erdogan. He said that "the meeting
is not scheduled". He said that the U.S. president will meet with
his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sargsyan, Turkish news agency Cihan
reported.

Turkish Prime Minister will visit the United States April 12-13 to
attend a summit on nuclear safety, to be held under the patronage
of U.S President Obama. Presidents of 47 countries, including Turkey
and Armenia will attend the summit.

Ramazanoglu said that the presidents of the United States and Turkey
plan to discuss a number of issues at the meeting, but he did not
specify which ones.

Adviser to Turkish Prime Minister also rejected the information about
the possible pressure of the Jewish or Armenian lobby to the policy
of President Obama in relations with Turkey.

"The United States has its global strategy, which it will not refuse.

So, it was during previous administrations, and will remain at the
current one. No lobby does not have opportunities to exert pressure
on the presidents of the superpowers, " Ramazanoglu said.

On the eve of congressional elections, pro-Armenian positions are
usually strengthened. But it continues during the election campaign,
he said.

"After the elections, pro-Armenian sympathies [in the United States]
recede into the background, and forgotten," he said.

Turkish Prime-Minister Erdogan announced about his decision to take
part in the summit last Friday.

On Tuesday, Turkish Ambassador to the United States Namik Tan returned
to Washington on the eve of Erdogan’s visit. Tan was withdrawn the next
day after the Committee of the U.S. Congress adopted the resolution
on so-called "Armenian genocide".

EDWARD NALBANDYAN: OSCE MG CO-CHAIRMAN UNDERSTAND ARMENIA’S STANCE

ArmInfo
2010-04-07 11:36:00

ArmInfo. The problem of Karabakh status, recognition of the right of
Karabakh people for self-determination and its fulfillment is the
main problem of the Karabakh settlement, Armenian Foreign Minister
Edward Nalbandyan said at today’s press-conference.

‘Resolving of other problems is hardly possible without this problem
settlement’, – Nalbandyan said and added that the OSCE MG co-chairs
understand it too. As for the working suggestions offered by the
co-chairs to the parties to the conflict, they offered many times and
will continue offering until the parties get an opportunity to make
their positions closer. Nalbandyan said that the Madrid proposals
are still on the negotiating table. This document still remains the
basis of the talks, he said.

BAKU STRESSES KARABAKH IS PART OF AZERBAIJAN

news.az
April 6 2010
Azerbaijan

Elkhan Polukhov The people of Karabakh have the right to
self-determination only as part of Azerbaijan, Foreign Ministry
spokesman Elkhan Polukhov has said.

The spokesman was responding today to remarks by Armenian Foreign
Minister Edward Nalbandian and President Serzh Sargsyan that the
Karabakh conflict could be settled if Baku recognized the right to
self-determination.

‘The Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Nagorno Karabakh have
the right to self-determination within the framework of territorial
integrity and they will always be able to exercise this right,’
Polukhov said.

‘Mr Nalbandian, like Mr Sargsyan, probably knows that the updated
Madrid principles [for settlement of the conflict] set three points:
the non-use of force, respect for the territorial integrity and
sovereignty of states and the rights of people to self-determination.

‘The very formulation of the question of the right of peoples to
self-determination arises from respect for the territorial integrity
of independent states and can be defined only within the framework
of the territorial integrity of these countries. Otherwise, this
contradicts elementary logic,’ the spokesman said.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian told reporters earlier
today that ‘Armenia’s position on the Karabakh issue has not changed.

We have stated repeatedly, and the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group
are also aware, that the main issue in the settlement of the Karabakh
conflict is the recognition of the right of the Karabakh people to
self-determination and its implementation.’

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in an interview with German
weekly Der Spiegel that the Karabakh problem could be solved in hours,
if Azerbaijan recognized the independence of Karabakh.

ITU SECRETARY GENERAL HAMADOUN TOURE TO VISIT ARMENIA ON APRIL 6-7

Noyan Tapan
Apr 2, 2010

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, NOYAN TAPAN. Hamadoun Toure, Secretary General of
the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will pay an official
visit to Armenia on April 6-7. On April 6 he will meet with Armenian
Minister of Transport and Communication Manuk Vardanian and visit
the Armenian Genocide Museum and the Armenian-Slavonic University.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
will receive H. Toure on April 7.

NT was informed by Susanna Tonoyan, spokeswoman for the RA minister of
transport and communication, that a round-table with the participation
of ITU Secretary General and representatives of information and
communication technologies (ICT) sector will be conducted.

ITU is the leading United Nations agency for information and
communication technology issues, and the global focal point for
governments and the private sector in developing networks and services.

Armenia has been a member state of ITU since 1992.

IMF MISSION TO VISIT TURKEY IN MID-MAY

Tert.am
10:39 ~U 02.04.10

An International Monetary Fund mission will travel to Turkey in
mid-May to conduct a regular economic review of the Turkish economy,
an IMF spokesperson said on Thursday, reports Reuters.

Spokesperson Gerry Rice told a regular news briefing there was no
date set for the IMF visit to Turkey. Such Article IV consultations
are conducted every year between the IMF and its 186 member countries.

Turkey and the IMF said recently they would no longer pursue
discussions on an IMF loan program for the country since economic
conditions had improved.

TURKEY RESPONSIBLE FOR ITS SIGNATURE UNDERNEATH PROTOCOLS?

news.am
April 1 2010
Armenia

Turkey signed the Protocols on establishment of relations with Armenia
and is responsible for its signature, said Turkish Deputy Premier
Cemil Cicek on March 31 at the 7-hour meeting with ministers.

"If Turkey put its signature under any document or agreement, it is
responsible for that. But it is necessary that the world community see
sabotage from the other side," Cicek said shifting the whole blame
of Armenian side. "This process reached stalemate as a result of RA
Constitutional Court judgment. We are responsible for our signature
underneath the Protocols. Once both parties meet their commitments,
there will be a sense to talk," he concluded.

ADOPTION OF ARMENIAN BILLS NOT COMPLY WITH DIPLOMATIC COURTESY OR JUSTICE

news.az
April 1 2010
Azerbaijan

"Neither Sweden nor the United States had nothing to do with the
incidents that occurred nearly a century ago."

Turkish premier on Wednesday scorned the adoption of two separate bills
by the Swedish parliament and a US House panel that affirmed Armenian
allegations on the incidents of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire, expressing
firm belief that Turkey had nothing in its past to be ashamed of.

"Neither Sweden nor the United States had nothing to do with the
incidents that occurred nearly a century ago. And once you make history
a mere tool for politics, you might never be able to find the truth
again," Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a televised address to the nation.

Erdogan said there were no competent scientific studies that shed
a light on what really happened in 1915, and he accused politicians
to take advantage of the allegations in favor of their domestic or
foreign interests.

"Turkey has always defended that history should be left up to
historians and it should be allowed to make the decision," Erdogan
said.

The Turkish premier also said the adoption of such bills did not
comply with diplomatic courtesy or justice.

ARMENIAN SCHOOLS IN TURKEY TO BE GRANTED TEXTBOOKS IN NATIVE LANGUAGE

PanARMENIAN.Net
01.04.2010 15:12 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Turkish Ministry of Education has prepared
mathematics and introduction to natural science textbooks in Armenian
to be distributed free of charge among Armenian schools, NTV reported.

The decision followed a letter sent to Education Minister Nimet
Cubukcu by a Turkish-Armenian teacher requesting to provide Armenian
schools with textbooks. The request was granted as the ministry
initiated an unprecedented project for the 2011-2012 school year and
assigned the Instruction and Education Institution to translate the
textbooks into Armenian in line with the ministry’s curriculum. The
head masters of some Armenian schools were invited to Ankara for
collaboration. According to the final regulation, the textbooks for
first, second and third grades as well as three supplementary exercise
books for each will be translated into Armenian and 2 000 copies will
be made.

In total, 24 000 books will be published for 24 Armenian schools,
18 of them in Istanbul.

TURKISH AND RUSSIAN MEDIA RECALL STEPAN ZATIKYAN IN AFTERMATH OF MOSCOW BOMBINGS

Tert.am
12:50 â~@¢ 31.03.10

Just two days after the March 29 twin bombings in the Moscow metro, the
Russian media recalled a January 8, 1977 bombing in Moscow allegedly
organized and implemented by Armenian nationals Stepan Zatikyan,
Hakob Stepanyan and Zaven Baghdasaryan who were arrested and shot dead.

Reported by Russian daily Moskovskiy Komsomolets, the news article
has found a wide response also in Turkish media, including Today’s
Zaman and Cihan news agency.

"The Moscow metro was built in the 1930s and since then it has been
subjected to numerous terroristic attacks. But the first act of
terrorism was carried out by a racist Armenian group in January 8,
1977. In an attempt to join Karabakh and Nakhijevan to Armenia, which
belong to Azerbaijan, the Armenian racists attacked the Moscow metro,
killing innocent people…

The investigation uncovered that the attack was carried out by Stepan
Zatikyan, Hakob Stepanyan and Zaven Baghdasaryan, Armenian citizens
based in Yerevan. They were students at the Yerevan Polytechnic
Institute. They had founded an underground National United Party and
were publishing Paros (Lighthouse) newspaper. They demanded Armenia’s
independence… The first attack on the Moscow metro left 7 dead and
37 injured," reports Cihan.

Sentenced to death following his arrest, Zatikyan had not pleaded
guilty and his final words were "You do not have the right to judge
me because the Ä´hud-Russian empire is not a legal state."