Author: Karakhanian Suren

LEARNING TO SAVE PEOPLE’S LIVES

Russia Today
15 October, 2009, 09:04

Rescue recruits at an elite base outside Moscow are being put through
the most rigorous emergency training regime on par with that of the
military in order to deal with the most dangerous scenarios.

"At the beginning I had doubts, I was scared. I will remember my first
parachute jump for the rest of my life," confesses Robert Shakirov.

In his career, a rescue worker will face a variety of extremely
hazardous situations. Although each operation is unique, the constant
drills mean the rescuers will not be fazed by any situation – be it
putting out a fire, saving a drowning man, or pulling someone from
a burning car. Unfortunately, no amount of training can compare to
what happens in reality.

Read more

Twenty years ago, a cataclysmic earthquake that claimed nearly
25,000 lives in then-soviet Armenia prompted the creation of Russia’s
specialist rescue service. Since then, the rescuers have been faced
with a string of major natural and technological disasters.

Just this August, a devastating explosion at a Siberian hydroelectric
station killed more than seventy people. Man-made disasters alone
took the lives of more than 4,000 Russians last year.

As a result of their work over the years, the Emergency Ministry has
become one of the most trusted government agencies, and one of the
most necessary.

CLINTON: US HAS NO PLANS TO DEPLOY MISSILE SHIELD IN GEORGIA

Aysor.am
Wednesday, October 14

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that U.S. has no plans
to deploy missile shield in Georgia. This announcement was made during
interview with Ekho Moskvy radio station on Wednesday.

"I have no single reason to think that U.S. will deploy missile-defense
elements in Georgia. I know Russia has concerns on it."

The missile defense shield should be a common cause for Russia and
the United States and the two countries should work more closely in
this regard, Secretary Clinton pointed.

"Our experts are going through all of the details, because we would
like to see the United States and Russian to collaborate closely on
missile defense. We think it is in our mutual interest. We believe
it is something that, given our respective nations’ technological
expertise, could be important for the rest of the world," she said.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT IS LEAVING FOR TURKEY

News.am
16:16 / 10/14/2009

RA President Serzh Sargsyan has left for Bursa, Turkey, at the
invitation of his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul.

RA Presidential Spokesman Samvel Farmanyan told NEWS.am that the
Armenian leader will be accompanied by RA Foreign Minister Edward
Nalbandyan, Deputy Foreign Ministers Arman Kirakosyan and Shavarsh
Kocharyan, other high-ranking officials of the RA Foregn Office and
RA Presidential Administration. The Armenian delegation is to arrive
in Bursa at about 6:00 p.m. Yerevan time.

This is the fourth visit paid to Turkey by the Armenian
leaders. Armenia’s first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan paid two visits
to Turkey: in June 1992, he participated in the Summit of the Black
Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (BSEC), and in April 1993 he
attended the funeral of President Halil Turgut Ozal.

Armenia’s second President Robert Kocharyan attended the OSCE Summit
in Istanbul in November 1999.

THE SUPER SIX WORLD BOXING CLASSIC OPENS ON SATURDAY IN BERLIN
By Roger Tshiamala Tubajiki.

DigitalJournal.com

Jermain Taylor Media Workout in Berlin

The Super Six World Boxing Classic presented by SHOWTIME Sports in
association with Sauerland Event will open on Saturday, October 17,
2009 when Arthur Abraham and Jermain Taylor meet at the O2 World
Arena in Berlin, Germany.

After completing their training preparations, both pugilists
participated in a public work-out on Tuesday Afternoon in Berlin. The
training session was massively attended by media representatives,
and both pugilists, looking in good shape, expressed their confidence,
going into the fight on Saturday night.

The Armenian-born German Arthur Abraham, a former undefeated
middleweight world champion, believes his opponent will be in for
an unpleasant surprise. "Taylor is good, he is a proven champion,
but he has never been in the ring with someone that punches as hard
as I do. He will find out on Saturday. I have a lot of respect for
him, but he will not beat me in my hometown," stated Arthur Abraham,
a former undefeated middleweight world champion.

Abraham’s trainer, Ulli Wegner believes in his boxer punching power
and commented Taylor does not know how hard Arthur punches. "Once he
finds out, it will be too late, "stated Ulli Wegner.

Speaking to reporters, the American boxing legend Jermain Taylor, a
former undisputed middleweight world champion, stated: "I have a lot of
respect for Arthur as a fighter and I know he will be prepared." "You
can expect a lot of fireworks in the ring on Saturday night. I had a
good training camp in Houston and I’m well prepared. I’m expecting
to deliver a good performance which will lead to victory. I know
exactly how Arthur plans to fight me, it’s no secret. I will be ready
to counter anything that he presents."

Other participants in the Super Six World Boxing Classic are the
current WBA super middleweight champion Mikkel Kessler of Copenhag ht
champion Carl "The Cobra" Froch of Nottingham, England, 2004 Olympic
Games medallist Andre "The Matrix" Dirrell of Flint, Mich., USA,
and unbeaten 2004 Olympic Games gold medallist Andre Ward of Oakland,
Calif., USA.

The Super Six World Boxing Classic will also open in Nottingham,
England, on Saturday 17, 2009 when Carl Froch defends his WBC super
middleweight title against Andre "The Matrix" Dirrell at Trent
FM Arena.

HUSEYIN BAGCI: TURKEY CAN’T INTERFERE IN KARABAKH ISSUE SETTLEMENT

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
13.10.2009 17:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA-Turkish rapprochement protocols will positively
affect both states, Vice President of European Security Academy and
Middle East Technical University scientific board member Huseyin Bagci
said at Yerevan-Ankara-Moscow TV bridge on "New Geopolitical situation
in the East: Armenian-Turkish rapprochement, problems and realities".

Commenting on Turkish authorities’ statements that Turkish parliament
will not ratify Protocols till progress is registered in Karabakh
conflict settlement, Huseyin Bagci stated, "Turkey should not interfere
in Karabakh issue settlement. Yet, Ankara could contribute to the
process." Still, Huseyin Bagci did not deny the fact that the majority
in Turkey believes Ankara has to support Azerbaijan. Necessity of a
breakthrough in RA-Turkey relations is what we’re discussing here. It’s
a shame that two neighboring countries don’t have normal relations,"
the Professor said.

CREATING WALL ART WITH AN ARMENIAN TWIST
by Maria Titizian

0-09-creating-wall-art-with-an-armenian-twist
Frid ay October 09, 2009

Shoghig Demirjian uses the "aypupen" to inspire a younger generation

When Shoghig Demirjian decided to decorate her four-year-old daughter
Lara’s room with works of art, she realized there was something
missing in the market. "I wanted to decorate her room with unique
and contemporary works of art; art that was fun and whimsical but
yet had a modern flair.Children’s wall art was everywhere. I had many
options of colours and designs to choose from," she says. "However,
nothing I found was truly unique. It was then, that I realized what I
was really in search for, did not exist. I wanted something personal,
something with meaning that would inspire her creativity."

With this idea in mind, Shoghig created Personalized Armenian Wall
Art. "Unique and personal, yet stylish and educational. Not only do
they add a splash of personality to the walls, but they spark your
child’s imagination with a graphic take on the traditional [Armenian]
alphabet," she explains.

Her artwork features the Armenian alphabet in ways which can be
appealing to a younger generation. She hopes to help mothers teach
their children to appreciate, the "Art of Armenian Calligraphy."

Shoghig’s foray into wall art was not an amateur endeavor. She
graduated from the International Academy of Design and Technology in
Toronto from the Graphic Design program, which offered her a solid
foundation in creative design. " I quickly dove into the workforce
and landed my first junior position. Over the past 9-10 years,
I have worked my way up at many creative agencies, which has helped
me to gain the experience that I have today. In 2005, I ventured off
on my own, and created Blue Mango Graphic Solutions," she told the
Armenian Reporter.

At Blue Mango, Shoghig let her creative juices flow and the result
is a beautiful collection of Armenian Wall Art. "It is a wonderful
feeling to design my own ideas and create products that I love and
that I am proud about, but most importantly I am able to instill in
our children an increasing fascination for the Armenian alphabet,
an alphabet which so well depicts a people’s essence, their religion
and the significance of their place in history," Shoghig says. "It is
rewarding for me to know that as a member of the Armenian diaspora,
I have contributed in the development of Armenian art and cultural
identity. The Armenian ‘aypupen’ is truly a work of art."

Each print can be individually designed based on the child’s name,
the color choices and all frames can be customized with various
different wood finishes and stains. Prints are professionally printed
on archival photo quality paper with a matte pearl finish to ensure
longevity and to avoid fading.

Shoghig’s inspiration for color and designs stem from the latest
trends in kids fashion as well as home decor. " I always try to be
at the forefront of design and fashion trends," she explains. Her
inspiration for different Armenian typefaces, which she uses in her
wall art came from various sources. "Just recently I was able to source
‘Pomegranate fonts,’ which is a joint venture between Carolyn Puzzovio
(a principal lecturer at the University of Lincoln involved in design
education for thirty years) and Edik Ghabuzian in Yerevan, Armenia
(a former Yerevan University professor who has worked on creating
Armenian computer fonts for many years.) As well the famous Fred
Africkian (Armenian lettering artist) known for experimenting with
the use of modern elements," Shoghig says.

Since launching her collection of wall art, the response has been
very positive. "Armenian wall art has not only appealed to urban, chic
couples, hip parents and their cool kids, but as well to grandparents,
aunts and uncles and family members that either want the perfect gift
for their little tot, or are often times confused about what gifts
they should take to birthdays, baptisms, birth announcements, name
days and all the other events that surround our kids today," she says.

At Blue Mango, your choice of colors and designs are limitless. Shoghig
will even customize the colors to match bedding and furniture. "Art,
cultural identity and hip decor all in one place. What more can a
mother ask for?" she asls. Today, at Blue Mango they are shipping
orders across Canada and to the United States.

And why did she name her company blue mango? "A blue mango would be a
very unique fruit. Unique in colour and in taste. Therefore, Blue Mango
Graphic Solutions provides that uniqueness; that ‘something different’
approach to all things graphic. And the Armenian Wall Art (the newest
addition to Blue Mango) fits this description perfectly," Shoghig says.

Ms. Demirjian plans to expand not only her company, but her creative
approach to design. "I always prescribe to the theory of innovation,"
she explains. "In the future I would like to expand into a variety of
different product offerings, one of which would be home decor. Creating
art (using the alphabet) that can be displayed throughout the
home. Again, providing personalized solutions for colour and design
that coordinate well with furniture and fabrics."

[email protected]

EDWARD NALBANDIAN’S INTERVIEW WITH "KOMERSANT"

Aysor.am
October 12, 2009

The RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian gave an interview with
Vladimir Solovyov, the reporter of "Komersant" daily. He has presented
the present position concerning the negotiations of Armenian –
Turkish protocols and the Karabakh issue.

– The protocols of resuming the Armenian – Turkish relations have
been signed in Zurich. Does it mean a final conciliation between
Yerevan and Ankara?

– The normalization process of the relations was launched by
the initiation of the Armenian president, who on September of the
previous year invited his Turkish counterpart to watch the Football
match. Since that moment the negotiations between the Armenian and
Turkish Foreign Ministries started. On February the talks around
the protocols ended, and on April 2 were pre-signed. On August 31
Yerevan and Ankara announced that they will hold conferences during
6 weeks to get prepared for signing the protocols and for the later
ratification of them.

– Which is the time limits during which the ratification of the
protocols will take place.

– It depends on the Parliaments. We hope it will take place in
reasonable time limits.

– Do you think we’ll witness the opening of the Armenian – Turkish
boarder?

– I wouldn’t exclude anything. It depends on the circumstance how the
sides will follow the agreements and how will go on. Armenia respects
the agreements reached by the participation of other countries.

– Will President Serzh Sargsyan leave for Turkey to watch the football
meeting?

– Earlier our President had stated that he will leave for Turkey if
the boarders will be open or be close to being open.

– Last week in Chisinau after the meeting of the Armenian and Turkish
Presidents the question of the normalization process of the Karabakh
issue was raised. Which is its progress?

If we take into consideration the fact that it is already the
7th meetings of the leaders there is a dynamics we can say and
it is good. At the present the Pr cuss the principles of Madrid
document. Their attention is fixed on two principles. By the mediation
of the Minsk Group the sides try to make their disposition concerning
those issues closer.

– Very often the sides do not want to speak about the details when
they do not see any progress.

– If there would not be any positive dynamics the Presidents will not
meet for the 7th time and nobody would speak about the preparations of
the upcoming meeting of the Presidents. There are a lot of principles
in the Madrid document. Today two of them are being discussed. If we
get agreement on these to principles we’ll move on. And when we reach
agreement on all the principles will start the preparation work of
reconciliation accord. It is a long and difficult process.

– They were saying that the Karabakh conflict is rather close to
settlement. Do the meetings in Chisinau allow you to come to such
a conclusion?

– May be, in comparison with other conflicts it is closer to the
settlement, but it’s not too much, it’s difficult to answer. If they
say there is a positive move it means there is. The role of Dmitry
Medvedev is important. He has had meetings with the Presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan. And all those meetings were fruitful.

– Do you think the participation of the Minsk Group in the settlement
process of the conflict and the participation of Russia are parallel
processes?

– These are processes filling each other. If one of the Minsk Group
co-chairing countries can help so why not to do that? In 2001 France,
the President of France had an active role. Today the active role
has got Russia and its President.

I have the impression that the Karabakh talks are closed as no other
talks. Does it make the process to go on?

– I don’t think that the talks are closer than the others. Many serious
talks are not being held through conferences and interviews. The
day comes when the content of those negotiations becomes available
to the public. The same happened with the Armenian – Turkish
negotiations. There was a m y should be opened. It happened even
before signing which is not accepted. Usually the agreements are
being published after signing. We are not for the secrecy but any
negotiations refer not one but two or more sides.

THE SWEET SCIENCE 10.12.09: HANDICAPPING SUPER SIX TOURNAMENT
Igor Frank

411mania.com
10.12.2009

Super Six; an incredible super middleweight round robin tournament will
commence this Saturday from two different locations around the world.

First two bouts feature former undisputed middleweight champion,
Jermain Taylor and three undefeated stars, Arthur Abraham, Andre
Dirrell and Carl Froch. 02 Arena in Berlin, Germany will play a host to
a fight between Jermain Taylor and Arthur Abraham. On the same night,
October 17th, Carl Froch will defend his WBC super middleweight belt
against Andre Dirrell at Nottingham, England. Both fights will be
televised on Showtime. A month later, top ranked super middleweight
in the world Mikkel Kessler will defend his WBA title in Oakland
California facing undefeated American, 2004 Olympic gold medalist,
Andre Ward. And this is just a beginning.

"There has never been anything in boxing history quite like it," said
a boxing historian and long time Showtime commentator, Steve Farhood:"
There are fifteen potential match ups. Not a bad one among them."

We have six elite super middleweights fighting each other for the
ultimate prize, being undisputedly the best in the world.

What is so intriguing about this tournament is that each fight could
be a huge event on its own and it is very difficult to predict the
outcome of any bout and almost impossible to pick the winner of the
tournament. But despite the challenges, bookmakers have posted the odds
on the Super 6 Classic winner. Let’s take a look at it more closely.

A favorite to win it all is WBA champion, a Viking warrior, 30 year
old Mikkel Kessler from Denmark. With the record of 42-1, 32 KO’S,
Kessler is the most experienced, high level professional ranks fighter
among the six. He is fundamentally sound with a good hard jab and
heavy power in both hands. The only loss on his record was to Joe
Calzaghe who retired undefeated and has to be considered one of the
best super middleweights ever. Kessler is favorite in pow l. Despite
a limited amateur experience with only 47 fights, Kessler excelled as
a professional and turned into a complete fighter. Betting on Kessler
to win it all is considered a safe bet. Bookies have him at +235,
meaning if you bet 100 bucks on the Dane, should he be victorious,
you will win $235.00.

Right behind him, as far as odds posted, at +240, is long reining
middleweight champion, undefeated Arthur Abraham who is moving up in
weight for this tournament. Weight should not be an issue for a 29
year old champion, who has struggled to make middleweight limit of
160 pounds for the past couple of years. Born in Soviet Armenia,
residing and practicing his trade in Germany, King Arthur has
developed quite a loyal fan base with his distinctive style and
explosive power. Abraham keeps his high guard and is content to
show that he can take it for long periods in the fight, letting his
opponents unleash their offence. After allowing opponents to punch
themselves out, Arthur explodes with his powerful and very accurate
bombs that usually cause a lot of damage. Besides excellent technical
skills and explosive power Abraham has a heart of a champion; having
his jaw broken early on in a battle with a dangerous puncher Miranda,
King Arthur revealed his warriors spirit by fighting through adversity
and pain and ultimately wining the fight on the scorecards. Because of
the controversial nature of the decision in their first fight Abraham
agreed to a rematch with Miranda in United States, showing once again
what he is made of, and subsequently knocked out the Colombian within
four rounds. Abraham is fighting for name recognition; he badly wants
to be a cross over star.

Number three on a bookmakers list, at +450, is a current WBC undefeated
champion from United Kingdom, Carl Froch. Thirty two year old Britt
is a very solid all around fighter. After unsuccessfully calling out
Joe Calzaghe for years, Carl decided to take his show on the road
and to defend his title in United States against a former unified
middleweight champion Jermain Taylor. It was a very gutsy move that
almost backfired; after being down for the first time in his career
and being behind on the scorecards, Carl "The Cobra" Froch readjusted
his game plan and mounted a spirited comeback and finally stopped
Taylor at 2:46 of the 12th stanza. Froch has always maintained that
his skills and power will be too much for any super middleweight and
he is anxious to prove it in the ring.

Next up at +500, is an American, 2004 Olympic Gold medalist from
Oakland , California, undefeated, Andre Ward. At only twenty five
years old Andre is all around skilled boxer, who has not lost a
fight, including amateurs, since he was twelve. When asked about his
style, Ward replied: "I don’t have a style. I adapt to situations
in the ring." Ward demonstrated that he belongs in the elite of the
division when he completely out boxed and at times out fought and
bullied dangerous Edison Miranda this past May when they fought in
Oakland. Ward might not have a one punch knock out power, but he is
a very skilled and consistent boxer, who knows his way around the
squared circle. One more thing that will help an American challenger
in his next fight against a favorite Kessler is that the contest
will take place in Oakland, a home ls and speed and consistency,
I would rate Ward at the top among the Super Six.

Number five on the list, at +750, is former undisputed middleweight
champion, Jermain "Bad Intentions" Taylor. At only thirty one, after
beating Bernard Hopkins twice and being in two ring wars with a current
middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik, Taylor is considered a veteran of the
sweet science and his skills and speed should not be discounted. Last
time in the ring, ahead on the score cards, Taylor ran out of gas and
got knocked out by Carl. Jermain is here to exercise his demons. He
believes he can win his next fight in Germany against Arthur Abraham
if he can pace himself and finish strong.

The dark horse in this tournament is Andre "The Matrix "Dirrell. At
+1200, I consider Andre a very good bet. Despite bookmakers making him
the least likely to succeed because of lack of top level professional
experience, twenty seven year old Dirrell is 2004 Olympic bronze
medalist in super middleweight division with 237 registered amateur
wins. Dirrell has to be considered favorite in pure athletic gifts and
speed department and his confidence is at a very high level. True,
he has never faced adversity in the ring, but that is about to
change. Dirrell and his adversary Carl Froch have been doing a bit
of trash talking. May be that is the way they psyche themselves for
an important fight.

Super middleweight division has been traditionally dominated by
European fighters, thus three favorites in this tournament are all
from Europe. But what is so exciting about this is that no one can
predict the winner with any degree of certainty. So all we can do is
sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.

I would like to personally express my gratitude to Showtime for
having a vision to put it together and to five different promoters
for making it happen.At the end of the day we will know who the best
super middleweight is, but no matter who it will be , the real winner
will be a boxing fan.

Armenia has to pay a heavy price for normalization of Armenia-Turkey
relations
11.10.2009 01:31 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Over its whole existence Diaspora have fought for
the Armenian Genocide recognition, and signing of the Armenian-Turkish
Protocols change nothing for us, editor- in- chief of "Gibrahayer"
Simon Aynejian told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter.

Commenting on the process of signing of the Protocols , lasted 3
hours, Mr. Aynejian said that it has not affected the process of
normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations.

As he also said, before taking any steps, the Armenian authorities
should have consulted with representatives of Armenian communities,
since the Protocols have a paragraph on the Armenian Genocide, and
Diaspora is a direct consequence of the genocide. "The President of
Armenia began his Pan-Armenian tour when everything had been already
decided. So, these meetings have not been productive, " the
editor-in-chief said.

He stressed that the Armenian people have the impression that the
Diaspora is against the normalization of the Armenia-Turkey
relations. "We are not against normalization of relations between the
countries, the question is, what will be the price of these relations?
I am confident that it will be very high for Armenia, " Simon Aynejian
said.

News.am

Armenia to have opportunity in choosing new strategy: Expert
17:25 / 10/10/2009

The normalization of Armenia-Turkey relations will positively affect
the situation in the region, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and
International Studies (GFSIS) expert and politician Archil Gegeshidze
stated in the interview with NEWS.am.

The expert supposes that in case of Armenia-Turkey full reconciliation
and border opening the volume of investments will grow, turnover will
increase and economic upturn will be registered in the
region. Meantime, Gegeshidze stated that the West’s empowerment on
Armenia is inevitable: `Russia is obviously concerned over the
situation and taking into account that factor it may cause some
tension.’

As to weakening of Georgia’s influence on Armenia (it is the single
transit country for Armenia) Gegeshidze underlined that Georgia does
not lose this much of the border opening: `Russian gas will be
supplied to Armenia through Georgia. It can lead to unloading of
Georgian ports, but the country will not lose much as a result,’ he
said, adding he does not consider Armenia-Turkey reconciliation is
enough for Karabakh conflict settlement.

According to him, unlike in the past Armenia will heave a choice of
strategic directions. They can decide that western direction and
western democracy model can bring to well-being and stability,
Gegeshidze stated.

The expert considers that western model of democracy does not mean
alienation from Russia. It arouses Russia’s concern, as Russians
interpret it as military-strategic confrontation, the expert
concluded.