Author: Karagyozian Lena

VARTAN OSKANIAN HIGHLY ESTIMATES RESULTS OF COOPERATION WITH EUROPE IN 2006

Noyan Tapan
Jan 09 2007

YEREVAN, JANUARY 9, NOYAN TAPAN. The year 2006 was remarkable for
Armenia in the respect of new progress in cooperation with European
organizations. RA Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian declared this at the
January 9 press conference. "We continue to attach key importance to
development and deepening of cooperation with Europe," the Minister
emphasized. He especially mentioned Armenia’s cooperation with the
European Union, Council of Europe and NATO.

With regard to the EU New Neighborhood Program, the agreement on
implementation of which was signed in spring last year, V.Oskanian
declared that it "enables Armenia to establish political, economic
and cultural relations with Europe." In his words, the most important
article of Armenia’s cooperation with EU is bilateral trade, as EU
is Armenia’s biggest commercial partner. In January-September 2006
trade circulation between EU and RA amounted to 766 mln USD, which
is more by 12 percents as compared with 2005.

V.Oskanian reported that in 2007 we will continue cooperating with
the Council of Europe, in particular, in the sphere of reforming the
legislation. He also highly estimated Armenia’s cooperation with
NATO within the framework of the Individual Partnership Actions
Plan (IPAP). The Minister reported that in the current year NATO
is to analyse and sum up the results of the first year of IPAP’s
implementation.

SERVICES PROVIDED IN ARMENIA IN JANUARY-NOVEMBER 2006 GROW BY 21.7% ON SAME PERIOD OF PREVIOUS YEAR

Noyan Tapan
Jan 09 2007

YEREVAN, JANUARY 9, NOYAN TAPAN. The amount of services provided in
Armenia in January-November 2006 made 428 bln 327.3 mln drams (about 1
bln 18.1 mln USD), which exceeds by 21.7% the respective index of 2005.

According to the RA National Statistical Service, a 3.9% growth of
service tariffs was registered in January-November 2006 on the same
period of 2005, which was mainly conditioned by the growth of tariffs
of social (5.7%), educational (8.4%), transport (1.9%), health (4.7%),
hotel and restaurant (2.7%) and municipal services (4.3%).

Such services as related to financial activity (24 bln 879.4 mln
drams), educational services (27 bln 263.1 mln drams), health care
services (29 bln 853.2 mln drams) and hotel and restaurant services
(18 bln 911 mln drams) had large share in the total amount of services,
with their share making up 5.8%, 6.4%, 7% and 4.4% respectively.

"HAYRUSGASARD" WILL CONTINUE IMPORTING GAS TILL 2008

ArmRadio.am
08.01.2007 16:20

The Public Services Regulatory Commission has extended the license of
" HayRusgasard" for one year, which enables the company to import
gas to Armenia.

Let us remind that "HayRusgasard" has a monopoly right on import and
distribution of gas in Armenia. License #0102 was given to the company
still in 1997, when the joint Armenian-Russian Company was established.

Armenpress

ARMENIANS CELEBRATED 3,000 VICTORIES IN 5,000 YEARS

YEREVAN, JANUARY 7, ARMENPRESS: The Noravank
Foundation, a think-tank based in Yerevan, dealing
with political, cultural and economic studies, said it
will publish a book called "Victories of Armenians."
Foundation’s director Gagik Harutunian said the book
will tell about all victories the Armenian nation
celebrated throughout its millennia-long history.
He said the book will present in detail all
victories Armenians have had in their 5000 year-long
history. "Minute studies show that Armenians have
celebrated overall 3,000 military victories," he
added.
"Although Armenians also suffered defeats but there
are few nations in the world that can boast of winning
3,000 military battles," he said.
He added that the book will dissipate a wrong
opinion that Armenians had more defeats than
victories. The book will also present a thorough study
of Armenian military art.

Armenpress

UNDP AND USAID TO HELP VILLAGE IN TAVUSH PROVINCE

YEREVAN, JANUARY 5, ARMENPRESS: In spring of 2007
the UNDP and the USAID will invest about $2 million in
a remote village of Sarigyugh in the northeastern
province of Tavush to restore its 3 km-long drinking
water and waste water systems and to build a 13
km-long gravity irrigation system that will take water
from the Kirants River.
The new irrigation system will also take water to
two neighboring villages of Kirants and Sevkar.
Part of this money will be used for repair and
furnishing of a kindergarten for 150 children. The
local community will input 10 percent of the cost of
all projects.
Aramazd Dalamkarian from the UNDP said these
projects had been discussed with residents of the
village and regional authorities, who defined the
priorities.
The village of Sarigyugh is located 20 off the town
of Ijevan, which is the regional administrative center
and has 1,341 people. The village is rich in basalt
and agate mines and has a 16 century church.

Mozart Entertainment
Post Office Box 17257
Beverly Hills, California 90209 US

[email protected]

In the review of Darren Aronofsky’s film, The Fountain, Jeremy Osgood
wrote the following in his funny-titled article Dude. Like, Where’s
the Script which was published in the The Pulse "…it demonstrates
too much faith in the beauty of his images. There is, of course, a
place for purely visual cinema. It is a place filled by the likes of
Parajanov and Reggio who produce work that is stunning…"
Incidentally, Godfrey Reggio had recently received the Parajanov Award
at the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival in Armenia.

Martin Vardanov’s Erased Faces II has been postponed again, now till
2007, due to difficulties with getting the clips of Mikhail Vartanov’s
films out of Armenia. In 2007, Vartanov turns 70, Parajanov: The Last
Spring turns 15 and and a few celebrations are planned in Europe, US
and, hopefully, Armenia. It is hoped that these events will help bring
more attention to the very little known master and his oeuvre which
has been suppressed for decades and till this day virtually never been
shown to the general public.

In Bucharest, Romania, Sergei Paradjanov’s Color of Pomegranates and
Hagop Hovnatanian as well as Atom Egoyan’s Ararat were screened in
November during Days of Armenian Cinema. The latter film is about the
Armenian Genocide perpetrated by Turkish government in 1915. On a
related note, Sylvester Stallone told Denver Post that he had always
wanted to make a film about the Armenian Genocide based on Franz
Werfel’s famous novel 40 Days of Musa Dagh: "…an epic about the
complete destruction of a civilization…The Turks have been killing
that subject for 85 years."

In Armenia, an exhibition dedicated to the 200th anniversary of Hagop
Hovnatanian opened on Wednesday at the National Library of Armenia.

Congratulations to the creators of the documentary Screamers for
winning the AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival’s Audience
Award for Best Documentary.

Festival International du Film d’Amiens, which took place 10 – 19
November 2006, screened Sergei Paradjanov’s Color of Pomegranates and
Amo Bek-Nazarov’s silent Zangezur.

Mohammed Shine of Kerala, India recently wrote in his blog that Kamara
Kamalova’s new movie Road Under the Skies’ "…surreal scenes of
colourful but abstract local mythology smacks of the master Sergei
Paradjanov…"

In France, La Cinémathèque de Toulouse begins a retrospective of
Armenian films, called Fragments d’Arménie on 1 Januray 2007. During
the month of January all post 1964 films of Sergei Paradjanov will be
screened along with the work of Amo Bek-Nazarov, Atom Egoyan, Bagrat
Oganesyan, Albert Lazarian as well as Artavazd Pelechian’s We and
Seasons.

Robert Kelly wrote the following in his paper presented at the
Princeton Conference on Magic and Cinema: "Interesting that throughout
the government direction of the arts in the USSR, film found its way
to magic and wonder only through treatment of folklore. The same route
that the German Romantics had followed to escape the inexorable
rationality of the Enlightenment became the way through the
penny-plain austerities of Socialist Realism and beyond into splendor
– the work of Parajanian/Parajanov, the great Armenian-Russian
director contains magnificent examples of this liberation."

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Lragir, Armenia
Dec 28 2006

At the end of the year almost everywhere and almost in every
sphere they sum up the passing year, assess the achievements,
recall the failures and expect that in the new year the correlation
of achievements and failures, good and evil, virtue and vice will
change. And as a rule it always changes, but often not in favor
of good. Generally, since Mr. Einstein gave one of the greatest
formulas of life, years have become relative, and dates have become
conventional. However, like duties are sometimes pleasant, such as
marital duties, conventions are also pleasant and unpleasant.

Perhaps it is early to tell if the 365 days that started 2005 past
the birth of Jesus were pleasant. For Armenia, 2006 is a special year
because, in fact, it will be summed up in May 2007 when the Armenian
people will go to close another period in their life or maybe to
open a new period or maybe to start a new life. The year 2006 did
not have any other peculiarity. There were no extraordinary events
in the life of the public. The independent state of Armenia, which
is also referred to as the Third Republic, became 15, but it was not
unexpected for anyone. What was unexpected was that the hot-tempered
Armenians reacted with Scandinavian coldness to the economic growth
reported for five years on. Generally, the year 2006 was a year of
commonness. Everything was too usual. The government was mean towards
the opposition as usual, the opposition called people as usual, as
usual people did not know where the call came from and where they
should go, the summer was hot as usual and the winter is cold as
usual. Even the scandalous assassinations became something usual in
2006. Since everything was so usual about the Dog, the expectations
from the Pig are not great, even though it is the Fire Pig.

However, it is New Year, and we always have expectations, independent
from us, be it in the year of the Pig, the Horse, the Dog or the Cat.

After all, the animals are not to blame. They have already made a
great sacrifice for people by agreeing to assume responsibility for
their failures and become justification of failed to happen. And the
expectations, which occur no matter we want or not, are waiting for
our will to come true. So good will to everyone. Happy New Year.

CINEMATOGRAPHERS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT ISSUE OF OBSERVANCE OF ARMENIAN TYPE OF FILM

Noyan Tapan
Dec 28 2006

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 28, NOYAN TAPAN. An agreement on cooperation of the
Rotterdam, Pusan and Golden Apricot ("Voske Tsiran") film festivals
will be signed within the framework of the Rotterdam festival in
January, 2007. Susanna Haroutiunian, the Golden Apricot Artistic
Director stated about it at the December 27 press conference at
the "Urbat" club. In her words, the three-year festival won great
recognition among famous festivals and prominent figures of the
cinematography of the world. In 2006 as well, the festival presented
itself with variety of films, quality and geography. "The spectator
also considers the festival to be his own one. He waits for the
festival. The halls were full this year. The house was even full at
some hours," S.Haroutiunian mentioned.

"We develop step by step and do not satisfy ourselves with the
achieved. In this sense, the started cooperation with individual
directors, producers and festivals is important," the Artistic
Director of the festival assures. In Susanna Haroutiunian’s words,
in opposite to low-price films shown by the television and at the
cinemas, the festival is the best possibility to get acquainted
with the alternative cinematography. Films shown during the festival
days bring new breathing and freshness. Director Edgar Baghdasarian,
present at the press-conference, who is known to the audience with
his "Game" (Khagh), "Leakage" (Hosk), "Country of Hole Rituals" (Surb
Tseseri Yerkir) and "Mariam" films, finds that one may not speak about
Armenian films "in regard to one year," as the number of films being
shot during a year is too small. In his words, one must speak about
the Armenian film "at least, in regard to 10 years, though little
can be said about that term as well." In E.Baghdasarian’s words,
state interference is necessary to keep the type of the Armenian
film. In his words, the National Cinematography Center created
on the basis of "Hayfilm" must develop a policy which will assist
keeping of that type of cinematography. In the director’s words,
the Armenian cinematography needs new breathing and new word: "One
must not continuously repeat that the Armenian film is dead: the one
who states about it, is dead himself. And if some cinematographers
are not able to creat any longer and to shoot a good film, it does
not mean that the Armenian cinematography is dead."

TIGRAN MANSURIAN HOPES THAT HIS WORKS TO BE PERFORMED IN ARMENIA AS WELL

Noyan Tapan
Dec 25 2006

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 25, NOYAN TAPAN. In RA People’s Artist, composer
Tigran Mansurian’s words, he is today considered "the most performed
composer in the world music reality." The composer stated about it at
the December 23 meeting organized at the "Urbat" club. He mentioned
that he was surprised when he got to know from the internet that his
concerts are involved in the next year programs of famous orchestras of
different countries: "I have never seen such a great attention towards
my work." The composer stated that his "2nd Concert for Violin" will be
for the first time performed in Stockholm in January of the next year,
by the Chamber Orchestra of Sweden. Then it will be performed to music
lovers of Swedish three cities as well. T.Mansurian mentioned that by
order of the American "Concertant" stringed orchestra he wrote the
"With Soul" work the premiere of which will take place on March 22,
2007, in New York.

And works written for chamber and orchestra will be performed in April
in Los Angeles. "I am glad that my works are being spread all over the
world, and I hope that they will in future be performed in Armenia as
well," T.Mansurian said. In his words, after fall of the Soviet Union,
he has got no order on writing any work in Armenia. T.Mansurian also
mentioned that he does not write music for films today. "I write music
during the Soviet years only to solve the problem of every day bread,"
the composer said.

Armenian servicemen try to move forward in Aghdam

Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Dec 23 2006

[ 23 Dec. 2006 12:51 ]

Armenian servicemen moved from the occupied Bayramli village of Aghdam
forward to Azerbaijani Armed Forces, APA Karabakh bureau reports.

The residents of the village situated on the front line said that the
number of the Armenian servicemen was nine. Azerbaijani Armed Forces
servicemen fired at the invaders and they were obliged to retreat. It
is unknown if the Armenian servicemen were lost or approached our
positions for reconnoitering. /APA/