Author: Nahapetian Lilit

TIGRAN SARGSYAN: ARMENIA CAN FINISH 2009 WITH MINIMAL LOSSES

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
25.12.2009 15:25 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The year of 2009 was full of difficulties, but
Armenia proved capable to finish it with minimal losses, Prime Minister
Tigran Sargsyan said.

"The global crisis could not bypass Armenia. It bared the weaknesses of
the republic’s economy and taught useful lessons: to be more resolute
in carrying out reforms, economic diversification and creating
equal conditions for competition," he said, summing up the results
of government’s activities in 2009. "Although repeatedly criticized,
the government’s anti-crisis program was recognized as effective by
international organizations."

PM Sargsyan also dwelled on omissions, in particular, the slow pace
of reforms and delayed establishment of relevant institutions.

TURKISH-ARMENIAN MOVIE PREMIERE HELD IN ANKARA

Today’s Zaman
Dec 24 2009
Turkey

Ankara’s Buyulu Fener Theater was the venue for an evening hosted
by the Turkish-Armenian Business Development Council (TABDC), the
Armenian Marketing Association and the United States Embassy in Turkey
on Tuesday.

The reason for the event was the premiere of a new film, "Aras
KıyılarÄ&#xB 1;nda," or "On the Banks of the Aras," a joint venture
involving all the institutions and organizations mentioned above as
well as the US Embassy in Armenia.

Co-directed by Gevorg Nazaryan and Serdar Dinler, and based on a
story written by Dinler and Aram Navasardyan, the movie’s two major
characters are Tamer (played by Sabina Muradyan) and Aras (played by
Bulut Onguner), with Tamer living in Armenia and Aras in Turkey.

Tamer’s work brings her into contact with Aras, and the two begin an
Internet-based exchange of viewpoints about their countries, their
history as well as the present.

The river Aras is used both as a symbol of today’s border separating
Armenia from Turkey and a manifestation of its people’s common heritage
and future.

The film leaves its end open, allowing for speculation about whether
one day Tamer will be able to meet Aras. Filmed on location and using
the magnificent countryside as its background, the movie does not
point fingers and does not try to put blame on any one side. It is
much more than a movie about a potential future romance — it is a
film that creates awareness about two countries living side by side
with a closed border separating them from each other.

Upon welcoming guests, Dinler, a member of the TABDC executive team,
stressed the relevance of engaging civil society, noting that the
movie is not of a commercial nature.

Speaking with Today’s Zaman, Nergis Ozturk, one of the two
scriptwriters and editors and also a member of the TABDC executive
team, stated that opening the border is not only a civil society
requirement but would bring along much needed trade and business. She
said both peoples must learn more about each other and described how
exciting it had been to shoot the movie on location.

Thomas M. Leary, public affairs counselor at the US Embassy in Ankara,
who addressed the guests before the screening, later told Today’s
Zaman that the US Embassy in Ankara and the US Embassy in Yerevan
had co-sponsored the making of the film as part of their civil
society engagement and that further civil society projects and the
dissemination of their results — albeit not necessarily linked with
Armenia — were in the pipeline for 2010.

Suat Kınıklıoglu, deputy chairman of external affairs for the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and spokesman for the Turkish
Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, was also in attendance.

The uniqueness of this film premiere can be attributed to the fact
that individuals and their stories — even if scripted — often allow
for a better understanding of the wider picture. While statesmen must
continue to meet and create the regulatory framework for rapprochement
between both nations, ultimately citizens must learn how to live
with each other more closely again. "Aras Kıyılarında" is much
more than a movie!

RA NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SPEAKER: SASUN MIKAELYAN SHOULD PETITION PRESIDENT HIMSELF

PanARMENIAN.Net
24.12.2009 16:16 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armenia’s National Assembly Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan
has negatively assessed Republican Party parliamentarians’ recent
petition asking President to grant amnesty to Sasun Mikaelyan.

A Republican group representative should not undersign a document
addressed to the party’s chairperson who is also the President
of the country, he told today a resulting news conference. "RPA
parliamentarians can meet President Serzh Sargsyan at least once
per month. So if they had requests for Sasun Mikaleyan’s release,
they might have raised the issue during meetings," Armenian Speaker
said, adding that Sasun Mikaelyan himself should petition President
for amnesty.

AMD 470 MILLION FINES TO BE PAID BY BUSINESSES IN MEDICINES TRADE.

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
21.12.2009 17:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In September-November of 2009 numerous publications
in Armenian media, complaints submitted to SCPEC and followed
monitoring revealed unjustified high prices for some drugs in the
Armenian market.

According to the experts of State Commission for the Protection
of Economic Competition of Armenia (SCPEC), the situation in the
market of cardiovascular, diabetes and anti-flu drugs was the result
of anticompetitive agreements. Among the violators "Vaga Farm",
"Argo Farm", "Aesculapius", "Amicus", "Thetis Farm", "NATALI PHARM",
"Alfafarm" and "Armfarmatsia" have to pay AMD 470 million.

According to the Chairman of the State Commission for the Protection
of Economic Competition of Armenia Davit Harutyunyan, to implement
monitoring of medicines SCPEC collaborated with several state bodies,
in particular Ministry of Health, State Committee on Revenue, Central
Bank. According to him, the increase in prices of some drugs was
conditioned by dram devaluation.

ALBANIA FOR NKR SELF-DETERMINATION

news.am
Dec 21 2009
Armenia

Karabakh conflict settlement is the issue on NKR people’s
self-determination right and is deprived of religious nuance, RA
President Serzh Sargsyan stated at Dec. 21 meeting with newly appointed
Albanian Ambassador to Armenia Villi Minarolli (residence-Athens).

In the course of the meeting Sargsyan attached significance to the
intensification of political dialogue and enhancement of legal field,
which will promote cooperation in different fields, RA Presidential
Press Service informed NEWS.am.

The officials agreed Armenia and Albania have no obstacles to the
development of bilateral relations, on the contrary have much in
common, that will contribute further convergence of the two states.

Sargsyan and Minarolli also exchanged views on the regional issues.

Albania always supports nations’ right to self-determination,
Minarolli outlined.

LUCA GUIDUZZI: NKR’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS A MUST

PanARMENIAN.Net
18.12.2009 18:39 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ International organizations should propose projects
aimed at developing NKR economy, according to Turin University
Professor Luca Guiduzzi. People in Karabakh and Armenia should focus
on economic development, he told Firday a round table discussion hosted
by Armenian Center of National and International Studies (ACNIS).

At that, Italian scholar stressed the importance of eliminating enemy
image in both Azerbaijan and Karabakh. "Positive propaganda should
form part of educational system," he said, adding that education
should promote cooperation between two countries. "It is necessary
to develop a new system of economic relations, which should be based
on cooperation vs. war.," Guiduzzi added.

J. PENNINGTON, "NORMALIZATION OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS AND NAGORNO KARABAKH CONFLICT REGULATION ARE SEPARATE PROCESSES"

ARMENPRESS
DECEMBER 17, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS: The issues on the normalization of
Armenian-Turkish relations and Nagorno Karabakh conflict regulation
are separate processes, Deputy Head of U.S. diplomatic mission in
Armenia Josef Pennington stated at the meeting with Armenian and
Turkish journalists today on the initiative of "Eurasia Partnership"
Foundation and Center for Global Political Trends pointing out that
the regulation of Nagorno Karabakh conflict is a separate process
and it is not possible to be accepted as a precondition. "We have
many times stated that they are separate processes. Besides that,
the peaceful and lasting solution of NK conflict will be a positive
step in itself", the deputy ambassador said.

Contrary to U.S. claims, the Turkish side has made statements for
many times, according to which NK issue is viewed as a precondition
in the regulation of Armenian-Turkish relations.

In answer to the question of Armenpress on such a position of Turkish
officials, J. Pennington noted that this issue has been discussed
also during the visit of the Turkish prime minister to the USA,
"We can make a judgment about it also by President Obama’s statement
made after the meeting.

We support the both sides in ratifying the protocols and expect them
to do it soon", U.S. deputy ambassador said.

MEDICAL TOURISM CAN BE WELL DEVELOPED IN ARMENIA

Panorama.am
15:21 16/12/2009

Alternative types of tourism have come to substitute the traditional
type of tourism. Though Turkey has all the necessary conditions
for traditional tourism they work on developing alternative type of
tourism, particularly, medical tourism. Maria Ataian, the director of
"National tourism office of Armenia", says Armenia also has favorable
conditions for developing medical type of tourism. "Stomatology and
curing of cardiovascular diseases is well developed in Armenia. For
instance, stomatology is cheaper in Armenia than in Moscow. And
regarding to cardiovascular diseases it’s possible to have such
operations in Armenia which are possible to have only in Israel,"
she said.

Vic Darchinyan: I have to attack Rojas’s body
10.12.2009 16:16 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In the dry heat of the Californian desert, where
wind turbines and not tumbleweed now dominate, Australia’s world
champion Vic Darchinyan sounded like a gunslinger from the wild west,
brisbanetimes reports.

`I am a fully loaded gun and will shoot him down with my boxing
skills,’ Darchinyan said before his duel with Mexican challenger Tomas
Rojas.

Darchinyan, who in July lost to Ghana’s International Boxing
Federation bantamweight champion Joseph Agbeko by an unanimous points
decision, has returned to the super-flyweight division he has ruled
with two iron fists.

`In my last fight I was impatient,’ Darchinyan said from Rancho
Mirage, a two-hour drive east of Long Beach. ”I have to be more
patient this time … I must work my combinations … I have to attack
Rojas’s body.’

Rojas, the World Boxing Association’s interim champion, promised at
yesterday’s press conference to relieve Darchinyan of his World Boxing
Council and WBA belts.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT HAS STATED THAT YEREVAN AGREED TO LIBERATE SEVEN OCCUPIED LANDS: POLITICAL EXPERT
A. Hasanov

Today.Az
10 December 2009 [13:53]

Day.Az interview with Mubariz Ahmadoglu, Director of Azerbaijan-based
Political Innovations and Technologies Center.

Day.Az: To what degree Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
U.S. visit made settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict real?

Mubariz Ahmadoglu: It was known even prior to Erdogan’s visit to the
United States that Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
will be resolved within Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. The
principle of territorial integrity has always dominated over all
other principles of resolving conflicts between nations.

In this respect, Azerbaijan has always stated that the right of
nations to self-determination can only be used within its territorial
integrity.

Following Erdogan’s visit to the U.S. and U.S. President Obama’s
statement that he will help to intensify work of the Minsk Group,
it seems that chances have increased to resolve this conflict within
Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity in short timeframe which is
supported by all OSCE Minsk Group member countries.

Is it possible to predict approximate timeframe for return of
Armenian-occupied regions of Azerbaijan and to say how many regions
will be returned as a first step towards resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict?

I believe it is impossible to predict timeframe for liberation of
lands and how many regions will be liberated. I can only say that
former U.S. co-chair of Minsk Group Matthew Bryza once said return
of all Armenia-occupied regions surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh is being
discussed at the talks.

In addition, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has made a statement
at least twice that Armenia has given consent to Russian President
Medvedev to liberate seven occupied regions of Azerbaijan. It is
suffice just to have a look at the updated Madrid principles announced
by the White House on behalf of the co-chairs of OSCE Minsk to see
what they say about necessity of returning all the territories around
Nagorno-Karabakh under Azerbaijani control. Of course, the process
of returning of Armenian-occupied territories of Azerbaijan will
take long.

Will beginning of return of the occupied Azerbaijani lands result in
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan’as losing power which will undermine
intensified resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?

Let’s start with the fact that unlike the so-called "Armenian
genocide", a myth which large number of the Armenians believe in,
occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh is a realized dream of Armenian
community all over the world which constantly makes territorial claims
to neighboring states.

Moreover, the Armenian historians write that the occupation of
Nagorno-Karabakh is the first achievement of Armenians over the last
700 years. All this suggests that the Armenians would do everything
possible not to give back occupied territories to Azerbaijan, their
original owner.

I should note that not everything in this world depends on willingness
of Armenians who are ready to put forward claims not only to territory
of a neighboring states, but even to fruits, for example, calling
apricot "an old Armenian fruit." But in case of Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict, they will have to accept the fact that it will be resolved
within Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity.

Of course, Dashnaksutun and a number of other radical-nationalist
Armenian parties and forces, as well as the Armenian diaspora in the
world, will try to do everything possible to destabilize the situation
in Armenia and change power in this country to stall negotiations on
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and to bring to power a person who is
opposed to fair resolution based on international norms and rights.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan also understands this. He greatly
strengthened his position inside the country since the last congress
of the ruling Armenia’s Republican Party making also prime minister
his party’s member.

I do not exclude that in the end a truly comic scenario of the
situation will be played in Armenia in which Serzh Sargsyan will
resign from president’s post, but will return to his post after Tigran
Sargsyan, the current Prime Minister and acting Armenian president
once Sargsyan resigns, initiates the company of "people’s prayers"
for the return of the current head of the Armenian state "to reign".