Author: Karabekian Emil

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Aug 2 2009

Human stories through objectives of Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian youth

Sunday, August 2, 2009
VERCÄ°HAN ZÄ°FLÄ°OÄ?LU
ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

The communication between Armenian and Azerbaijani people is almost
nonexistent. Realizing this problem, the Internews organization
started in 1995 to implement joint projects between the countries. The
target was children and youth, and the result was a project named
‘Dialogue Through Film’

Youth from Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijani and Nagorno-Karabakh have
gathered to film human stories as part of a project called `Dialogue
Through Film.’ The goal is to remove prejudices between societies.

Mutual talks have been ongoing to solve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem
between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Although politicians tell
international audiences that positive steps are being taken toward a
solution, Armenia’s current situation does not live up to
expectations. Much time and patience is needed to find a solution to
the Nagorno-Karabakh problem despite all interventions.

Communication between Armenian and Azerbaijani people is almost
nonexistent. This situation makes the abyss between them
deeper. Realizing this problem, the Internews Media Support
Organization in Armenia started talks with Azerbaijan in 1995 to
implement joint projects for children and youth.

Internews got positive answers from its Azerbaijani partner, the
Internews Public Association, and Georgia has now been included in the
project, too. Armenian, Georgian and Azerbaijani children were brought
together in Georgia and Turkey. Later on, the youth living under the
Nagorno-Karabakh administration were included in the 14-year-old
project.

TV in both countries vetoes Karabakh project

`We put effort into our people’s conciliation. This is why children
and youth are very important,’ project manager Nouneh Sarkissian told
the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review.

Young people between 13 and 25 are eligible for the project. They make
short films and documentaries featuring human stories from their own
countries. The films are broadcast on Armenian, Azerbaijan and
Georgian televisions.

Sarkissian said they had encountered a problem on the Karabakh side of
the project, adding that films made there for the project were not
shown in Armenia and Azerbaijan. She said they found a solution with
their Azerbaijani partners and distributed films on DVD.

Youth come together in Georgia and Turkey

Talking about the current situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, Sarkissian
said Russia played a big role in deepening the problem. `If Armenia
and Azerbaijan had declared their independence when the Karabakh
problem occurred, the problem would not have been so deep. The USSR
had a big role in bringing the Karabakh problem to a dead end,’ she
said.

She said Armenian and Azerbaijani youth could not visit each other
because of the current situation and this is a big deficiency. This is
why they often come together in Georgia and Turkey.

Azerbaijani youth make Turkish translation for Armenian youth

Sarkissian said that together with young people in the project, they
had come to the Mediterranean city of Antalya’s Kemer district for
one-week summer camp the previous year. `During a long and tiresome
trip, the youth became friends on the bus. The Azerbaijani youth
translated the Turkish for the Armenians during the week. They are
still in contact.’

Sarkissian said they also planned to launch similar projects between
Turkey and Armenia in the near future. `We believe in the significance
of our project and are determined to continue with a strong belief,’
she said.

BOX

`We were ordinary people who hate fighting’

One of the young people who gathered for the project, Vugar Safarov,
said, `This project shaped my personality, led me to see what happens
through different perspectives.’

Armenian Artak Vardanian, who was very pleased with becoming a part of
the project just like his Azerbaijani partner, said, `We are not
Armenian, Georgian or Azerbaijani, but ordinary humans who hate
fighting and war.’

Georgian participant Levan Jobavay said the following about the
project, `Working as part of this program made me free and
strengthened my feeling of responsibility. It is very nice to learn
about different cultures."

Public Television of Armenia
Aug 7 2009

Armenia’s opposition member released from prison

We received a report short time ago that Hamlet Hovhannisyan, whose
nickname is Tros Hamo, has been released from prison the Yerevan’s
correctional facility. He was the head of the pre-election
headquarters of [the leader of the opposition Armenian National
Congress] Levon Ter-Petrosyan in Lori Region. Hovhannisyan has given a
written undertaking not to leave his place of residence.

We should recall that Hovannisyan was one of three three people
charged over the 1-2 March [2008] events and wanted by the police
since 1 March 2008.

Hovannisyan surrendered to Yerevan’s Malatiya police station on 30
July 2009.

CHAIRMAN OF INTERNATIONAL CHESS FEDERATION TO ARRIVE IN ARMENIA

ARMENPRESS
Aug 7, 2009

YEREVAN, AUGUST 7, ARMENPRESS: Chairman of the International Chess
Federation Kirsan Ilyumzhinov is planning to visit Armenia August
8 to be present at the international "Grand Prix" tournament after
Tigran Petrosyan in Jermuk.

Fourteen leading grand masters including Levon Aronyan and Vladimir
Hakobyan, French Etienne Bakro, Ukrainians Vassili Ivanchuk, Pavel
Elyanov, Sergey Karyakin, Gata Kamski from USA, Israeli Boris
Gelfand, Russians Dmitry Yakovenko and Yevgeni Alexeev and others
will participate in the tournament.

Armenian Chess Federation told Armenpress that they all will arrive
in Armenia today and tomorrow.

RAPID DEFLATION SEEN IN ARMENIA IN JULY
Venla Sipila

World Markets Research Centre
Aug 4 2009

According to the latest inflation data from the National Statistical
Service of Armenia, consumer prices in July fell by 2.7% month-on-month
(m/m) in July. This result compares to a more modest deflation rate
of 0.3% m/m seen in June, and to an inflation rate of 1.6% m/m posted
in May. As expected, the decrease in consumer prices was led by a
sharp fall in food costs, which eased by 5.7% from June. Conversely,
prices of non-food goods rose by 0.5% m/m and service charges inched
up by 0.1% m/m. Measured year-on-year (y/y), Armenian consumer prices
increased by 3.1% in July, after gaining 3.6% y/y in June, 3.4% y/y
in May and 3.1% y/y in May. The annual inflation rate for the whole
January-July period was reported at 2.7%, while consumer prices rose
by 2.4% in cumulative terms over the first seven months of 2009.

Significance:While the clear fall in prices in m/m terms is due
in large part to seasonal effects from food price developments,
the return to moderation in annual price growth is welcome. After
early 2009 saw inflation pressures subside sharply, they started
to strengthen again from March, after the devaluation of the dram
exchange rate seen earlier in the month, while the April jump in
inflation was mainly attributed to the increase in import prices
of Russian gas (seeArmenia: 1 May 2009:). With inflation below the
upper band of the target rate, the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA)
has enacted several interest rate cuts recently (seeArmenia: 8 July
2009:). The boosting impact on service prices form the gas price rise
is likely to keep having an upward effect on annual inflation in the
coming months, but the overall sharp cooling in economic activity
will have the opposite effect. Then again, the potential of sharp
renewed upward price pressures still cannot be written off, given the
vulnerability of the dram exchange rate amid Armenia’s high external
financing requirements.

ARMENIA ENJOYS ADVANTAGES OF AGREEMENT ABOUT FREE TRADE WITH EU

ARKA
Aug 4, 2009

YEREVAN, August 4. /ARKA/. Armenia is taking now the advantage of the
agreement about free trade with the European Union, being a member
of the Generalized System of Preferences GSP+ system, Armenian Deputy
Minister of Economy Vahe Danielyan told journalists last week.

Active efforts are made for Armenia to join the agreement, Danielyan
said.

The GSP+ system enables the countries paying "zero" or considerably
lower customs duties while exporting about 10,000 goods to the European
markets. The system allows reducing duties down to 52% for tobacco
imported to Europe, by 30% for natural juices, 20% for fruits, 14%
for vegetables, 20% for fish and 17% for honey.

About 52% of the goods produced in Armenia are included in GSP+
system, Danielyan said.

"This is quite an advantage for Armenia in terms of competition of
the goods with the produce of other countries that want to sell their
products on the European markets," Danielyan said.

He stressed that Armenia should not forget about the legislative
package that is a precondition for preferences granted by Europe to
Armenia. It is about 27 international conventions that Armenia joined,
Danielyan said.

Armenia should be consistent in meeting its obligations as GSP+
system preferences are granted to countries once every three years.

In December 2008, the European Commission app roved a list of countries
that will have the opportunity of enjoying advantages of GSP+ regime
from January 1 2009 up to the end of 2011 for sustainable development
and effective management.

TAIEX is the Technical Assistance and Information Exchange Instrument
of the Institution Building unit of Directorate-General Enlargement
of the European Commission.

It is to provide short-term technical assistance (within five
working days maximum) to member countries, in line with the overall
policy objectives of the European Commission, and in the field of
approximation, application and enforcement of EU legislation.

Along with TAIEX, other instruments are available to Armenia,
i.e. Twinning, Sigma and European neighbourhood and partnership
instrument.

TURKEY EYES ENERGY ROLE WITH RUSSIA
By Sibel Utku Bila

Middle East Online
usiness/?id=33535
Aug 4 2009

Putin’s energy agenda in Ankara likely to include discussing oil,
gas, nuclear power plant projects.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is to visit Ankara Thursday for
talks expected to focus on energy cooperation amid a growing Turkish
role in projects to carry gas and oil to Europe.

"Cooperation in the field of energy will be a primary issue on the
agenda," an aide to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Situated between Europe and the vast oil and gas fields of the Caspian
Sea and the Middle East, Turkey has emerged as a hub for pipelines
to supply the energy-hungry West.

Last month, Ankara hosted the signing of a long-delayed accord to
build the Nabucco pipeline to carry Caspian gas via Turkey to Bulgaria,
Romania, Hungary and Austria, bypassing Russia.

The project, planned to become operational in 2014, aims to reduce
European reliance on Russia and avoid a repetition of cut-offs that
disrupted winter supplies and sparked accusations Moscow was using
gas as a political weapon.

Turkey however has been careful not to antagonise Russia — its top
trading partner and main gas supplier — and Erdogan has insisted
that Russia should also join the countries that would provide gas
for Nabucco.

"This is a long-term proposal," Erdogan’s aide said. "Russia’s
participation in the project would not harm the aim of diversifying
energy supply."

In direct competition with Nabucco, Russia is pushing for its own
project to pump gas to Europe — South Stream — and may seek Ankara’s
support to have the pipe pass through Turkish territorial waters in
the Black Sea rather than Ukrainian waters, according to Turkish media.

Russia and Turkey are not outright rivals in the energy field and
their ties instead resemble "that game in which children try to pull
each other to their side across a line," columnist Semih Idiz wrote
in the Milliyet daily Monday.

Turkey is already directly linked to Russia through the Blue Stream
gas pipeline, which runs under the Black Sea.

Hoping to attract Russian and Kazakh oil, Ankara is also promoting
a pipeline from its Black Sea port of Samsun to Ceyhan on the
Mediterranean coast, which already serves as a terminal in conduits
pumping oil from Azerbaijan and Iraq.

Putin’s energy agenda in Ankara is likely to include also a
long-delayed project to build Turkey’s first nuclear power plant.

Russia’s state firm Atomstroyexport was the only bidder in an auction
in January, but the Turkish government is yet to decide whether to
award it the project amid misgivings over the financial terms the
company offered.

Erdogan’s aide said the two prime ministers would also discuss regional
affairs in the Caucasus.

Russia has been mediating talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan over
the Nagorny Karabakh dispute, the settlement of which is crucial for
speeding up Ankara’s efforts to reconcile and establish diplomatic
ties with Yerevan.

Another prominent issue is Georgia, whose NATO membership Turkey
supports, despite fierce Russian opposition.

Russia’s military intervention in the former Soviet republic last year
briefly strained relations with Turkey, which has close economic and
political ties with Georgia, its northeastern neighbour.

Turkey sought to tread carefully and proposed a regional platform for
stability and cooperation in the Caucasus that will bring together
the two foes as well as Azerbaijan, Armenia and itself.

Despite sometimes shaky political ties, economic exchange between
the two countries has boomed since the fall of Communism: in 2008,
their trade volume hit 37.8 billion dollars, making Russia Turkey’s
number one trading partner.

Russia supplies about 60 percent of Turkey’s gas imports, and more
than a million Russian holiday-makers boost Turkey’s vital tourism
sector each year.

GEORGIA PREPARING FOR NEW WAR

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
05.08.2009 16:29 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Georgia is plotting a new aggression, said colonel
general Anatoly Nogovitsin, deputy head of Russian armed forces
general staff.

However, he did not go into detail.

"Out task was prove that Russia did not plan any military operation
while Georgia has been planning a war against South Ossetia since
2004," he said, adding that the general staff possesses documents
proving that Georgia was plotting an assault, korrespondent.net
reported.

"MIKA" HOSTS ARMENIA – SWITZERLAND MATCH

Panorama.am
13:25 01/08/2009

Armenian "Mika" stadium will host Armenia-Switzerland football match
this fall.

According to Armenian Football Federation Europe Youth Championship
electoral football match Armenia-Switzerland will take place on 4
September in "Mika" stadium, Yerevan, at 17:00 by local time.

It’s worth reminding that Armenian team of 21 years old is included
in second group with Turkey, Switzerland, Ireland, Georgia and Estonia.

PROMULGATED MADRID PRINCIPLES ONLY "SKELETON" OF FUTURE AGREEMENT

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
04.08.2009 15:29 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Madrid Principles have never been made public,
according to Levon Zurabyan, coordinator of the opposition Congress.

"The promulgated Madrid Principles are nothing but "skeleton" of
future agreement. As a matter of fact, the principles themselves
are kept secret," he said. "Any word and even comma can change the
meaning of the document, which was not developed in Armenia’s favor."

GOVERNMENT OF ARMENIA NOT TO REDUCE SOCIAL COSTS – MINISTER OF LABOR AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS

/ARKA/
July 31
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, July 31. /ARKA/. The Armenian government has set strong
to fight the crisis and has no plans to reduce the social spending,
Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of Armenia Gevorg Petrosyan said
on Friday.

He noted that the global financial and economic crisis has defied
the world, including Armenia, threatening, especially the socially
vulnerable layers of population.

"The Government of Armenia has already taken all possible measures and
mechanisms to overcome the crisis difficulties as quickly as possible,"
Petrosyan said.

He noted that the government will not reduce any money that was
provided for social services in Armenia.

Moreover, the Armenian Government is making efforts to raise additional
funds for the social services.

"The Armenian government pays particular attention to the financing of
the social sphere; however, the budget itself will be insufficient to
overcome the crisis. We need assistance from the donor organizations",
the minister said.

To implement the anti-crisis measures of the Government of Armenia,
operational headquarter has been set up.

As part of the anti-crisis measures, Armenian government has already
provided guarantees to a number of Armenian enterprises. In particular,
government guarantees of 20 billion drams ($ 54.8 million) were given
to Armenian constructors.

In addition, on the 12th of June Russia provided $ 500 million bailout
loan to Armenia, the International Monetary Fund intends to provide $
822.7 million as assistance and the WB will transfer $ 545 million
in 2009-2012.