RUSSIA TO EXPORT TU-204 AIRLINERS TO IRAN
AZG Armenian Daily
22/08/2009
International
Russia has "a confirmed order" from Iran for five Tupolev Tu-204
medium-range airliners and "an option for 30" such aircraft to be
supplied to that country, the president of Russia’s United Aircraft
Corporation, Alexei Fyodorov, said on Thursday.
"Iran needs several times as many Tu-204 aircraft," Fyodorov told
reporters at the MAKS 2009 international aerospace show in Zhukovsky,
Interfax reported.
ONE DOES NOT HAVE TO BE SHERLOCK HOLMES
try&pid=14966
19:49:04 – 20/08/2009
Interview By Arman Galoyan
The ad-hoc parliament committee to study March 1 is going to release
its final report between September 14 and 17. This was stated by the
chair of the committee Samvel Nikoyan in an interview with Radio
Liberty. Nikoyan also said that the report is going to answer the
questions of people that pend, from the time of the action to the
revelation of those who ordered to launch the action. On the other
hand, however, Nikoyan said that "some circumstances of death remain
unknown", and they have not found the question to the answer "whose
actions resulted in the death of people".
What are the expectations of the opposition activists, members of
the fact-finding group?
Andranik Kocharyan , representative of the Armenian National Congress
to the fact-finding group
"Following Mr. Nikoyan’s behavior and evaluations in the past month,
considering that in the past month the group did not operate at full,
the members of the group were on vacation, knowing the immense amount
of materials supplied by the fact-finding group, I cannot imagine
that it is possible to present a report in such a short time. I have
no expectations. I suppose that the report must include the facts we
have acquired and answer all the questions that worry the public. If
all this has not been included in the report or it is going to be
incomplete, I think it will not satisfy the society. Presently, there
are three reports on March 1 which have been released. Considering
the evaluations of these reports by the families of the victims of
March 1, they were satisfied by the reports of the fact-finding group."
Nikoyan has also announced that the circumstances of death of the
victims of March 1 remain unknown, as well as the persons whose
actions or orders caused the tragedy. I would like to know your
opinion on this.
Mr. Nikoyan is not telling the truth. The fact-finding group has
been able to present the circumstances of death of five of ten
victims completely. The reports reveal the killers of three people,
the circumstances of death of the other two were revealed, but the
investigation body has a lot of things to do, to reveal the real
perpetrators. Perhaps Mr. Nikoyan does not have the right to tell such
things, especially that he has the materials on the circumstances
of death of five of the ten victims. A year and a half has passed,
however, and there is no progress. And if this continues, it will
cause further problems. I think the investigation is not serious.
Vahe Stepanyan, representative of the HRD to the fact-finding group,
head of the staff of the Human Rights Defender
I have no expectations from that report.
Samvel Nikoyan said that the circumstances of death of the victims
of March 1 remain unknown, as well as the persons whose actions or
orders caused the tragedy. I would like to know your opinion on this.
Nikoyan stated from the beginning that they have no information.
Do you think the materials presented by the fact-finding group were
not sufficient for Nikoyan?
It was possible to answer those questions without the materials
of the fact-finding group but the investigation body, the special
investigative service, was to work in that direction, both the use
of special means and other issues. It was the job of professionals,
and there was no need to set up special organizations.
Why did they set up the special organizations, and the investigative
body did not set to answer those questions?
Most probably they did not wish to, therefore they did not do anything
serious. I think one does not have to be Sherlock Holmes to reveal
all this.
THE FUTURE OF MMA – THE TOP 10 FIGHTERS AGED UNDER 25
BY Derek Bolender
ifight365.com
Thursday August 20, 2009
The sport of mixed martial arts is in good hands.
With thousands of new gyms sprouting up all over the world due to
the surge in the sport’s popularity, and kids honing their skills
younger and younger, there should be no shortage of talent in the
pipeline for many years to come.
People of all ages are chomping at the bit to participate in the
sport. However, a very small percentage of these individuals
will eventually make an impact as a professional fighter in a
major organization. An even smaller few may even have superstar
potential–the ability to challenge for a belt, draw a crowd, and
have his name ring out around the world.
Currently, a crop of megastars led by Fedor Emelianenko, Anderson
Silva, and Georges St. Pierre are carrying the torch, but in time
they will leave the sport on top or gradually slide back down the
ladder to make room for others.
The revolving facade on the Mount Rushmore of MMA will once again
have to be filled.
As the MMA gods look down into their crystal ball and peer into the
future, what do they see? A list of new names and faces trickling out
of the proverbial woodwork who, collectively, are a group of young
and hungry potential stars-in-the-making.
"Generation Next" is a group of talented fighters who are currently
under the age of 25.
Some of the names may be more recognizable than others and they have
had varying degrees of success so far in their brief careers.
One thing they all have in common is that they will be instrumental
in writing the next chapter in the evolution of MMA.
Without further ado, here are the top 10 fighters under the age of 25:
1) Gegard Mousasi–24 years old–Strikeforce/DREAM –(26-2-1) At the
ripe age of 24 this mild-mannered Dutch-Armenian fighter has already
cemented himself as one of the top MMA fighters in the world today.
This teammate and striking coach of Fedor Emelianenko at Red Devil
Sport Club is coming off an impressive and dominating performance
against Renato "Babalu" Sobral in which he recorded a first round
TKO to become the Strikeforce light heavyweight champion.
"The Dreamcatcher" really stormed onto the scene in impressive
fashion in 2008 when he captured the DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix
Championship in Japan. He defeated Korean judo specialist Dong Sik
Yoon, Dutch kickboxer and muay thai wrecking machine Melvin Manhoef,
and jiu-jitsu world champion Ronaldo Souza consecutively to capture
the title. To cap off the year he defeated former world heavyweight
muay thai champion and K-1 World GP finalist Musashi via first round
TKO fighting under K-1 rules. Cumulatively he was 6-0 in MMA and 1-0
in K-1 in a single calendar year against some of the best competition
in the world.
"The Dreamcatcher" is next scheduled to fight Rameau Thierry
Sokoudjou at DREAM 11 on October 6 in the semifinals of the Super
Hulk tournament. Mousasi continues to make the slow transition from
middleweight to his eventual final pit stop at heavyweight, where he
eventually would like to follow in Fedor’s footsteps. Their mutual
Red Devil Sport Club teammate Kirill Sidelnikov may already stake
his claim to the "Baby Fedor" nickname, however, it may be more
appropriate for Mousasi.
2) Jon Jones–22 years old–UFC–(9-0) Jones burst onto the scene on
the undercard of UFC 94 and took it to UFC veteran Stephan Bonnar
displaying a wealth of striking and wrestling talent. He followed
that up with another impressive performance against Jake O’Brien at
UFC 100, which saw him win via submission in the second round and run
his undefeated record to 9 – 0 overall in his relatively brief career.
With a deep 205 pound division sitting in front of him the UFC is
slowly feeding him opponents so he continues to master his craft and
build up a fan base.
"Bones" may not be a household name yet but someday he could be
mentioned in the same breath as the elite fighters in the UFC. It
appears to be only a matter of time for a guy who has this much raw
talent and natural ability.
3) Jose Aldo–22 years old–WEC–(15-1) Quick, explosive, powerful,
and hungry; these are all adjectives to describe this up-and-coming
Brazilian superstar. This Nova Uniao product is a handful to deal
with for any featherweight in the WEC. His highlight reel flying knee
knockout of Cub Swanson just eight seconds into the fight was enough
to convince the WEC management to grant him his first title shot. The
win ran his WEC record to 5-0 with all victories coming by way of KO
or TKO.
He will now take on current featherweight champion Mike Brown in
November in what is the opportunity of a lifetime and the toughest
test in his relatively brief MMA career.
4) Jamie Varner–24 years old–WEC–(16-2, 2 no contests) This Arizona
native is the current WEC lightweight champion. After losing his UFC
debut at UFC 62 via submission to Hermes Franca back in 2006 he made
the move to the WEC and it has been his best career move to date. Since
joining he has gone 4-0 including victories over Rob McCullough
(to win the title) and Donald Cerrone (his first title defense).
The Cerrone fight, which won both men Fight of the Night honors, was
stopped by the referee in the fifth round because of an unintentional
knee strike from Cerrone. Varner ended up winning on the scorecards but
came away with blurred vision, a broken foot, and a broken hand. While
Varner recovers, the WEC has put together an interim lightweight
title match between the aforementioned Cerrone and Ben Henderson,
which will take place at WEC 43.
5) Dustin Hazelett–23 years old–UFC–(12-4) Hazelett, like Varner,
has seen his ascension halted by an unfortunate injury he sustained
in his preparations for his UFC 96 matchup with Ben Saunders. This
Jorge Gurgel-trained jiu-jitsu black belt had accumulated a 5-2 UFC
record up to that point including submission victories over Jonathan
Goulet, Josh Burkman, and Tamdan McCrory.
His standup is still very raw, which was evident in his overwhelming
loss to Josh Koscheck at UFC 82. His ground game, on the other hand,
is world class. Nine of his 12 career victories are via submission. At
just 23 years old he has plenty of time to develop into a more
well-rounded fighter.
Make no mistake about it, "McLovin" remains a top tier UFC welterweight
and a tough matchup for anyone in the division even at this early
stage in his career.
6) Nate Diaz–24 years old–UFC–(10-4) This Ultimate Fighter season
five winner is the younger half of the flying Diaz brothers. Both
have already made a name for themselves in the sport and continue to
improve with each passing fight. They are still honing their skills
under the tutelage of Cesar Gracie in California alongside fellow
"Scrap Pack" members Jake Shields and Gilbert Melendez.
Nate is as dangerous as any UFC lightweight on the ground having
registered seven of his 10 victories via submission. He stormed
onto the UFC scene winning five fights in a row. But he certainly
has struggled of late losing back-to-back fights against top flight
lightweights Clay Guida and Joe Stevenson.
He will look to get back into the win column when he headlines UFC
Fight Night 19 on Sep. 16 against Melvin Guillard.
7) Dominick Cruz–24 years old–WEC–(14-1) Cruz is coming off a
dominating performance over previously unbeaten Joseph Benavidez at
WEC 42. At this point Cruz has probably done enough to earn a title
shot against newly crowned bantamweight champion Brian Bowles. The
problem, however, is that Bowles is rumored to be out until 2010 due
to a broken hand he sustained in his victory over longtime champion
Miguel Torres at WEC 42.
He could conceivably wait it out or fight once in the
interim. Nevertheless, his victory over Benavidez went a long way in
proving to the world he is a championship-level fighter.
At 135 pounds he is extremely tall and skinny, and uses his long reach
to his advantage. He’s a tough matchup for anyone in the division
because of his physical attributes and his well-rounded skill set.
8 ) Joe Soto–22 years old–Bellator FC–(7-0) Soto has gone from
relative unknown to champion over the past few months. "The Hammer"
defeated Ben Greer, former EliteXC bantamweight champion Wilson Reis,
and Yahir Reyes consecutively to lay claim to the first ever Bellator
FC featherweight tournament championship.
This former Iowa Central Community College teammate of UFC fighters
Jon Jones and Cain Velasquez has transformed himself from a pure
wrestler to a well-rounded mixed martial artist in a very short period
of time. Look for him to only get better with each passing fight as
he progresses in his blossoming career.
9) Jorge Masvidal–24 years old–Bellator FC–(18-4) This American Top
Team product is known for his aggressive and above average striking
that is a staple of all ATT fighters including training partners WEC
featherweight champion Mike Brown, Thiago Alves, Sengoku middleweight
champion Jorge Santiago, Thiago Silva, Gesias Calvancante, etc…
"Gamebred" has notable career wins over Joe Lauzon, Yves Edwards,
and former IFL lightweight champion Ryan Schultz. However, he has had
mixed results so far since signing with Bellator FC. He was expected to
reach the finals and take on Eddie Alvarez in the inaugural lightweight
tournament. He defeated Nick Agallar via TKO in the first round of
the tournament but then suffered a disappointing loss to Toby Imada
in the semifinals.
He was on the receiving end of a highlight reel inverted triangle
choke from Imada that is arguably the best submission of the year
in 2009 to date. He quickly bounced back and submitted Eric Reynolds
via rear naked choke at Bellator 12 in June 2009.
Look for him to continue his winning ways some time in early 2010.
10) Rani Yahya–24 years old–WEC–(15-4) This former Abu Dhabi
submission grappling tournament world champion is a menace on the
ground where 14 of his 15 career wins are via submission. Yahya is
currently trying to round out his game at The Arena MMA in San Diego,
California alongside Diego Sanchez and Xande Ribeiro.
Since losing the WEC bantamweight championship in 2007 to Chase
Beebe he has rattled off three consecutive WEC victories and three
Submission of the Night awards as well.
He has once again begun knocking on the door for a potential crack
at the title against current champion Brian Bowles.
***Note: I did not include anyone that was 25 years old. Only
the true "Under 25â~@³ crowd (24 years old and under).***
VARDAN ARAMYAN: IT IS IMMATURE TO SPEAK OF ECONOMIC GROWTH
News.am
17:31 / 08/19/2009
Government will initiate the parliamentary budget follow up in two
cases, RA Deputy Finance Minister Vardan Aramyan told NEWS.am.
"First case – if GDP /deficit rate exceeds 7.5%, having this index
fixed by law, and second case – we have the right to introduce
budget changes of up to 10% and if the limit needs to be exceeded,
Government would be forced to propose a new draft budget," Aramyan
said. Currently, that 10% makes AMD 90bln.
As to the journalist’s statement that Government plans to balance with
12-15% deficit whereas budget projects 9% growth, Aramyan replied:
"We have repeatedly stated that 9% economic growth is impossible under
the current conditions. It is immature to speak of growth under 12-15%
decline."
Commenting on budget implementation, Deputy Minister underlined:
"Budget will be implemented according to the updated version available
on the Governmental website. Outstanding AMD 98bln expenses are
postponed and unlikely to be fully executed, that is will not exceed
10% limit. Thus the Government will not be urged to appeal to the
National Assembly to alter the budget."
BIG GROUP OF TOURISTS FROM ARMENIA TO SPEND VACATIONS IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH
ARKA
Aug 18, 2009
YEREVAN, August 18, /ARKA/. A big group of tourists from Armenia
left for Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday for a week-long vacation. Ruben
Grigorian, president of RUMEA Fascinating Travels Club, told
journalists that the group comprises 61 people. The vacation was
organized as part of a pilot program, designed by the government of
Nagorno-Karabakh to boost tourism.
The government of Nagorno-Karabakh asked the authorities in Yerevan
to urge citizens of the Republic of Armenia to spend their vacations
in Nagorno-Karabakh offering also a flexible and accessible pricing
system.
Grigorian said they are planning to attract tourists from other
countries to Nagorno-Karabakh as well, adding that they have received
already applications from Canadian and Swedish tourists. The RUMEA
Club has developed an interesting program for tourists who will
visit the capital city Stepanakert, Shushi, old monasteries, the
recently excavated Tigranakert town, a new aqua park, local museums
and other sites.
According to Grigorian, they will extend the tours beyond
September because a great number of citizens of Armenia wish to see
Nagorno-Karabakh.
According to a tourist who was leaving for Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday,
spending a vacation in Nagorno-Karabakh is more preferable than
vacationing in other countries.
Earlier this summer, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan called
on travel agencies and his government to join efforts and launch a
wide-range campaign to advertise in-Armenian tourism via TV, radio and
press and urged citizens of Armenian to spend their summer vacations
in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, as a way to boost tourism there
and infuse much-needed revenues into the Karabakh national budget.
Likely New U.S. Diplomat For Eurasia ‘Gets Things Done’
RFE/RL
August 13, 2009
by Andrew F. Tully
WASHINGTON — The United States will soon have a new deputy assistant
secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs.
The man who is vacating the post after four years, Matthew Bryza, has
announced he will be replaced by Tina Kaidanow, a longtime diplomat
with more than 10 years of experience in the Balkans, who most
recently served as the first U.S. ambassador to Kosovo.
The U.S. State Department has yet to formally announce Kaidanow’s
appointment, however..
Bryza, who has held the post since June 2005, is now rumored to be
moving on to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan.
Kaidanow, who holds a master’s degree in political science from
Columbia University in New York, is a career diplomat who until now
has specialized in the Balkans.
Most notably, she served as the chief U.S. envoy to Kosovo from July
2006-July 2009, during its historic transition from a breakaway
territory of Serbia to a self-declared independent state.
‘She Gets Things Done’
Arbana Vidishiqi, the head of RFE/RL’s Pristina bureau, said Kaidanow
impressed many in Kosovo as a quiet but effective official..
"This is how everybody remembers Ambassador Kaidanow: She does get
things done, and she was here during a very critical period for
Kosovo," Vidishiqi says. "She came prior to the independence
declaration, and she stayed a year after the independence
declaration. So she does get things done here, but she prefers to do
those things beyond the public eye."
In fact, Vidishiqi says, many reporters were a bit frustrated because
Kaidanow seemed so averse to publicity that she seldom gave
interviews. Vidishiqi says Kaidanow didn’t restrict herself to
diplomatic functions while in Pristina, but used her influence to help
everyone she could, including ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.
"Ordinary citizens in Kosovo will probably remember her as a person
who stood by the leadership here at the most critical time, and that
was the id a lot about the Serbian minority. She opened a lot of
health-care institutions here in Serbian enclaves; she promoted
freedom of the media in Serbian enclaves. In this regard, people will
probably remember her as a person who did help a lot."
Focused On Kosovo
Kaidanow’s first major position in government began under President
Bill Clinton, where she served as director for Southeast European
Affairs at the White House’s National Security Council. Subsequently
she had assignments in Belgrade and Sarajevo.
Next, Kaidanow served as the special assistant to Christopher Hill
when he was ambassador to Macedonia from 1998 to 1999, also during the
Clinton presidency. Her duties at that time were centered on the
crisis in Kosovo.
After that, she was special assistant for European affairs for Deputy
Secretary of State Richard Armitage during President George W.. Bush’s
time in office.
In July 2006, Kaidanow was the chief of mission and charge d’affaires
at the U.S. Office in Pristina, which was to become the U.S. Embassy
to Kosovo. Two years later, following the independence declaration,
she became the first U.S. ambassador to Kosovo.
Kaidanow’s appointment to the European and Eurasian post will see her
focusing on issues of U.S. interest in the Caucasus, Central Asia, and
Southeast Europe. Energy issues and Georgia-Russia tensions can be
expected to figure prominently in her work.
Kaidanow’s responsibilities may reportedly not extend to serving as
the U.S. co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, the three-party body tasked
with facilitating negotiations on the Armenian-Azerbaijani dispute
over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.
Bryza had served as Minsk Group co-chair during his time as the
European and Eurasian deputy assistant secretary. In initial remarks,
Bryza suggested Kaidanow would do the same.
But RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani Service and other news sites in Azerbaijan
have since cited U.S. officials as saying she will not be filling the
post. An alternative replacement for Bryza’s co-chair position has n
Kaidanow’s experience in Kosovo would translate into support for
Nagorno-Karabakh independence — an outcome that is hotly opposed by
Baku.
_US_Diplomat_For_Eurasia_Gets_Things_Done/1798877. html
ARMENIA’S CENTRAL BANK CUTS REFINANCING RATE BY CAUTIONS 0.25% TO 5.25%
ARKA
Aug 12, 2009
Yerevan
YEREVAN, August 12, /ARKA/. Armenia’s Central Bank said Tuesday it has
reduced its main interest rate by a "cautious" quarter of a percentage
point and will lower the refinancing rate to 5.25%.
A press release by the Central Bank said a 2.7% deflation was
registered in July against June helping the 12 month inflation rate
to stand at 3.1%. The Central Bank said expectations of a minor
improvement of the global economy have pushed raw commodities’
prices a little up, but it added that the 2.7% deflation was largely
accounted for by seasonal fall of prices of agricultural goods. Under
these conditions although prices of non-food goods and services rose,
the natural inflation rate was stable.
"Having in mind the current microeconomic environment, the Central
Bank Board emphasizes the expansion of monetary and credit policy
which is expected to promote economic recovery without jeopardizing
the price stability,’ the press release said.
This is the sixth time that the Central Bank has cut rates after
March 3 when it raised the refinancing rate by one percentage point
to 7.75% right after announcing the return to the floating exchange
rate of the Armenian national currency Dram. Later, on April 7 the
Central Bank lowered the refinancing rate to 7.5% and to 7.25% on
May 12. On May 22 the rate was cut b y 1 percentage point to 6..25%,
on June 9 it was reduced to 6% and to 5.55 on July 7.
MP: ARMENIAN-TURKISH RAPPROCHEMENT NO1 FALL EVENT
NEWS.am
15:26 / 08/11/2009
Stepan Safaryan, Heritage faction MP considers that Serzh Sargsyan
will go to Turkey for October football match, as the border would
have been opened by then.
MP supposes that either Turkey, pressurized by U.S., would be compelled
to open the border, or U.S. would recognize the Armenian Genocide,
as the resolution on recognition is already put forward in the
U.S. Congress.
Commenting on OSCE MG Co-Chair Matthew Bryza’s repeated statements
that Armenian-Turkish relations and Karabakh peace process are
simultaneous, Safaryan said they are not coincidental. It made known
for Turkey that if it intends to influence Karabakh peace process,
it should start Armenian-Turkish rapprochement.
OVERALL EPIDEMIOLOGICAL SITUATION IN ARMENIA CALM
/ARKA/
August 10, 2009
YEREVAN
Liana Torosian, chief specialist of the State Hygienic and
Anti-Epidemiological Inspection of the Health Ministry in charge
of infectious and non-infectious diseases, said today the overall
epidemiological situation in Armenia is calm and under control.
‘Our daily surveillance of the situation shows that the epidemiological
situation in the country is calm and there are no grounds for concern,’
she said to ARKA news agency.
She said prompted by the challenges of the global epidemiological
situation the Inspection shifted on May 1, 2009 from weekly monitoring
of the situation of the influenza to daily observations.
In January-June Armenian doctors registered 141 cases of flu and
78,700 cases of acute respiratory diseases.
CAMPUS HERO
CYNTHIA R. FAGEN
New York Post
PREXY BUILDS HOLOCAUST CENTER
August 10, 2009
It’s so close to his heart that Queensborough Community College
President Eduardo Marti can’t wait for the official grand opening on
campus of The Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Resource and
Archives center in October.
The same time last year, Marti was the recipient of the Post’s Liberty
Medal in the Freedom category, for working to combat racism and
hatred. He was cited, among other things, for his dedication in seeing
the mammoth project on the Holocaust go from the transfer of crumbling
historical documents stored in a leaky campus basement to an ambitious,
$5 million, glass-enclosed, 10,000-square- foot interactive showcase.
"There’s a wall of survivors’ names," Marti said. "When you press
the name of the survivor, their story is told" on video. "It’s very
impressive."
There will also be rotating exhibits on the Japanese massacre in
Nanking, China, during World War II, as well as the genocides in
Armenia and Rwanda, among others.
At the start of the new school year, the college will offer a special
program for principals and teachers on how to combat hate crimes
among students.
"I am very proud of that," Marti said.