Author: Ekmekjian Janet

RUSSIA UNCOVERS FINANCIAL LEVERAGE

Cbonds. Info
12.10.2009 – RBC

On Friday, Chisinau played host to the CIS summit convened to
hammer out a unified anti-crisis strategy. However, the anti-crisis
discussions seemed to center on loans from Russia: Moscow said
"almost yes" to the new Moldovan government, and once again turned
down Ukraine and Belarus. Meanwhile, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
hinted that the Eurasian Economic Community money could be extended
even to non-member countries. This led experts to say that financial
aid had become Russia’s major leverage over the former USSR countries.

On paper, the Chisinau summit appeared to be very productive: leaders
reportedly signed over 20 documents, including the coordinated roadmap
to deal with the aftermath of the global financial crisis. As Dmitry
Medvedev pointed out, the summit participants "discussed the documents
in substance, and not just to observe formalities." However, there have
been no reports as to the exact measures the roadmap implies. As for
other documents adopted, they cannot even boast such a conspicuous
name. Among other things, summit participants resolved to announce
2010 the year of veterans of the Great Patriotic War (World War II).

Against this generally dull background, outbursts in political
activity were particularly noticeable. Dmitry Medvedev, for one,
held a trilateral meeting with Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan
Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham Aliyev to discuss the Karabakh settlement
once again, which has become a tradition at the latest formal and
informal CIS summits.

At the same time, it was equally important for Dmitry Medvedev to
avoid a meeting with Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, who had
been actively seeking au audience in the run-up to the summit. As a
result, Medvedev cited incompatibility of their working schedules,
while Yushchenko specified who had been behind the incompatibility.

A meeting with the new Moldovan leadership – acting President Mihai
Gimpu an ion Marian Lupu, who was introduced to participants as the
future head of state – became another important event. Alongside the
attention of the Russian President, the Moldovan delegation received
another present: Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin and Deputy PM Igor
Shuvalov vowed to Moldovan PM Vlad Filat to return to the issue of
the $500bn loan- a loan Russia had promised to the Moldovan government
while it was still led by the Communist Party.

When asked about Ukraine and Belarus, Alexei Kudrin reiterated that
loans were not being considered on a bilateral level. President
Medvedev, however, urged all countries to file their bids to the
Eurasian Economic Community fund, which still leaves a chance to get
a loan not only for Minsk, but also for Kiev, which is not a EurAsEC
member. PIR Center’s Dmitry Astafyev believes that, given the lack
of economic mechanisms within the CIS, the friendship between the
CIS states largely relies on gas and Russian loans.

Analytical department of RIA RosBusinessConsulting

ARMENIA AND TURKEY: MORE POLITICS THAN FOOTBALL

Tert.am
15:33 13.10.09

Though Armenian and Turkish football officials had reached a
preliminary agreement that no fans of the host team would be present
at the Armenia-Turkey matches, during the return match and amidst
Turkish fans’ shouts, it will be possible to distinguish the voices
of the Armenian team’s supporters.

Present at the match will be a number of journalists, politicians,
and sociologists who have arrived to Bursa from Armenia to follow the
sporting dispute turned "Football Diplomacy." Bursa, Turkey’s fourth
largest city and the capital of the region with the same name, with
a population of 2 million, welcomed Tert.am’s correspondents with
strong bursts of winds; if we believe meteorologists, the winds will
continue on the day of the match too.

In the city, however, one doesn’t really feel the full swing of the
pre-football match. But local football fans are convinced that if
the authorities are not extremely attentive, the stadium that has a
capacity of 20,000 will be filled easily.

A 40-year-old shop vendor named Akif doesn’t conceal his
dissatisfaction at all that Turkish and Armenian presidents will be
present at the match. "I have not even missed a single match of the
local Bursaspor team, but today, when the country’s national team is
in our city, I don’t want to see how political figures will hinder
the football players’ showing their game," said Akif, sharing his
opinion with Tert.am correspondents.

Despite no longer in the running for the 2010 World Cup, the Turkish
team gathers a large number of fans from Bursa, who, unlike Istanbul’s
population, don’t have many opportunites to watch a match by this
much-loved team. Here, even with great enthusiasm, they welcome the
team’s coach Fatih Terim, for whom this will be the last match in
his post.

Gyunel, a 30-year-old manager, says he regards the political
component of the match with understanding: "I have never understood
the radical fans. If football countries become friends, what’s so bad
about that? And that in the case when our team no longer qualifies
for the World Championship."

Armenia, Turkey sign accord

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton helps the two nations with last-minute
negotiations on a landmark agreement to establish diplomatic relations and
open their sealed border.

Los Angeles Times
Times Wire Services
October 11, 2009

Zurich, Switzerland

Turkey and Armenia signed a landmark agreement Saturday to establish
diplomatic relations and open their sealed border after a century of enmity,
as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton helped the two sides clear
a last-minute hurdle.

The contentious issue of whether the killing of as many as 1.5 million
Armenians during the final days of the Ottoman Empire amounted to genocide
is only hinted at in the agreement.

Better ties between Turkey, a regional heavyweight, and landlocked Armenia
have been a priority for President Obama, and Clinton had flown to
Switzerland to witness the signing, not help close the deal.

Clinton told reporters later that each side had problems with the other’s
prepared statement and that the Armenian foreign minister called his
president several times.

"There were several times when I said to all of the parties involved that
this is too important," Clinton said. "This has to be seen through. We have
come too far. All of the work that has gone into the protocols should not be
walked away from."

The accord is expected to win ratification by both nations’ parliaments and
could lead to a reopening of their border within two months. The frontier
has been closed for 16 years.

Diplomats said the Armenians were concerned about wording in the Turkish
statement that was to be made after the signing ceremony at the University
of Zurich and had expressed those concerns "at the last minute" before the
scheduled signing ceremony.

Clinton had arrived at the ceremony venue after meeting separately with the
Turks and Armenians at a hotel, but abruptly departed without leaving her
car when the problem arose. She returned to the hotel, where she spoke by
phone from the sedan in the parking lot, three times with the Armenians and
four times with the Turks.

At one point in the intervention, a Swiss police car, lights and siren
blazing, brought a Turkish diplomat to the hotel from the university with a
new draft of his country’s statement.

After nearly two hours, Clinton and Armenian Foreign Minister Edward
Nalbandian met at the hotel and drove back to the university, where
negotiations continued.

In the end, the Turks and Armenians signed an accord establishing diplomatic
ties that could reduce tensions in the troubled Caucasus region and
facilitate its growing role as a corridor for energy supplies bound for the
West. The agreement faces nationalist opposition, and protests have been
particularly vociferous among the Armenian diaspora.

The agreement calls for a panel to discuss "the historical dimension" of the
killing of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians during World War I. The
discussion is to include "an impartial scientific examination of the
historical records and archives to define existing problems and formulate
recommendations."

That clause is viewed as a concession to Turkey, which denies genocide,
contending the toll is inflated and those killed were victims of civil war.

The politically powerful Armenian American community, which Obama courted
during his campaign, appeared split over Saturday’s accord.

"If Turkey normalizes relations with Armenia and ends its blockade of that
landlocked country, it would be a very positive step for the region," said a
statement by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale), a leading supporter of Armenian
genocide resolutions in Congress. He said , however, that "Turkey must not
be allowed to rewrite the history of the Armenian genocide as a price of
diplomatic relations."

The Armenian National Committee of America blasted the accord, saying, "The
Obama administration’s attempts to force Armenia into one-sided concessions
is shortsighted and will, in the long term, create more problems than it
solves."

Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times

KENTIKIAN PROMISES A TOUGH FIGHT

PanARMENIAN.Net
10.10.2009 13:43 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Double world champion, "Killer Queen" Susi Kentikian
promises a tough fight against her rival Julia Sahin.

"Of course I know Julia Sahin well, her fighting style is very well
known. She is the undefeated champion in a lower weight class, very
agile and quick, but I am too. And I punch harder. Even if you can’t
guarantee a KO, I will live up to my nickname ‘Killer Queen.’ My
preparation has been and will still be very intense in the coming
weeks. It will be a very tough fight!"

Kentikian and Sahin will compete in a world boxing championship
flyweight title fight in Rostock on Saturday, Oct. 10.

CEREMONY OF SIGNING OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH PROTOCOLS TO BE HELD IN ZURICH TODAY

ArmInfo
2009-10-10 14:12:00

ArmInfo. Armenia’s Foreign Minister, Edward Nalbandian, and Turkey’s
Foreign Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, will sign the Protocols on
establishment of diplomatic relations and development of bilateral
cooperation today at 8:00 PM by Yerevan time. They will sign the
Protocols in the presence of Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline
Calmy-Rey.

As Swiss Foreign Ministry press service reports, the signing ceremony
will also be attended by US Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham
Clinton, the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, the French
Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, the Slovenian Foreign Minister
and Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe,
Samuel Zbogar, and the Secretary-General of the Council of the European
Union, Javier Solana.

SAMVEL BABAYAN: TURKEY WILL NOT OPEN THE BORDER WITHOUT RESOLUTION OF KARABAKH PROBLEM

Noyan Tapan
Oct 9, 2009

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 9, NOYAN TAPAN. "We can by no means make a compromise
regarding the Karabakh problem," former Commander of the NKR Defence
Army Samvel Babayan stated at the October 9 press conference. In his
words, the Karabakh problem is addressed not in a concealed, but in
a plain way in the pre-signed Armenia-Turkey protocols.

He said that according to his information, Turkey will not open the
border without the resolution of the Karabakh problem. "We should be
cautious and follow closely the Karabakh peace talks," he noted, adding
that no one may make a compromise with respect to Karabakh territories:
people can speak about it, but they cannot do it. "No one can do it:
whether it be Serzh Sargsyan, me or some other person. Those who
fought against Azerbaijan and liberated these lands will not allow
doing such a thing," S. Babayan said.

It is a matter of life and death for the people of Artsakh, they
cannot behave otherwise. "They must be well-organized and defend what
they have.

They must defend it against those who are going to make compromises,
no matter who – an Armenian or a Turk is going to do so," S. Babayan
declared.

He expressed an opinion that the Armenian president should draw
conclusions from his meetings with Diaspora, and he should try to
either make changes in the documents or ruin that process. Otherwise,
according to S. Babayan, "the Armenian nation will split both inside
and outside".

In the opinion of S. Babayan, Armenia pre-signed the protocols without
any pressure by external forces: it took this step voluntarily. He
noted that the ARF has no alternative and must struggle against
the ratification of the protocols. "We all should help the ARF to
achieve success," he said, adding that he is even prepared to demand
the Armenian president’s resignation.

RA FM THANKED FRENCH GOVERNMENT FOR CONSTRUCTIVE ROLE IN PRESERVATION OF PEACE AT SOUTH CAUCASUS

PanARMENIAN.Net
08.10.2009 12:48 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met
presidential diplomatic councilor Jean-David Levitte in Paris, RA
MFA press service reported.

The parties focused on a wide range of issues regarding RA-France
friendly relations development. Edward Nalbandian and Jean-David
Levitte gave high assessment to RA-France relations and discussed
regional and international issues of mutual interest. RA FM thanked
French government for constructive role in preservation of peace and
stability at South Caucasus.

OFFICIALS DON’T EXPECT BREAKTHROUGH IN TODAY’S KARABAKH TALKS

Today’s Zaman
08 October 2009, Thursday

Moldova’s capital, Chisinau, is set to host new talks between Armenian
and Azerbaijani leaders concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute today,
but officials involved in the issue have tamed high expectations
concerning the outcome of the meeting, which will be held on the
sidelines of a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Armenia went to war with neighboring Azerbaijan in the early 1990s over
the mountainous territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, an ethnic Armenian
enclave located within Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized
borders. Some 30,000 people died.

The war ended with a 1994 cease-fire after Armenian-backed forces
seized control of Nagorno-Karabakh and districts around it, including
a corridor of Azerbaijani land connecting it to Armenia.

International mediators have been putting pressure on Armenia to
negotiate with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh as part of a wider
attempt to secure a lasting peace in the region. Robert Bradtke,
the US co-chair of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which has been working for a decade
and a half to mediate the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute between Armenia
and Azerbaijan, told reporters in Baku he hoped that the "positive
dynamics" between Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders would continue at
the Chisinau meeting. "There are intensified efforts … to make sure
that at some point, relatively soon, there will be something from the
Karabakh process that could help the Turkish-Armenian process move
forward," a senior European diplomat told Reuters, referring to the
ongoing normalization process between Ankara and Yerevan.

But, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity
surrounding the talks, the European diplomat added that he did not
expect any major announcement in Moldova, saying, "I think it’s going
to take longer than that."

The Chisinau talks come only two days before a and Turkish foreign
ministers are expected to sign protocols aimed at establishing
diplomatic ties between Armenia and Turkey and opening the
border. Ahead of today’s talks with Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan,
Azerbaijani President Ä°lham Aliyev upped the stakes by saying,
"The negotiation process [on Nagorno-Karabakh] is already in its
final phase."

Observers believe Azerbaijan is pushing for at least a partial
Armenian withdrawal from seven Azerbaijani districts that surround
Nagorno-Karabakh which were captured during the war. "Armenia … wants
to separate Karabakh from Azerbaijan, while Azerbaijan intends to
take back our own lands under our own control," Azerbaijani Deputy
Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said. Armenian officials played down
expectations. "To say that tomorrow there will be a breakthrough,
I don’t know where this kind of expectation could come from,"
an Armenian foreign ministry spokesman said. The senior European
diplomat, when asked about the chances of Turkey opening the border as
planned by year’s end, without progress on Nagorno-Karabakh, replied
"fairly slim."

CROSS TURKEY WITH 44 WOLVES

15441.html
14:12:57 – 07/10/2009

As the debate over the closed border between Turkey and Armenia
intensifies with the recent talk of normalizing relations, an
Italian-Armenian also waits for a green light from the Turkish
authorities to enter Turkey.

Ararad Khatchikan is not interested in visiting his distant kinsmen in
any Turkish village, nor in making small-scale trade agreements with
Turkish vendors. Instead, his sole aim is to carry a peace message
to the peoples on both sides of the Turkish-Armenian border with 44
Siberian wolves that he has trained for sleigh races.

Each wolf will carry a white flag as a symbol of peace, the Armenian
peace activist told the Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review for
the third Postcard from Armenia.

Khatchikan said his biggest dream is to reach the outskirts of
Mt. Aðrý, or Ararad in Armenian, after getting a visa from Turkey.

Khatchikan said he had made the first official application for his
peace project through the Turkish Embassy in Rome in 2007, but then
decided to delay it. "[Armenian daily] Agos Editor-in-Chief Hrant Dink
fell victim to an assassination in Istanbul while my negations were
ongoing with the Turkish authorities. I got confused, so I shelved it."

CLOSED-DOOR MEETING OF ARMENIAN PRESIDENT WITH CATHOLICOS OF CILICIA ARAM I HELD

Noyan Tapan
Oct 7, 2009

BEIRUT, OCTOBER 7, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met
with representatives of the Armenian communities in the Middle East
in Beirut on October 6 as part of his pan-Armenian trip to discuss the
initiative on Armenian-Turkish normalization. Yerkir Media television
company reported that prior to that, a closed-door meeting of the
Armenian president with Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I took place. More
than 100 representatives of Armenian communities participated in
the meeting of Serzh Sargsyan with community members. Aram I did not
attend that meeting.

The Armenian president delivered a 20-minute speech, presenting
his opinion on the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations, in
particular the pre-signed protocols. Then he listened to the speeches
of the community representatives, each of who made a 3-minute speech.

Lebanese Armenians’ mass demonstration, which began the day before,
was proceeding in parallel with the meeting.