Author: Chilingarian Babken

BARACK OBAMA IN TURKEY

In The News
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A pril 6 2009
UK

Barack Obama in Turkey: Live Printer friendly version Follow live
updates throughout the day as Barack Obama starts a two-day visit
to Turkey.

All times BST

13:41 – President Obama repeats his call for Turkey to become a full
member of the EU. "We speak not as members of the EU… but as close
friends of both the EU and Turkey.

"Turkey is bound to Europe by more than bridges over the
Bosphorus. Centuries of shared history, culture and commerce."

Comments likely to anger many anti-accessionists in the bloc.

13:39 – Turkey and the US are working together to tackle an
unprecedented crisis… President Obama, speaking at a new news
conference, is discussing the global recession.

12:15 – Obama praises Turkey’s status as a secular country, which
mirrors the US. The role of faith in politics is under immense scrutiny
at the moment.

And with that the press conference draws to a close.

12:11 – In the third month of your presidency, there is a huge
expectancy from the Turkish community on you. How are you different
from George Bush, President Obama is asked.

"Despite some of the problems dating back to 2003, you have seen
steady improvement in US-Turkish relations," is his reply.

"What I hope to do is to build on what is already a strong foundation."

Both presidents share a commitment to building commercial links and
the PKK is on the terrorism list of the two countries.

12:07 – "This is not a matter for law or politics, this is a matter
for history," President Gul responds.

"We don’t want future generations to grow up in animosity. We ask the
historians to sit down together and find a solution to this word… we
are prepared to face the reality – politicians cannnot make a decision
on who lost or won."

Armenian genocide?

12:05 – Uncomfortable first question. President Obama says his view
on the Armenian genocide, which Turkey disputes the terminology of,
is on the record.

"I don’t want to focus on my views, but the views of the Turkish
people," he says, calling on Turkey to move forward from a "difficult
and tragic history".

Obama really tip-toeing around the issue in very sensitive language.

12:04 – The gap between the west and the Muslim world can be bridged
by Turkey, President Obama says in his preamble.

12:02 – President Obama confirms that peace in the Middle East and
reducing the threat of nuclear proliferation were top of the agenda
for his talks in Turkey.

12:00 – "Am I trying to make a statement by ending this week-long
trip in Turkey? Yes I am," says Obama.

"This country lies at the crossroads of east and west."

President Obama is concluding his first major overseas visit as
president in Turkey, a key Nato ally.

After a highly successful visit to London for the G20 summit and
France/Germany for a summit to mark the 60th anniversary of Nato,
President Obama has caused a minor row after backing Turkish accession
to the EU.

The statement prompted a rebuke from Nicolas Sarkozy, who repeated
French opposition to the move.

11:58 – Turkish president Abdullah Gul says it is a great honour to
welcome President Obama to Ankara.

11:00 – President Obama is making his first visit to a mainly-Muslim
country since his inauguration. He has already visited the mausoleum
of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk- the founding father of modern Turkey.

He is due to address the Turkish parliament before travelling to
Istanbul. Follow live updates on his trip on inthenews.co.uk.

U.S. PRESIDENT OBAMA MEETS TURKISH, ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTERS

Anadolu Agency
April 6 2009
Turkey

ISTANBUL (A.A) – 06.04.2009 – U.S. President Barack Obama had a meeting
with foreign ministers of Turkey, Armenia and Switzerland in Istanbul
on Monday.

Obama met Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, Armenian Foreign
Minister Eduard Nalbandian and Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline
Calmy-Rey in Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul.

RA PRIME MINISTER TIGRAN SARGSYAN RECEIVED A DELEGATION HEADED BY IRI MINISTER OF ROADS AND COMMUNICATIONS HAMID BEHBAHANI

Fr iday, 3 April 2009

Greeting the guests, the Prime Minister expressed our country’s
eagerness to develop the existing ties of deeply-rooted friendship
between Armenia and Iran – friendship that more than once has proved
to be reliable, especially in times of hardship. According to Tigran
Sargsyan, the global financial and economic crisis is an opportunity
for deepening and strengthening bilateral relations to provide our
two countries with additional immunity against the depression.

In this context, prioritizing the RA President’s upcoming first
official visit to neighboring Iran, Tigran Sargsyan said to be
convinced that the presidential visit will give a fresh boost to
Armenian-Iranian relations.

In turn, Minister Hamid Behbahani underscored that Armenia is a key
partner for Iran and that the ongoing cooperation in the fields of
energy, transport and in other sectors is among his country’s foreign
economic priorities.

In particular, the Iranian Minister singled out the Iran-Armenia
railroad construction project. He said to have met with the Armenian
ministers of Energy, Transport and Communications, as a result of which
a corresponding task force is already up to that effect. According
to Hamid Behbahani, the planned activities may be carried out in 3
stages: feasibility study, identification of financing sources, optimal
itinerary determination and project implementation. He stressed Iran’s
readiness to support Armenia at any of these stages in order to bring
the project into effect as soon as possible. "Armenia’s southernmost
gateway is more than reliable, and we will be striving to ensure that
communication between our two countries is eased as much as possible,"
the Minister said during the meeting.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan, too, emphasized that either Armenia
is interested in having direct railway communication with Iran,
the lack of which is a serious obstacle to the use of the existing
potentialities. Once commissioned, the railroad will help improve
our country’s trade position by bringing many enterprises into
operation. There are a number of interesting projects in the energy
and agricultural sectors which, if implemented, will be a major
contribution to the fostering of bilateral economic exchanges.

NKR, RA FOREIGN MINISTRIES HOLD CONSULTATIONS

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.04.2009 16:41 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Officials of Armenian and NKR Foreign Ministries
held a new round of consultations to discuss cooperation and exchange
views on the current stage of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement.

Ministers Edward Nalbandian and Georgy Petrosyan also attended the
meeting.

CORPSE FOUND IN A CANAL

A1+
01:49 pm | April 03, 2009

Society

A corpse was found in a canal in the village of Ghukasavan, Ararat
Marz, at 11.35, April 2. In a short while, rescuers took out the body
of a man, aged 40-45, and handed to law-enforcers.

PRESIDENT OF "A1+": "YOU CAN’T BUILD A COUNTRY WITH LIES"

A1+
08:07 pm | April 02, 2009

Interview

"There is lack of impartiality in an environment of fear. You can’t
build a country with lies and an environment of fear," says president
of the "A1+" TV Mesrop Movsesyan.

It was exactly seven years ago on April 2 when the Armenian authorities
made the decision to shut down "A1+" television.

What changes did this bring to the field of journalism in Armenia and
for "A1+" during the past seven years? President of "Meltex" LTD and
"A1+" Mesrop Movsesyan answered to this and other questions.

-The shutdown of "A1+" in 2002 set the stage for an environment of fear
and that fear is deepening to this day. There is no way to provide
impartial information in this situation. As for "A1+", even after
the shutdown we showed how we can work in other fields of journalism
as a news agency and a website. During these years, I consider our
loyalty to principles and working style and the corroboration that
we want to live in a normal country and that this is our country to
be our greatest achievement.

-By loving your country you bring up all negative phenomena. Other
media outlets believe that you only need to give "good" news in order
to motivate the people. The shutdown of "A1+" for the first time in
2002 sent the message that you weren’t showing "good" news.

-I have never heard anything more ignorant than that. News can’t be
good or bad. It either corresponds to the reality or it doesn’t. "A1+"
has always been concerned with showing the reality to the people,
yet the fact that the authorities can’t put up with the reality that
they have created is a different story.

-The slogan of "A1+" is "Watch us and know yourselves". Why didn’t
the authorities approve this?

-We presented everyone, including the authorities, the way they
were in reality. The authorities simply couldn’t put up with that
and that’s their problem. The authorities shut down "A1+" to hide
their mediocrity, stupidity and incompetence. Today, if I turn on
the television to watch the news and, as a citizen of Armenia, see
that the country they present is nothing like the country in which I
live and that lie makes me want to leave this country, then that news
is not "good" and something is not right. Unlike these authorities,
I am not an odd element in this country. I love my country and I
continue to work under these conditions for the sake of my country.

-Many people viewed the shutdown of "A1+" as a political solution
and this has been going on for the past seven years. What are the
authorities trying to solve now by not giving airtime back to "A1+"?

-First of all, they want to keep the environment of fear, keep all
television networks under their control and eradicate journalism as
a profession in Armenia. The aim of that is to isolate Armenia from
the world and finally lead it to a pitfall in order to rule everybody
and turn them into servants.

-After the shutdown of "A1+", you began to work as a news agency. Have
you come to grips with the fact that you will never be on air?

-Of course we have not come to grips with that thought. I am sure
that "A1+" will be back on air. Despite everything, I don’t attach
importance to the fields of journalism, but the working style. I am
certain that my team will always work with the same principle and
working style regardless of whether we are on air, an agency or the
press. That is what matters to me. Even if our website is shut down,
we will always find ways to provide impartial news to the public. The
important thing is to be a professional. You can’t always tiptoe,
as the current authorities are trying to do.

-If "A1+" were to change its working style, would it be on air and
would the authorities forgive you for your work and for being that
objective?

-I don’t think that the authorities have to forgive me or my
team. "A1+" should consider forgiving or not forgiving them. I have
not committed a crime. "A1+" has worked and continues to work for
the people, our country because I want to live in a normal country
and want my kids to live in a normal country as well.

-You hope that "A1+" will be back on air, yet according to the change
made in the Law on "Television and Radio", there will be no contest
declared until 2011. This means that "A1+" will not be able to be on
air until 2011.

-There will be a contest because that law can’t be enforced due to
several reasons. First, it is impossible to digitalize television
broadcasts by 2011. There are not enough funds and our country can’t
spend that much money. They can’t digitalize television just by one
law. You need serious brains and funds for that. Everybody knows
that the law was passed just to delay returning airtime to "A1+",
but that process can’t go on forever.

The authorities think that if they give airtime back to "A1+", the
wave of protest will rise even higher.

However, they don’t realize that keeping the shutdown contributes to
the wave of protest in the country.

-The authorities consider "A1+" to be the opposition and view the
shutdown as depriving them of speaking out.

-I am strictly against that approach. The judgment of the authorities
proves that they can speak on all television networks besides
"A1+" and the fact that they deprived the opposition of airtime is
really the case. "A1+" was on air for everyone-the opposition and the
authorities. Our objective was to let the people know about everybody’s
opinion, but it was up to the people to decide. I stress once more
that a mass media outlet can’t be pro-government or oppositional. That
was their guiding principle in 2002 and that is why we are in this
situation today. When people were being killed in central Yerevan on
March 1 last year, Armenian television networks were showing American
murder films. This goes to show that our country doesn’t have a leader
and requires structural reforms. These authorities can’t control the
situation any longer and it is time for them to leave.

HOLY PAINTING TO BE RETURNED TO GANDZASAR MONASTERY
Anahit Danielyan

2009/04/03 | 11:34
Nagorno Karabakh

NKR President Bako Sahakyan convened an advisory session yesterday
that included such wide ranging issues as environmental protection,
military camps for students and the 20th anniversary of the reopening
of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

During the session Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, the Primate of the
Artsakh Diocese, thanked the government for facilitating the return
of the Holy Annunciation painting to the Gandzasar Monastery. The
painting had been housed at the Artsakh Historical-Geographical
Museum. Ceremonies marking the return of the painting will take place
on April 7.

WASHINGTON TIMES: POSSIBLE ARMENIA-TURKEY DEAL

Hetq.am
2009/04/03 | 09:57

Region politics

Another major U.S. newspaper, The Washington Times, has picked up on
yesterday’s The Wall Sreet Journal article regarding a potential deal
between Armenia and Turkey that would pave the way for the opening
of the border, diplomatic relations and a commission to tackle the
events of 1915. Below are excerpts of today’s Washington Times article
entitled, "Diplomats forsee Turkey, Armenia pact".

Turkey and Armenia could be on the brink of a historic reconciliation
that will include a joint investigation of the killing of hundreds
of thousands of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in 1915, Turkish diplomats
and specialists say.

Hugh Pope, Turkey project director for the International Crisis
Group, said that after two years of secret talks, the historic rivals
are nearing agreement on a sweeping package that includes opening
a border closed since 1993, diplomatic relations and a bilateral
intergovernmental commission on issues ranging from taxes and public
health to the history of what Armenians have called genocide by the
Ottoman Empire, which preceded modern Turkey.

Turkey is also expected to issue a "road map" on a solution for
Nagorno-Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan that has been under de facto
Armenian control since 1994.

"The parameters of the deal are very much set," Mr. Pope said. "The
only thing holding things back now is nerves."

"These are extremely serious negotiations," said a senior Turkish
diplomat, who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the
issue. "We are optimistic and we have been working hard and hopefully
we will see positive developments."

"These are highly sensitive negotiations and both sides have gone to
great lengths to keep them secret," added a Turkish foreign ministry
spokesman.

NATO 60TH ANNIVERSARY SUMMIT OPENING TODAY

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.04.2009 11:10 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A stalemated Afghan war and the appearance of a
new, untested American president will dominate a crowded agenda for
the nations of NATO gathering this weekend at the alliance’s 60th
anniversary summit.

Afghanistan is likely to get most of the attention at the summit,
coming a week after President Barack Obama announced a revised war
strategy that counts on deeper military and civilian contributions
from the allies.

The summit will be Obama’s first chance to appeal directly to alliance
heads of government for more help in the deadlocked U.S. campaign to
defeat the Taliban. The Afghan campaign is the only ground war that
NATO has fought since it was founded in April 1949.

Also on the agenda: Pressing for a fresh start with nonmember Russia in
the wake of this week’s bilateral agreement with the U.S. to jump-start
nuclear reduction talks; welcoming France back into NATO’s military
wing after a 43-year absence; and advancing prospects for pushing
NATO’s borders farther eastward.

The allies are unlikely to offer significant additional combat forces
for Afghanistan at the summit. But they are expected to embrace
Obama’s focus on nonmilitary aspects of stabilizing Afghanistan and
to underscore their shared view that Afghanistan cannot be allowed
to regress back into an al-Qaida haven.

Obama’s pitch on Afghanistan may be helped by his decision to end
U.S. military involvement in Iraq, a war that hardened the reluctance
of many European nations to heed appeals from the Bush administration
for more troops.

The 60th anniversary summit, being held at Strasbourg, France, and
Kehl, Germany, on opposite sides of the Rhine river, is meant to be
more than a celebration of six decades of trans-Atlantic security and
political ties. The leaders will also grapple with hard questions about
managing relations with Russia, which views NATO as an anachronism,
and determining what role NATO should be playing on the world stage,
AP reported.

SERZH SARGSYAN SIGNS LAW ON MAKING AMENDMENT TO RA CRIMINAL CODE

Noyan Tapan
Apr 2, 2009

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, NOYAN TAPAN. On March 31, RA President Serzh
Sargsyan signed laws On Making Amendment to the RA Criminal Code,
On Making Amendment to the RA Code of Administrative Offences, On
Making Amendments to the RA Law On Currency Regulation and Currency
Control adopted by the RA National Assembly. Noyan Tapan was informed
about it by the RA President’s Press Office.