Armenian FM Gives Interview To Russian "kommersant"

ARMENIAN FM GIVES INTERVIEW TO RUSSIAN "KOMMERSANT"

Panorama.am
12:05 12/10/2009

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan expressed Armenia’s
disposition over the signing of the Armenian-Turkish protocols and
the ongoing processes of Karabakh conflict resolution in his interview
to Russian "Kommersant".

"I can not exclude anything. It depends on how much the sides will
feel respect towards the agreements and will advance. Armenia respects
the agreements which have been made in the aftermath of mediation
of foreign states," Armenian FM answered to the request if the
Armenian-Turkish border will be opened till the end of the year.

"The process of normalizing ties with Turkey is Armenia’s President’s
initiative, when he invited Turkey’s President to Armenia to watch
football match. Since then the negotiations started and the Foreign
Ministers of both states have had tens of meetings. In February the
negotiations over the agreements ended and protocols were pre-signed
on 2 April. On 31 August Armenia and Turkey declared that internal
consultations should be launched to discuss the protocols, to sign
them and ratify afterwards," Minister Nalbandyan said.

When exactly the protocols will be signed, Mr. Nalbandyan said,
it depends on the parliaments.

"We hope it will happen within reasonable timeframes," he said.

Regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution and the processes
over it and Kishinev negotiations between the Presidents, Minister
said"

"If we take into consideration that it has been the seventh meeting
of the Presidents, then some advancement exists. That dynamics is
positive. Currently the Presidents discuss Madrid documents. To be
more precise they discuss two basic principles. By the initiative of
the Minsk Group they try to make their dispositions closer."

According to the Minister the sides discuss the status of
Nagorno-Karabakh.

It has been stated that D. Medvedev’s role is great, who has had
several meetings with the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan. All
those meetings were success.

Turkey May Protract

TURKEY MAY PROTRACT

hos15517.html
15:15:52 – 12/10/2009

The head of the Armenian Center for National and International
Studies Richard Kirakosyan today told reporters that the question
on the protocols’ ratification will be a challenge in the Turkish
parliament. According to him, the Armenian side may expect that the
Turkish parliament will protract the ratification until next year. The
reason, according to Kirakosyan, is that after the ratification the
border must be opened within 60 days.

http://www.lragir.am/engsrc/politics-lra

NATO Week Starts In Armenia

NATO WEEK STARTS IN ARMENIA

ArmInfo
2009-10-12 11:25:00

ArmInfo. NATO week started in Armenia today within the frames of the
Individual Partnership Actions Programme (IPAP), Armenian Foreign
Ministry press service told ArmInfo.

NATO week will last till October 16. Visits of NATO representatives
to Yerevan, different meetings, an international forum, a photo
exhibition, dedicated to the Armenian peacekeepers, as well as
Yerevan-Pristina telebridge will be held within the frames of the
current events.

"New NATO Strategy Concept" international forum, "NATO and EU Role from
the Viewpoint of Assuring Stability in Armenia and South Caucasus"
conference, as well as a video-conference with NATO representative
and demonstration of a film about ISAF will be held within the frames
of NATO week in Armenia.

Serzh Sargsyan Addressed All Armenians

Tert.am

18:59 ¢ 10.10.09

Serzh Sargsyan Addressed All Armenians

"My fellow compatriots,
The historic destine of our nation has many times been focuses on the
directive of searching wise exits of the most complex situations. We
have only succeeded when we pragmatically assessed the current
challenges and took appropriate actions. Today we also find ourselves
in a similar position. In order to build and consolidate our statehood
we, in our collective identity, need to demonstrate adequate thinking
and action.

Today, we are trying to put on a normal track the relations with a
country where, under the Ottoman rule, our nation fell victim to the
policy of patricide and genocide. The scars of the Genocide do not
heal. And the memory of our martyrs and future of our generations
dictates to have solid and stable state, powerful and prosperous
country, a country which is the rebirth of the dreams of the whole
Armenian nation. One of the significant steps along that road is
having normal relations with all our neighbors, including Turkey.

Independence dictates the will and determination to take responsible
decisions; it dictates pragmatism and forward-looking sustained
work. That is the road I have selected. I have done it with the strong
understanding of the historical reality and a strong belief in the
future of our people.

There is no alternative to the establishment of the relations with
Turkey without any precondition. It is the dictate of the time. It is
not this need that is being debated today. The concern of individuals
and some political forces is caused by the different interpretation of
certain provisions contained in the Protocols and their historic
mistrust towards Turkey.
Having realistically assessed these circumstances and being convinced
in the necessity and correctness of the steps undertaken, I insist on
the following:

1. No relations with Turkey can question the reality of the patricide
and the genocide perpetrated against the Armenian nation. It is a
known fact and it should be recognized and
the whole progressive humanity. The relevant sub-commission to be
established under the intergovernmental commission, is not a
commission of historians.
2. The issue of the existing border between Armenia and Turkey is to
be resolved through prevailing norms of the international law. The
Protocols do not go beyond that.
3. These relations cannot and do not relate to the resolution of the
Nagorno Karabagh conflict, which is an independent and separate
process. Armenian does not regard the clause of the territorial
integrity and inviolability of the borders contained in the Protocols
as in any way related to the Nagorno Karabagh problem.
4. The Armenian side will give an adequate reaction if Turkey
protracts the process of ratification or raises conditions for
it. Armenia undertakes no unilateral commitments though these
Protocols and does not make any unilateral affirmations. Armenia is
signing these Protocols in order to create basis for the establishment
of normal relations between our two countries. Hence, if Turkey fails
to ratify the Protocols within a reasonable timeframe and does not
implement all the clauses contained herein within the provided
timeframe or violates them in the future, Armenia will immediately
take appropriate steps as stipulated by the international law.

Dear compatriots, in addressing you I want to emphasize that today,
more than ever our people should stand united; we should have
capability of maturing our collective identity to life in the reality
of statehood. That is our road to the future.
The signing of the Protocols will be followed by stages of their
ratification and implementation. All the concerns and possible threats
which were so widely expressed in the course of the debate will be
taken into careful consideration and we shall be able to prevent any
development that might contradict our national interest. Today, I am
more than convinced that we will succeed. And we will do that
together, all of us, the Armenians. Today we are not the same we were
only a few months ago. And i
fidence in the wisdom of our people. I have confidence that together
we shall hand down a prosperous and peaceful motherland to our
generation. It will definitely be so".

Tert.am

Armenia’s Leadership Attempting To Rid Itself Of Russia’s Influence,

ARMENIA’S LEADERSHIP ATTEMPTING TO RID ITSELF OF RUSSIA’S INFLUENCE, SAYS ANALYST

Tert.am
14:19 08.10.09

The establishment of Armenian-Turkish relations and the border opening
will most likely result in changes in Armenia’s foreign policy, said
Director of the Research Center for Civil Society Problems Vitali
Kulik, reports Azerbaijani news source Day.az.

According to Kulik, one can already see that Armenia’s leadership is
attempting to rid itself of Russia’s strategic influence.

"At this time, Armenia has supported the European Union’s Eastern
Partnership initiative, and is successfully implementing the Individual
Partnership Plan with NATO," Kulik stated.

Along with the Armenian-Turkish border opening, Armenia, according to
the Ukrainian analyst, will fully come out of international isolation
and will be guided by its own national interests when deciding its
course in foreign policy.

Tigran Sargsyan: Scientific Subcommittee To Discuss Legal Consequenc

TIGRAN SARGSYAN: SCIENTIFIC SUBCOMMITTEE TO DISCUSS LEGAL CONSEQUENCES OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

News.am
18:35 / 10/07/2009

The Armenian-Turkish scientific subcommittee, which is to be set
up under the Armenian-Turkish Protocols, will consider the legal
consequences of the Armenian Genocide, not the fact itself, RA Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan stated in Parliament.

According to him, the legal consequences of the Armenian Genocide
must be discussed at the Armenian-Turkish intergovernmental level,
as the issue of Armenians’ property must be legally specified. "The
necessary documents ate kept in Armenia’s archives, and the Armenian
side can reach certain results," the Premier said.

Unibank Presented New Program For Mortgage Loans

UNIBANK PRESENTED NEW PROGRAM FOR MORTGAGE LOANS

PanARMENIAN.Net
07.10.2009 18:01 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Unibank presented a new program for mortgage loans
with the improved conditions. Within the framework of the program
credits are given for acquisition of real estate from the primary
and secondary markets. Credits are given both in currency and in drams.

For the credits directed on acquisition of apartments, the minimal
advance payment is established 30%, the annual interest rate makes
16%, the term-12 years. Conditions of credits of business areas are
the following: advance payment – from 30 %, annual interest rate-
18 %, term-10 years. The program of mortgage crediting includes also
the credits directed on repair of real estate. Creditor can effect
full or partial repayment of the credit without charges.

As mortgage credits director Tigran Gevorgyan noted, program aims at
making mortgage credits available to the majority of the population.

Unibank mortgage credits portfolio exceeds AMD 12.7 billion, to be
brought up to AMD 15 billion by year-end.

Border Opening Offensive To Agriculture: Safaryan

BORDER OPENING OFFENSIVE TO AGRICULTURE: SAFARYAN

News.am
13:17 / 10/06/2009

In case Armenia-Turkey border opens, the Turkish products flood to
Armenia might primarily affect the agricultural sector, Chairman of
Domestic Commodity Producers’ Union Vazgen Safaryan told NEWS.am.

RA Government should take the necessary steps to protect
Armenian market "although it cannot prevent inferior goods’
manufacturing". According to Safaryan tax or customs measures can be
assumed, as well as natural monopolies rates should be revised "to
minimize it enabling Armenian products to compete with Turkish ones."

Energy resources, gas and water rates are quite high. The policy on
producing more competitive goods should be pursued, Vazgen Safaryan
stated specifying that this is how domestic producers are encouraged
in Turkey.

Referring to USD rate rise, Vazgen Safaryan said that it is conditioned
by the Central Bank problems. "I assume Central Bank will take steps
to control the currency rate," Safaryan concluded.

MFA Official Says News Will Be Reported Within Reasonable Timeframe

MFA OFFICIAL SAYS NEWS WILL BE REPORTED WITHIN REASONABLE TIMEFRAME

Panorama.am
15:05 05/10/2009

"We have been declaring and we do declare that we’ll make correspondent
statements related to all the activities towards the protocols,"
Tigran Balayan, of the Armenian Foreign Ministry told Panorama.am
requesting for the date to sign the protocols.

It’s worth reminding that some Turkish media publications announced
that Armenian and Turkish sides are going to declare the date of
signing the protocols.

Armenian football veterans bet Georgian colleagues

Armenian football veterans bet Georgian colleagues
03.10.2009 09:48 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Football match between Armenian and Georgian
football veterans held at Mika stadium in Yerevan terminated in 5:4
victory of RA football players.

Armenian team was composed of legendary Ararat football players and
older generation sportsman. Armenian team players, Tigran Yesayan and
Samvel Lazarian scored double goals each. Another goal was scored by
Eduard Markarov.

Georgian team included 14 ex-football players of Tbilisi Dinamo, among
them: Alexander Chivadze, Ramaz Shengelia, Vakhtang Sulakvelidze,
Ramaz Gabelia, Murtaz Khurtsilava, Vladimir Gutsaev, Givi Nodia and
other legends of Georgian football.

The match was organized by RA Football Veterans Union headed by Sergey
Poghosyan.