Kyiv Post – Ukraine
Jan 5 2010
More Ukrainians recognize Armenian genocide
Today at 17:59 Unanimously supporting local Armenian community leader
Nikolay Adikhanyan’s address, the municipal authorities of Izium,
Ukraine, have decided to apply to Ukrainian President and Supreme Rada
with the request of enshrining in the country’s legislation a clause
recognizing and condemning Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Empire.
il/56468/
Turkey’s PM to meet Russian Putin in Moscow
05.01.2010 17:21 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will pay
a formal visit to Russia on January 12 and 13, 2010.A statement posted
on the website of Prime Ministry Press and Information Directorate
General said on Tuesday that Erdogan would visit Russian capital of
Moscow on January 12 and 13 upon invitation by Russian Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin.
The two leaders will discuss the ways to boost ties and cooperation, it said.
ARMENIA NEGOTIATING WITH RUSSIA TO OPEN DIAMOND EXCHANGE
IDEX Online
Dec 29 2009
The Armenian government is in negotiations with Russia to receive
a $100 million loan to be used exclusively for the development of
a jewelry business within Armenia, the US-based Ashbarez newspaper
reported Monday.
Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said the loan will fund the
opening of a diamond exchange that will be used to supply Russian
diamonds to jewelry factories in Armenia.
"If the negotiations are successful and we manage to come to an
agreement with Russia-based Alrosa company, then the attracted loan
will be used to develop the diamond cutting sector and to establish
a modern diamond exchange in order to provide Armenian companies with
Russian raw material," the prime minister said.
Armenia’s polishing firms import most of the country’s rough diamonds
from Russia. The Russian supply is not always free flowing and is
impacted by Russia’s desire to exert economic pressure on Armenia.
Armenia’s polished diamond exports fell 64 percent to $39.08 million in
the first nine months of 2009. In volume, exports dropped 67 percent
to 60,875 carats, an average value of $642 per carat.
ARMENIA MAINTAINED MACROECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL STABILITY IN 2009
ARKA
Dec 29, 2009
YEREVAN, December 29. / ARKA /. Armenia in 2009, had been able to
maintain macroeconomic and financial stability, said the Minister of
Finance Tigran Davtyan.
"We were working in the global financial crisis and general recession.
We have had many problems and trials, primarily for the economy. After
the 90’s the economy of Armenia has never been in such a difficult
situation, as in 2009. However, we got out of the situation with
honor," the minister said at a press conference on Tuesday.
According to Davtyan, we not only must overcome the crisis, but also
act in terms of analysis and refinement, as well as the continue the
second-generation reforms.
"We will continue to reform, yet certainly not in the prescribed
amount. Some events have been postponed for the next year," he
explained.
The Minister noted that in the beginning, it was unclear what its
completion would be.
"Today it is safe to say that in 2009 we were able to maintain
macroeconomic stability and stabilize the economy," he stressed.
Davtyan also noted that the trend of stability emerged in October,
and is now safe to say, the country entered a period of stabilization.
"In 2010, Armenia will return to a situation of economic development
and can provide quick recovery," the minister said.
BEFORE JANUARY 31 VIVACELL-MTS PREPAID SUBSCRIBERS WILL ACCUMULATE BONUS BY RECEIVING CALLS FROM RA OTHER MOBILE AND FIXED NETWORKS
ArmInfo
2009-12-28 12:33:00
ArmInfo. VivaCell-MTS, a subsidiary of "Mobile TeleSystems" OJSC,
is glad to inform that from December 24, 2009 till January 31, 2010
all prepaid subscribers* can get bonus – 1 free on-net minute for
each minute of the calls received from RA other GSM or fixed networks.
While making on-net calls the bonus airtime is consumed first, and
only when the bonus account becomes zero the main account is charged.
Prepaid subscribers simply have to send the free *210# request from
their mobile and start accumulating bonus airtime.
Bonus is not accumulated: after the card grace period expires and
while receiving calls in roaming
Bonus account cannot be used: · In roaming · When calling to premium
numbers · During the grace period (the bonus account is reactivated
in case of recharging during the grace period) · After the end of
the grace period (in this case the bonus account becomes zero)
Bonus account balance can be checked by dialing *210*1#
The accumulated bonus airtime can be used by February 13, 2010.
AZERIS ARE FALSIFYING AS EVER
news.am
Dec 25 2009
Armenia
A statement by the Department of Information and Public Affairs at
the RA Defense Ministry reads:
"Recently the recurrent Azerbaijani &’movie’ about Khojaly appeared
in the Internet. Here the &’hospitable and peaceful’ Azerbaijanis
are telling about the &’tragedy’ of Khojaly. In this recurrent
Azerbaijani &’movie’, which is based on obvious falsehood, there are
several distorted facts and untrue information. The quotations from
Zori Balayan’s book are obscene lies. Some months ago Zori Balayan
himself made an announcement about this, stating that he has never
written a book like that.
It is stated in the &’movie’ that the residents, who had fled from
Khojaly, were shot near the Armenian Nakhijevanik village. This
fact also does not meet the reality, because in February, 1992 the
village of Nakhijevanik, which is situated around Aghdam, was not
under the Armenian Armed Forces. The &’movie’ ends with a touching,
heart-breaking music and with the photos of these so called victims and
witnesses of the occurrence. It takes only 1-2 minutes to learn that
one is a photo of a wounded Armenian child, which has been published
in the 5th of December, 1991 issue of the &’Ð~ZомÑ~A
 0;¾Ð¼Ð¾Ð"Ð µÑ~F
Ð~ZÑ~CзÐ& #xB1;аÑ~Aа’ (&’Komsomolets Kuzbasa’) newspaper. And the article
was titled &’Ð"оÐ"Ð&# xB3;аÑ~O доÑ~@оР³Ð° в ÐÑ~@ÐºÐµÑ ~G’ (&’The long
way to Erkech’). The electronic version of the abovementioned article
can be found on the following website:
It only remains to advise the staff of the Azerbaijani agitprop to be
more attentive and make such falsifications, which are not so obvious
and so easy-to-uncover."
WE INVITE YOU TO THE PARK OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
National Assembly of RA
Dec 24 2009
Armenia
Within the framework of the Open Doors of the National Assembly
programme under the patronage of the Speaker of the National Assembly
of the Republic of Armenia Mr. Hovik Abrahamyan New Year festive
concert will be held in the Park of the National Assembly.
On December 26, at 3 p.m. we gladly invite the children and the adults
to the Park of the National Assembly.
ARMENIAN COMMUNITY OF ISTANBUL TO ELECT NEW PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE
PanARMENIAN.Net
22.12.2009 13:22 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A commission on election of new Patriarch of
Constantinople gathered in Istanbul on December 21. The new Patriarch
will combine the office with incumbent Mesrob Mutafian, who is unable
to carry out his duties because of an illness. The list of candidates
will be published soon, commission spokesman Sedrak Davudian said.
Six archbishops – Shahan Svachian, Karekin Baekchian, Khajag Parsamian
and Aram Ateshian – are named as possible candidates, Zaman reported.
In early December, the Armenian community of Istanbul requested Mayor
Muammer Guler for permission to elect new Patriarch.
UNIBANK TO OPEN 9 NEW BRANCHES IN 2010
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
21.12.2009 16:42 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Considering the increased volume of its work, Unobank
has made decision to open 9 new branches in 2010, the bank’s press
services reported. The new branches will operate in Avan, Ajapnyak,
Erebuni and Davidashen district communities of Yerevan, as well as
in the towns of Ararat, Tashir. Agarak, Spitak and Noyemberyan.
"The locations were selected considering population’s demands in
different towns and communities," says the release.
The bank currently has 34 branch offices, with one of them (Zvarthnots)
operating in an all-day-round regime.
TURKEY CREEPS FURTHER TOWARDS EU
Paul Harrington
Agence France Presse
Dec 20 2009
Turkey will take another small step towards EU membership on Monday,
despite its abiding failure to deal openly with Cyprus and some
European reticence to accept a large, mainly Muslim nation.
Meanwhile Croatia, which began accession talks at the same time in
2005, will push forward with its own, more advanced, claim to become
the 28th EU nation.
The European Union will open formal talks with Turkey on the
environmental issue, the 12th of 35 policy chapters which any candidate
nation must successfully negotiate prior to membership.
But for some analysts this is more wheelspin than progress.
"The rhythm of the accession talks remains singularly slow,"
said Didier Billion, researcher at the Institute of Strategic and
International Relations in Paris.
Michael Emerson, analyst at the Brussels-based Centre for European
Policy Studies, is even less impressed.
"This is an unreal exercise," he told AFP.
"Some good spirit in the European Commission has decided to keep the
process going along, but fundamentally it is blocked politically at
the highest level and in the most fundamental way," he added.
Since Turkey officially opened membership talks in 2005, it has opened
the 35 EU policy chapters at a rate of three per year.
During that time it has managed to successfully negotiate and close
just one of those, that of science and research.
Eight chapters remain totally blocked due to Ankara’s failure to open
its borders to EU member Cyprus.
The island of Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey occupied
the north in response to an Athens-engineered coup in Nicosia aimed
at uniting the island with Greece.
On top of that there are the more fundamental issues at play, with
France, Germany and Austria among the EU nations which would prefer
to give Turkey some kind of ‘privileged partnership’ status rather
than full-blown membership, an option rejected by Ankara.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has led the lobby which doesn’t see
Turkey as a European country.
"We want Turkey to be a bridge between East and West," Sarkozy declared
in June.
Europeans are also very critical of the slow pace of internal reform
in Turkey which, unlike the Western Balkans nations, has no guarantee
of eventual EU membership.
EU foreign ministers early this month stopped short of imposing further
sanctions though it was a very mixed scorecard with acknowledged
progress in some areas, notably the normalisation of relations with
Armenia.
"Progress is now expected without further delay," the foreign ministers
warned in a joint statement.
Cypriot Foreign Minister Markos Kyprianou displayed his country’s
frustration by announcing that Ankara would attach new conditions to
five more unopened policy chapters, making a total of six.
Days later there was more controversy when Turkey’s constitutional
court banned the pro-Kurdish DTP party.
Meanwhile Croatia, much farther along the accession track than Turkey,
will itself take another step Monday by successfully closing two more
of the negotiating chapters, tipping it towards the halfway mark, with
17 of the 35 successfully completed and just a handful left to open.
Its path towards the EU has not been all plain sailing either.
Slovenia blocked its progress for almost a year over a border dispute.
The talks have started moving recently, after the two nations agreed
to put their dispute to international arbitration.
However Llubljana has not yet ratified the deal and is continuing
to block three chapters — on environment, fisheries and foreign and
defence policy.
The EU also wants to see fuller cooperation from Zagreb with the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
and more progress in the battle against corruption.
Nevertheless the European Commission has said that it would be possible
to complete the accession negotiations next year and fulfill Croatia’s
ambition of joining the EU in 2011.