Author: Nalbandian Eduard

NEW YORK TIMES: GENOCIDE RESOLUTION "UNNECESSARY"

8119/
2010/03/08 | 12:46

world

In the following March 7, 2010 editorial, The New York Times describes
HR 252 as "unnecessary" and labels the 1915 Genocide a "tragedy".

The recent arrest or detention of dozens of Turkish military officers
for alleged coup plotting could signal a significant shift in power
from the tarnished army to civilian leadership. These cases could
help strengthen Turkish democracy – provided the government and the
judiciary scrupulously apply the rule of law.

For most of modern Turkey’s history, the army has been dominant,
and far too willing to use any means to keep Turkey a secular,
Western-oriented state. That included overthrowing four democratically
elected governments since 1960. As recently as 2007, the military
tried to block the selection of Abdullah Gul of the Islamic-influenced
Justice and Development Party (A.K.P.) as president largely on the
ground that his wife wore an Islamic headscarf.

The military’s hold on political life has weakened steadily under
A.K.P. rule and pressure from the European Union, which has insisted
that as part of Ankara’s bid for membership, the military must become
more accountable to civilian leaders.

The recent detentions and arrests came after a small independent
newspaper, Taraf, published what it said were military documents
from a 2003 meeting describing preparations for a coup. The military
acknowledged the meeting but said it was focused only on protecting
the country from external, not domestic, threats. Since the arrests,
the military’s top leaders have shown welcome restraint.

Meanwhile, relations with the United States hit a new rut on
Thursday when the House Foreign Affairs Committee denounced the
World War I mass killings of Armenians as genocide. We think the
resolution was unnecessary, just as Ankara’s denial of that tragedy is
self-destructive. Instead of threatening Washington with retaliation
for the vote, Ankara should focus on getting a normalization deal
with Armenia back on track.

The United States and other Western countries need to keep nudging
Turkey forward while keeping the hope of E.U. membership alive and
credible.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan needs to curb his own autocratic
tendencies and push for replacing the military-imposed constitution
with one that enshrines rights for Kurds and other minorities,
religious and press freedoms, a commitment to secular rule and a
law-based judiciary. And Turkey’s military leaders need to continue
exercising restraint.

AGMA ANNOUNCES OPENING OF ANI RESEARCH LIBRARY

PanARMENIAN.Net
09.03.2010 13:38 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian Genocide Museum of America (AGMA)
announced in advance of the museum opening that the Armenian National
Institute (ANI) Research Library will be opened in time for the 95th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on April 24, 2010. ANI has been
part of the AGMA organization since 2003.

The support extended AGMA and ANI by donors has prompted plans to
create a research facility that may also be accessible to researchers
studying the Armenian Genocide. The special collections of books on the
topic of genocide in general and the Armenian Genocide in particular
that have been gifted to ANI already constitute a critical component
of the future museum. As a step toward encouraging further research on
the Armenian Genocide, AGMA has decided that the ANI Research Library
should be made available for public use by qualified specialists.

"The thousands of publications that form the core of the scholarly and
documentary record on the Armenian Genocide are a critical resource
that ANI has been collecting over the years," said Van Z. Krikorian,
museum trustee and chairman of the museum’s building and operations
committee. "The AGMA planning process has depended on the services
provided by ANI to develop the exhibit concepts and contents. While
we look ahead to the time when the entire museum facility is open
to the public, we wanted to take this initial step in encouraging
more learning and academic research on the Armenian Genocide as that
constitutes one of the core missions of AGMA."

"With ANI already located at the AGMA site, we will be expanding the
Institute’s research facility and incorporate the resources that have
been gathered and that continue to arrive," added Krikorian. "ANI
has collected documentation on the Armenian Genocide from around the
world. As these records are processed and organized, we expect that
more and more of the collected resources will be available for study
and research."

"With its rapidly growing library of 8,000 volumes, the base for
creating a comprehensive collection centered on the Armenian Genocide
has been created. With more donors prepared to share their specialized
collections, and planning for a capacity of 100,000 volumes, the
time had arrived to organize the ANI Research Library for use by
scholars and researchers seeking access to resources on the Armenian
experience," Krikorian said.

ANI was established in 1997 by a special grant to the Armenian Assembly
of America by the chairman of its board of trustees, Mr.

Hirair Hovnanian. The Institute is dedicated to the study, research,
and affirmation of the Armenian Genocide. As part of its public
service, ANI maintains the most extensive website on the Armenian
Genocide available on the Internet at the following address:
Since its founding the Institute has been
under the direction of Dr. Rouben Adalian, who has also directed the
AGMA project since 2008.

The Armenian Genocide Museum of America is an outgrowth of the
Armenian Assembly of America and the Armenian National Institute
(ANI), catalyzed by the initial pledge of Anoush Mathevosian toward
building such a museum in Washington, DC.

BOXING: VIC DARCHINYAN RETAINS THE CROWN

Panorama.am
14:52 08/03/2010

Sport

Armenian 34-year-old World Jr. bantamweight champion Vic Darchinyan
(34-2-1, 27KO) of Sydney, Australia was the first man to unify the IBF,
WBC and WBA title at 115lbs.

On Saturday night at the Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage
California, boxed to a commanding unanimous decision win over
22-year-old challenger Rodrigo Guerrero (13-2-1, 9KO) of Mexico City.

Darchinyan boxed with confidence down the stretch even as Guerrero
continued to press forward. Anyway, the unanimous decision scored
117:111, 118:110 and a shutout 120:108 for Darchinyan.

ARF LEADER SPEAKS ABOUT WOMEN AND DEMOCRACY AT UN PANEL

Asbarez
out-women-and-democracy-at-un-panel/
Mar 8th, 2010

UNITED NATIONS-A leading member of Armenia’s sole socialist party,
the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, spoke as a keynote speaker
on March 3 during a panel discussion, focusing on the global agenda
on women, organized by the Social International Women in conjunction
with the 54th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).

Maria Titizian, who serves as the Vice President of the Socialist
International, spoke about women in the CIS and their role in the
transition from Soviet communism to democracy. Her remarks came days
before the world celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8.

This year’s session of the CSW, began on March 1 and will conclude
on March 12. It marks the 15th anniversary of the UN-sponsored Fourth
Conference on Women in Beijing.

The SIW panel, hosted by the Permanent Mission of Greece to the UN, was
titled "Beijing +15 What Next?" It focused on the Beijing Declaration
of 1995 and featured many other distinguished speakers, from the
President of the SWI to the Greek Ambassador to the UN. Also among
the speakers was Valentine Berberian of the Armenian Relief Society.

Titizian’s speech to the panel, titled "Transition to Democracy:
Women in the CIS 15 Years After Beijing", can be read by CLICKING HERE.

TURKISH-AMERICAN RELATIONS IMPORTANT FOR ANKARA: RUSSIAN ANALYST

Tert.am
14:38 ~U 09.03.10

Russian analysts think the Armenian Genocide Resolution adopted by the
US House Committee on Foreign Affairs may accelerate the settlement
of disagreements between Armenia and Turkey.

In an interview with Russian online newspaper Gazeta, Andrei Areshev,
Deputy Director of the Russian Strategic Culture Fund, said the
Armenian Genocide Resolution may be the usual signal for Turkey to
continue the rapprochement process with Armenia that has recently
come to a standstill.

"Turkish-American relations are very important for Ankara, for the
following two reasons: the threat posed by Kurdish separatists on
the Iraqi and Turkish borders and Ankara’s dependence on American
military supplies," said Areshev.

In his words, Turkey tries to warm its relations with the West with
the aim of becoming a member of the European Union.

For that reason, according to Areshev, the Armenian Genocide Resolution
can essentially accelerate the Armenian-Turkish rapprochement process.

Xinhua General News Service, China
March 6, 2010 Saturday 4:40 AM EST

Armenia welcomes nonbinding U.S. genocide resolution

MOSCOW March 6

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian has welcomed a U.S. House
panel resolution branding the Ottoman-era killing of Armenians as
genocide, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported on Saturday.

The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday narrowly approved
a nonbinding resolution labeling the massive killings of Armenians by
the Ottoman Turks during World War I as "genocide."

Turkey denies the charge and has warned that adoption of the
resolution would hurt Turkish-U.S. ties. It said the resolution would
impede efforts to normalize relations with Armenia.

The White House had urged the committee to not adopt the "genocide"
resolution, which passed on a 23-22 vote.

Turkey condemned the resolution and temporarily recalled its
ambassador to the U.S. for consultations.

Nalbandian said he was perplexed by Turkey’s remarks.

"I do not think that tying the process of settling relations (between
Armenia and Turkey) to recognition of genocide, has any prospects,"
said the minister.

Without Turkish recognition of the genocide, it would be difficult for
the two countries to mend ties, Nalbandian said, adding that the
disruption of the process would harm Ankara more than Yerevan.

Armenians claim that more than 1.5 million Armenians were killed in a
systematic genocide in the hands of the Ottomans during World War I,
before modern Turkey was created in 1923.

The Turkish government insists the Armenians were victims of
widespread chaos and governmental breakdown as the 600-year-old empire
collapsed in the years before 1923, and has been trying to normalize
relations with Armenia.

AngolaPress
March 6 2010

US administration to block vote on Turkey ‘genocide’

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration has said it will seek to block a
controversial bill describing as genocide the World War I killing of
Armenians by Turks.

A congressional panel on Thursday approved the resolution, paving the
way for a possible vote by the House.

But US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the administration
would "work very hard" to prevent this.

Turkey voiced strong protests after the vote and recalled its
ambassador from Washington for consultations.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country had been accused
of a crime it did not commit, adding the resolution would harm
Turkish-US relations.

President Abdullah Gul said Turkey – a key Nato ally of the US – would
"not be responsible for the negative results that this event may lead
to".

In October last year, Turkey and Armenia signed a historic accord
normalising relations between them after a century of hostility.

Armenia wants Turkey to recognise the killings as an act of genocide,
but successive Turkish governments have refused to do so.

Hundreds of thousands of Armenians died in 1915, when they were
deported en masse from eastern Anatolia by the Ottoman Empire. They
were killed by troops or died from starvation and disease.

Armenians have campaigned for the killings to be recognised
internationally as genocide – and more than 20 countries have done so.

cias/internacional/2010/2/9/administration-block-v ote-Turkey-genocide,de819a17-95ab-49a3-9da6-8ca5c1 76d51e.html

Tehran hosts seminar on South Caucasus

07.03.2010 16:44 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Caucasus Studies Institute with cooperation by
Central Eurasia Program of Tehran University has launched today, March
7 an international Seminar entitled "Prospects for Security and
Cooperation in the South Caucasus 2010"

The Seminar is held in the Amphitheater of Tehran University Faculty
of Law and Political Science, on the Main campus of Tehran University.

Seminar participants will present their ideas about Caucasus Region
Conflicts, Current and Future of Energy Issues and approaches in South
Caucasus, Security and Threats Intricate in the Region and some other
priorities in Caucasus Studies, exchanging views on prospects of
region’s security and cooperation in 2010.

Greek Reporter
March 6 2010

AHEPA Applauds House Committee’s Passage of Armenian Genocide Resolution

Posted on 05 March 2010 by Anastasios Papapostolou

American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), a
leading association for the nation’s three million American citizens
of Greek heritage, and countless Philhellenes, issued the following
statement on yesterday’s passage of H.Res.252, the Armenian Genocide
Resolution, by the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign
Affairs:

`We applaud the passage of H.Res.252, the Armenian Genocide
Resolution, by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. We commend the
committee and its chairman, Congressman Howard Berman, for taking up
the measure despite last-minute requests by the Obama administration
to not do so. The measure passed with bipartisan support.

`We are morally responsible to acknowledge and confront genocide
whenever and wherever it occurs. As Ahepans, it is in accordance with
our Order’s mission. Indifference or inaction is not the answer.’

H.Res.252 passed by a vote of 23 to 22.

-applauds-house-committees-passage-of-armenian-gen ocide-resolution/

CRISIS MANAGEMENT EXERCISE TO TAKE PLACE IN ARMENIA

16:25:41 – 05/03/2010
ahos17064.html

NATO conducts its annual crisis management exercise. The scenario for
this exercise is wide including natural disasters, terror and war.
Exercises are in theory and are held in NATO Center and partner
countries.

The regular NATO exercises will be held from March 4 to 10 in NATO
partner countries, including Armenia.