Author: Harutyunian Christine

PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr.Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Director
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:

PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon

Watch our latest videos on YouTube here:

THE PRESIDENT OF THE FRENCH SPEAKING EVANGELICAL CHURCHES OVERSEAS
REV. YVES GOUNELLE VISITS HIS HOLINESS ARAM I

Rev. Yves Gounelle met with His Holiness Aram I in Antelias, during his
visit to Lebanon. The ecumenical movement and ecumenical relations were at
the center of their conversations. Rev. Yves Gounelle agreed with His
Holiness that Regional Councils of Churches and Conferences have an
important role in strengthening the ecumenical movement. Such cooperation
was most desirable with the Middle East Council of Churches in supporting
its priority issue, which was Christian presence in the Middle East through
advocacy and humanitarian assistance.

##
View the photo here:
tos/Photos436.htm
*****
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Ecumenical
activities of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician
Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is located in
Antelias, Lebanon.

Davutoglu and Aliyev Meet in Germany, Discuss Armenia-Turkey Relations
and Nagorno-Karabakh

Tert.am
11:40 – 06.02.10

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, who is on a working visit to
Germany, met with the Foreign Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu on
Feb. 5 in Munich, reports Trend News.

Though the meeting was held behind closed doors, Today’s Zaman reports
that the parties discussed the latest developments in Armenia-Turkey
relations and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement process.

According to the Turkish publication, Davutoglu, repeating Turkey’s
position, said that since Armenia continues to `occupy’ Karabakh, the
Armenia-Turkey border will continue to remain closed.

Aliyev, in turn, discussed the recent trilateral meeting with Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan and Russian President Dimitry Medvedev in
Sochi.

Trend, Azerbaijan
Feb 6 2010

Azerbaijan President adresses Munich security conference’s panel
discussion ‘Resource security and shifting global power’
06.02.2010 12:25

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has delivered remarks at Panel
Discussion "Resource Security and Shifting Global Power" as part of
the Munich Security Conference, AzerTAj state news agency reported.

Over the past decades the Munich Security Conference has become the
major security policy conference worldwide. Each year it brings
together senior figures from around the world, including state and
government officials, parliamentarians, political analysts and
journalists to engage in an intensive debate on current and future
security challenges.

The panel discussion was opened by moderator Friedrich Merz who
thanked panelists, including the Azerbaijani leader, for the
participation.
In his remarks, President Ilham Aliyev highlighted Azerbaijan’s role
in energy security-related issues which he described as "critically
important on the global scale".

The President said Azerbaijan was one of the first oil exporters
worldwide, adding the country`s "right policy" allowed it to embark on
large-scaled projects in collaboration with the world`s leading
companies.

President Ilham Aliyev praised Azerbaijan’s gas potential.

"Azerbaijan was importing gas until 2007, but now we are one of the
largest gas producers."

The Azerbaijani leader said his country was exporting its energy
resources in various directions.

"To this end we created pipeline infrastructure. Azerbaijan places a
particular emphasis on diversifying its export routes."

President Ilham Aliyev touched upon what the country had been doing to
direct energy export earnings to non-oil sector.

The President also highlighted Azerbaijan’s economic achievements,
saying: "We continued moving forward on the path towards development
in 2009 despite it marked global crisis."

"Azerbaijan’s Gross Domestic Product grew above 9 percent last year," he added.

President Ilham Aliyev also touched upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, describing it as what "seriously impedes"
efforts to ensure peace, security and cooperation in the region.

"Armenia’s aggression policy resulted in the occupation of a part of
Azerbaijan’s territories, while a million Azerbaijanis became refugees
and IDPs."

"The dispute can be settled only on the basis of the integrity of
Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territories," the President
said.

Other speakers at the panel discussion included Jurgen Grosmann, Chief
Executive Officer RWE, Anne Lauvergeon, Chief Executive Officer AREVA,
James Steinberg, US Deputy Secretary of State, and Valery Yazev,
Deputy Chairman of the Russian State Duma and President of the Russian
Gas Society.
Following the remarks the Azerbaijani leader responded to questions
from the panelists.

WPS Agency, Russia
What the Papers Say (Russia)
February 4, 2010 Thursday

UNITED STATES EXAMINES SOUTH CAUCASUS

By Yuri Simonjan

WASHINGTON REMINDED YEREVAN OF THE THREAT OF A WAR FOR KARABAKH;
Official Washington is sending envoys to the South Caucasus to abate
tension.

James B. Steinberg, Senior Assistant Secretary of State, will visit
Armenia and Georgia on February 4-5. In both countries, Steinberg will
meet with the national leadership and representatives of the
opposition. He will eventually depart Tbilisi for the international
security conference in Munich where he will meet with President of
Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
According to some sources, another senior American diplomat Philip H.
Gordon will visit the region right after Steinberg.

Activeness of the U.S. Department of State is attributed to escalation
of tension in the South Caucasus. National Intelligence Director
told the Senate that the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh might foment
another war between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Blair also mentioned
Georgia and said that Russia’s efforts to strengthen its clout with
post-Soviet republics including Georgia had the potential to hurt the
relations with Washington.

Official Tbilisi was predictably happy to hear it. "This statement
shows that Georgia remains America’s important partner. It refutes all
these assumptions on how Washington is allegedly losing interest in
Tbilisi," a government official told Nezavisimaya Gazeta. A prominent
analyst from Tbilisi suggested that Blair’s words in Washington were a
response to the recent statement made by President Mikhail Saakashvili
when he had welcomed the Americans to strike at Afghanistan from the
territory of Georgia. "What Blair meant was that Washington knew
better than compromise relations with its strategic partner in the
South Caucasus just in order to please Moscow," the analyst said.

Even Yerevan seems to be taking the threat of another war with
Azerbaijan seriously, considering Baku’s never-ending aggressive
rhetorics. "Military-political balance is shifting Azerbaijan’s way.
Risk of an attempt to try a military solution increases," said Levon
Zurabjan, Armenian National Congress Coordinator. Zurabjan pinned the
blame for this turn of events on the Armenian authorities. According
to the opposition activist, President Serj Sargsjan’s "pushing" policy
only attached additional importance to Turkey, pressure on Armenia
never eased, and the process of Armenian-Turkish rapprochement
degenerated into another conflict between the two countries.

A source in Yerevan meanwhile suggested that Steinberg’s visit to
Armenia and his meetings with Aliyev and Davutoglu in Munich later on
were expected to abate tension some. Yesterday, Gordon urged Yerevan
and Ankara to hurry up with ratification of the Swiss Protocols and
confirmed official Washington’s conviction that it was necessary to
differentiate between the Armenian-Turkish and Armenian-Azerbaijani
problems.

Turkish Hurriyet reported the other day that Feridum Sinirlioglu of
the Foreign Ministry was going to Switzerland on February 4.
Sinirlioglu will meet in Bern with Michael Ambul, Swiss diplomat
involved in organization of secret Armenian-Turkish talks. The
newspaper suggested that the two diplomats intended to discuss the
protocols which Yerevan had allegedly amended. Hurriyet assumed that
official Ankara might then send diplomats to countries of the OSCE
Minsk Group (United States, Russia, France) to ask them to put Yerevan
under pressure. Armenia meanwhile insists that Turkey is making fuss
over nothing because everything actually comes down to recommendations
of the Armenian Supreme Court which is required by the law to take a
look at every international document before the latter is submitted to
the parliament for ratification. Ankara, however, refuses to accept
this explanation.

Stepan Grigorjan of the Globalization Center (Yerevan) said that all
of that were links of one chain. "All political centers throughout the
world want the Armenian-Turkish border open. Following its diplomatic
traditions, Turkey is trying to barter its opening for as much as
possible. Armenia in the meantime observed its own legislation and
thus gave Ankara an excuse to condemn Yerevan for stalling. The Turks
angle for another round of bargaining. The Western community in the
meantime applies more and more pressure to Yerevan (Blair’s words
concerning another outbreak of hostilities), and to Ankara (Euronews
programs on human rights violation in Turkey and on the Kurd problem).
The U.S. Department of State is sending its envoys to the region in
the hope to abate tension some," Grigorjan said.

Source: Nezavisimaya Gazeta, No 21, February 4, 2010, p. 6

HEALTHCARE DEPUTY MINISTER ABOUT THE HEALTH OF THE ARMENIAN WOMEN

Aysor
Feb 5 2010
Armenia

"The mammography observations, breast examining and self examining are
rather effective methods for observing the breast-cancer in its first
stage", – Tatul Hkobyan the healthcare deputy minister mentioned today
on the meeting with the journalists and added that the researches are
of great importance in prohibiting the death cases and lengthening
the lives of the women.

As for reproduction of the women, the deputy minister mentioned
that the A ointment test gives us the opportunity to find out the
papilovirus which causes a cancer of womb.

The speaker mentioned that Armenia and Georgia are on the last place
in this concern, because regardless the efforts of the specialists
of this area, it is the women first of all that should be careful
with their own health and make an investigation of A ointment test.

Tatul Hakobyan assured that it is possible to prevent the womb cancer
in the first stage of it. This type of observation is available.

"The women of active productive stage should be observed more,
especially those who have cases of such illnesses in their families",
– Tatul Hakobyan stressed.

EUROPEAN NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY’S ARMENIA-EUROPEAN UNION ACTIONS PLAN PROCEEDS EFFICIENTLY

Noyan Tapan
Feb 5, 2010

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 5, NOYAN TAPAN. Artur Baghdasarian, the Chairman
of the Interdepartmental Commission on Coordination of Armenia’s
Cooperation with European Structures, Secretary of the National
Security Council, on February 5, received the delegation led by Ayli
Ribuls, the Responsible Person for Political and Economic Affairs
of Armenian Department of EU Foreign Relations General Directorate
and Ambassador Raul de Luzenberger, the Head of the EU delegation
in Armenia.

According to the RA NSC Press Office, issues related to Armenia-EU
partnership were discussed at the meeting.

A. Baghdasarian said that the Armenia-EU Actions Plan proceeds
efficiently within the framework of the European Neighborhood Policy,
profound reforms are implemented in various spheres.

A. Ribuls presented the plan of new institutional reforms envisaged
within the framework of the European Neighborhood Policy, which
implies strengthening of administrative capabilities of Armenian
state structures on the way of signing agreements of association,
free trade, security, justice and freedom.

22 ARMENIAN CHESS PLAYERS TO PARTICIPATE IN AEROFLOT OPEN TOURNAMENT

PanARMENIAN.Net
05.02.2010 15:00 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 22 Armenian chess players will participate in
Aeroflot Open tournament due in Moscow from February 9 to 17.

Gabriel Sargsyan, Arman Pashikyan, Zaven Andreasyan, Hrant Melkumyan
will play in A1 tournament. Sergei Grigoryan will represent Russia
while Yuri Hayrapetyan will play for Ukraine.

Tigran Kotanjyan, David Petrosyan, Melikset Khachiyan (US), Arthur
Gabrielyan and Poghos Nahapetyan (both Russia) will play in A2
tournament.

All games will start at 4 pm Yerevan time.

Aeroflot Open is an annual open chess tournament played in Moscow and
sponsored by the Aeroflot Airlines. Established in 2002, it quickly
grew to be a major open tournament, played by the Swiss system.

COMMUNICATIONS SERVICE REVENUES ROSE 2.8% IN ARMENIA IN 2009

Interfax
Feb 1 2010
Russia

Sales revenues from communications services in Armenia increased 2.8%
last year to 164.422 billion dram (roughly $437 million), the national
statistics service said.

Postal and telegraph service sales revenues contracted 41% to 2.

146 billion dram. But revenues from telecommunications services
increased 3.7% to 162.276 billion dram, including cellular
communications (down 2.3% to 105.767 billion dram), data-transfer and
Internet-access services (up 230% to 10.404 billion dram), radio and
television (up 43.7% to 4.776 billion dram).

The official exchange rate on February 1: 375.5 dram/$1.

TURKISH BUSINESSMEN DEMAND ARMENIAN BORDER’S OPENING

Noyan Tapan
Feb 4, 2010

ERZRUM, FEBRUARY 4, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The businessmen
of Erzrum issued a statement, in which they demand the opening of
Armenia’s border, Aztag reported, citing Cihan news agency. In the
words of the head of the Eastern Anatolia Exporters Union Cemal
Senkel, what happened between Armenians and Turks should be left in
the past and it is necessary to move forward. He said that they will
hold bilateral meetings and prepare new projects in order to increase
trade with Armenia.

COE ASSEMBLY CONFIRMS CREDENTIALS OF ARMENIAN DELEGATION

States News Service
January 27, 2010 Wednesday
STRASBOURG, France

The following information was released by the Parliamentary Assembly
of the Council of Europe (PACE):

The credentials of the Armenian delegation to the Assembly, which
were challenged on the opening day of the session on the grounds
that the Armenian Parliament had "manipulated its internal rules",
were confirmed yesterday. In its opinion, the Rules Committee said
it had examined the objections, but concluded the Armenian delegation
was appointed in compliance with the Rules – though it added that the
situation of the Armenian opposition should continue to be monitored.