Author: Nalchajian Markos

Assyrian International News Agency AINA
March 13 2010

Sweden Angers Turkey With Genocide Vote

A diplomatic row is brewing between Sweden and Turkey after Sweden’s
parliament yesterday voted to describe the 1915 killing of Armenians,
Assyrians, Greeks and Syrians by Turkey as genocide.

This morning, Sweden’s ambassador to Turkey was called to the Turkish
foreign ministry to explain the decision. Yesterday, Turkey recalled
its ambassador to Sweden and Recep Tayyip ErdoÃ?Â?an, Turkey’s prime
minister, cancelled a planned visit to the Scandinavian country.

According to historians, up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
the Ottomans around the time of First World War, but Turkey denies
that the deaths constituted genocide, claiming that the death toll has
been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

The vote in Sweden has divided the country’s political parties ahead
of a general election later this year and is seen as a victory for
Sweden’s centre-left opposition. The vote was passed by 131 votes to
130 after four centre-right MPs voted with the centre-left.

Gulan Avci, a member of the centre-right Moderate Party who is of
Turkish decent and voted against her own party, said it was "time for
people who have suffered so long to obtain redress".

Hans Linde, a member of the Left Party, said it was not the role of
politicians to write history, but that they should "call things by
their right names".

Abdullah GÃ?¼l, Turkey’s president, yesterday said that the resolution
approved by the Swedish parliament "did not have any credibility".
ZergÃ?¼n KorutÃ?¼rk, Turkey’s ambassador to Sweden, said she felt "very,
very betrayed" by the Swedish parliament.

Members of the Swedish government warned that the vote, which came a
week after the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee
approved a similar resolution, could affect trade between the two
countries.

Carl Bildt, the foreign minister, said that he regretted the
parliament’s decision: "It is wrong to politicise history in this way
and it will worsen Sweden’s possibilities to work for reconciliation
between the two sides."

According to Bildt, CHP, Turkey’s main opposition party, has now
demanded an end to ongoing reconciliation talks between Turkey and
Armenia. "This is exactly the type of consequence I feared," Bildt
said. "[The vote] is hijacked by elements hostile to reform in both
Turkey and Armenia.

But Bildt said he did not believe that the Swedish parliament’s vote
would affect Turkey’s EU membership bid.

By Jarle Hetland

news.am, Armenia
March 13 2010

Vahan Hovhannisyan welcomes Kocharyan’s visit to France

17:36 / 03/13/2010ARF Dashnaksutyun member Vahan Hovhannisyan welcomed
visit of second Armenian President Robert Kocharyan to France and his
meeting with former president Jacques Chirac.

`What’s wrong with that? No-one is surprised when former U.S.
President Bill Clinton exhibits activity, but when same does former
Armenian president, gossips start to go around,’ the politician
reckons.

Asked about political inactivity of the first Armenian president Levon
Ter-Petrosyan until recently unlike Kocharyan, Hovhannisyan replied:
`He was laissez-faire, as was ashamed of his deeds, he waited for 10
years to have the change of generation so that everyone forgets all he
did during his presidency.’

In response to the question whether Kocharyan has nothing to feel
ashamed of, Hovhannisyan said: `Leastwise, not to that extent.’

Interestingly, Robert Kocharyan’s visit to France coincided with days
of RA President Serzh Sargsyan’s official visit to the country.

S.T.

ONLY MUSLIM CONGRESSMEN VOTED FOR GENOCIDE RESOLUTION GIVES EXPLANATIONS

news.am
March 11 2010
Armenia

U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee Congressman Keith Ellison offers
explanations to Haberturk through his aide for voting for the Armenian
Genocide Resolution approval.

Ellison rejected the information spread by Turkish media that
before the voting he said would nay the motion. "My aye is not
directed against Turkish people. I respect your diplomacy of peace
and cooperation. Turkey is U.S’s ally and strategic partner. I know
that my vote can be disappointing and it upsets me.

I appeal to my colleagues in Congress to think over our history and
recognize redskins’ genocide, voiced by some congressmen. If we admit
the tragedy occurred 100 years ago in other continent, then we should
consider our history either.

I apply to Armenian people. Avowing Armenian Genocide we not only
remember and respect its victims, but recall out attention toward
all tragedies happened in the world," Ellison says.

Turkey is utterly boiled over the fact that the only Muslim congressman
of the U.S House Committee on Foreign Affairs voted for the adoption
of Armenian Genocide Resolution.

EXECUTIVE PROFILE: KARL COUYOUMJIAN, PRESIDENT, TEL SYSTEMS

AnnArbor.com
ness-review/executive-profile-karl-couyoumjian-pre sident-tel-systems/
March 11 2010
Michigan

Karl Couyoumjian almost didn’t end up at TeL Systems, the audio-visual
company of which he is now president. In fact, when he was first
offered a job at the company, also called Thalner Electronic
Laboratories, he turned it down.

In 1977, Couyoumjian was finishing up graduate school at the University
of Michigan and worked part time in the university’s television
center. He had just finished a project when, one day, he received a
call from Robert Thalner, who had been told about Couyoumjian by a
mutual acquaintance. Thalner asked Couyoumjian if he was interested
in a position as a salesman calling on the University of Michigan to
sell Thalner’s audio-visual and conferencing systems.

"I thanked him and said nope, it was not what I wanted to do, and
goodbye," Couyoumjian said. At that time, Couyoumjian was interested
in producing films and TV, not selling audio-visual equipment. But,
a little while later, he decided to call back and pitch an idea
to Thalner.

"At that time, Thalner had a production arm, and I called him back
and said, ‘Let’s talk. Why don’t I do video production with sales on
the side?’ and he said, ‘How about doing sales with video production
on the side?’"

Couyoumjian has been with TeL Systems ever since. Since he was
first hired, the company phased out its production arm and, in 1991,
was bought out by its employees. At that time, Couyoumjian became
president of the employee-owned company.

Today, Couyoumjian said one of the biggest challenges he faces is
keeping up with advances in technology.

"We’re a very technology-driven company," Couyoumjian said. TeL Systems
has designed, installed and maintained audio-visual equipment systems
in a wide variety of venues, from the University of Michigan stadium
to Mott Hospital.

"Our business has changed quite a bit over the last 33 years I’ve
been here. When the company was founded in 1965, video was a high tech
business. Now, you’re able to do things with very low-end equipment.

With your PC, you can now do things that used to cost hundreds of
thousands of dollar to do just 10 years ago."

Because of the high tech and ever-changing nature of the business,
Couyoumjian said it’s very important to "keep our employees well
educated," on upcoming technology and trends.

In addition to leading TeL Systems, Couyoumjian’s other main role
is chair of the Ann Arbor Chamber of Commerce board of directors. He
was and remains deeply involved in the process of combining the Ann
Arbor organization and the Ypsilanti Chamber into a regional chamber.

"We all talk about looking a things globally," Couyoumjian said. "For
the chamber, regional is thinking big — regional is our (version
of) global."

The merger was announced in December, but Couyoumjian said the entire
process is likely to "take years, rather than months," especially
since both chambers are locked into leases for their buildings.

Couyoumjian said what most surprised him about the merger was how
positive everyone was about the idea. He said the chambers had been
kicking the merger idea around for ten or more years, but last year,
when an integration committee with members from each chamber sat down
together, they reached consensus on the idea very quickly.

"After the first meeting, they came out of it and said, ‘Let’s do
this,’" Couyoumjian said. "It was just one of those times, the stars
aligned — it was time to do it."

Background

Age: 57

Education: Bachelor’s degree from Albion College; Master’s degree
from University of Michigan.

Family: Wife Nan (34 years); daughters Anne, 30, Sarah, 24, and
Katie, 19.

Residence: Ann Arbor.

Business Insights

Best business decision: Hiring the terrific people that work at
TeL Systems.

Worst business decision: After having done this for as long as I have,
it’s hard to choose a favorite.

Best way to keep a competitive edge: Having all of the information
necessary before you make a decision…then make a decision.

Personal heroes: My father and my father-in-law. They started
with nothing, yet both became very successful in their family and
professional lives. Though they came from very different backgrounds
(my father, an Armenian immigrant, and my father-in-law, an Indiana
farm boy) both had the same incredibly strong work ethic and unwavering
sense of decency.

How do you motivate people? I have found that most people are pretty
self-motivated, so I let them do their jobs and try to resist the
urge to micro-manage rather than teach.

What advice would you give to yourself in college? Enjoy the experience
and get involved in as many activities as possible, as life is going
to get much busier and more complicated as soon as you graduate… and
take more finance courses.

Words that best describe you: Funny and forthright.

First Web site you check in the morning: Annarbor.com (what else
would you expect me to say?)

Confessions

What keeps you up at night? Mostly things that, the next morning,
I realize weren’t worth losing sleep over.

Pet peeve: People with hidden agendas and those that take themselves
too seriously.

Guilty pleasure: Spending as much time as I can at our cottage in
Northern Michigan.

First job: Lifeguard.

First choice for a new career: Own a small market radio station and
have an on-air slot during the day.

Treasures

Favorite cause: Washtenaw Community College and The Washtenaw 100. WCC
is a terrific institution, who’s mission is now more important
than ever. The Washtenaw 100 is a little-known 40-year-old charity
that provides immediate financial support to the families of fallen
Washtenaw County police and firefighters and provides scholarships
to the children of active Washtenaw County police and firefighters.

Favorite book: Most recently, "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest"
by Stieg Larsson.

Favorite movie: Pretty much anything directed by Ron Howard

Favorite hobby: Riding bikes with my wife or almost anything automotive
related.

Favorite restaurant: West End Grill.

Favorite bar: Mélange.

LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter? LinkedIn…with a minor in Facebook.

Typical Saturday: There’s no such thing. In the fall it’s tailgating
and Michigan football or traveling to Denison University to watch our
daughter play field hockey. Winter and spring I’m doing minor home
or automotive projects and Powercycling at Heart of a Warrior. Summer
I’m up north biking, boating and relaxing.

What team do you root for? Michigan!

Wheels: Lincoln MKS, but, on nice evenings and weekends, it’s one of
our classic cars. Up north it’s my pickup truck.

Who would play you in a movie? As much as I would like to think it
would be Hugh Jackman, it would probably be more like Ned Beatty.

< em>Sarah Rigg is a freelance writer and a frequent contributor to
AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at [email protected].

NOT A SINGLE BULLET WILL BE TRANSPORTED THROUGH UPPER LARS

Tert.am
15:08 ~U 11.03.10

The opening of the Upper Lars checkpoint cannot be regarded as the
beginning of normalization of Russo-Georgian relations, Georgian
Ambassador to Armenia Grigol Tabatadze said at a press conference
today.

Tabatadze mentioned that Georgia will maintain the principle of its
territorial intergrity and will not change its approach on the matter.

"Geogia has done all this, first of all, for its friends. Georgia
does not pursue financial benefits and will not do so[in the future]:
it will serve as a transit country," said the ambassador.

Tabatadze mentioned also that serious discussions had been held at
Georgia’s Security Unioin before the opening of the checkpoint.

"Not a single bullet will be transported through that checkpoint.

Georgian law forbids transpotation of weaponry through the checkpoint,"
he said, recalling that Armenia was one of the negotiators, since
the opening of the checkpoint will contribute to the development of
Armenia’s economy.

According to Tabatadze, the checkpoint will be operational from 6 am
to 10 pm, March 1 to November 1, and from 7 am to 7 pm November 1 to
March 1.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT WILL PROBABLY HAVE NEW SPOKESMAN SOME OF THESE DAYS

ArmInfo
2010-03-10 13:42:00

ArmInfo. It is not ruled out that spokesman of the Armenian president
Samvel Farmanyan will be appointed as Head of Haylur leading news
programme of Armenia’s Public TV some of these days. Moreover,
Farmanyan will be in charge of the political and news programmes of
the Public TV and Radio.

As a source from the First Channel told ArmInfo, the post of the
Armenian president’s spokesman will be held by Executive Director of
the Public TV of Armenia Armen Arzumanyan, and Executive Director of
the Public Radio of Armenia Armen Amiryan will be appointed to the
latter’s post.

RECONSTRUCTION OF YEREVAN METRO TO ENSURE ITS SAFE OPERATION FOR ANOTHER 30 YEARS

PanARMENIAN.Net
10.03.2010 12:48 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On 10 March 2010 the government of Armenia and
the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) signed
a 15 million euro loan agreement. The agreement was signed by the
finance minister Tigran Davtyan and head of the EBRD office in Yerevan
Valeriu Razlog.

According to the ministry of finance, the EBRD and the European
Investment Bank will provide 5 million euros each for the same interest
rate – just over 1% (Libor +1%), another 5 million euros will be
granted under the EU Neighbourhood Investment Facility. Funds are
provided for 15 years, at a 3-year grace period.

The Armenian government attaches great importance to the stable work
of Yerevan metro, Tigran Davtyan said.

The mayor of Yerevan Gagik Beglaryan promised, that after the
reconstruction, no problem related to the operation of the metro will
arise for another 30 years.

THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: ADOPTING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION, U.S. CONGRESS INSULTS FEELINGS OF TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
10.03.2010 14:25 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A resolution approved by the House Foreign Affairs
Committee last week, in recognizing the Armenian Genocide, asks the
Obama administration to endorse history at the risk of insulting a
needed ally. Given Turkey’s strategic importance, that will be hard to
do, John Hughes wrote in his article in The Christian Science Monitor.

"The passing of House Resolution 252 introduces a new dynamic into
the State Department’s hopes for "normalization" of relations between
Armenia and Turkey. The Armenian Genocide is marked as beginning
April 24, 1915. On the 94th anniversary last year, President Obama
decried the "great atrocities" – but defied his own campaign promise
by following the precedent of other modern presidents and stopping
short of using the word "genocide."

"HR 252 calls on the president to use the annual April 24 message
"to accurately characterize the systematic and deliberate annihilation
of 1.5 million Armenians as genocide and to recall the proud history
of United States intervention in opposition to the Armenian Genocide."

The fallout over the nonbinding resolution – Turkey withdrew its US
ambassador, and its prime minister called the resolution "a comedy" –
makes it most unlikely that it will either pass the full Congress or
nudge President Obama to call a historical fact by its proper name
next month. Indeed, the Obama administration urged the committee
not to pass the measure. The letdown will further erode the trust
of Armenians to whom he has become davatchan – a traitor," in The
Christian Science Monitor wrote.

"Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has vowed to stop the resolution
where it stands. Mrs. Clinton was the chief diplomat behind a
three-country effort shared by Russia and Switzerland last October that
resulted in Turkey and Armenia agreeing to try to agree, and follow
a set of "protocols" intended to work out their deep differences.

The protocols meant to be a roadmap have led nowhere, as neither
country has ratified them. Armenia has even gone so far as to amend its
legislation on international treaties, allowing for "the suspension
or termination of agreements signed by Armenia before their entry
into force." Creating a pre-emptive exit strategy from cooperation
hardly portends kumbayah in the Caucasus.

Turkey (which closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in support of
Muslim cousin Azerbaijan in its war over the historically Armenian
enclave of Nagorno Karabakh) was the first to drag down the process,
by insisting that rapprochement cannot carry on unless Armenia returns
land it reclaimed from Azerbaijan. Turkey’s insistence on projecting
Karabakh into the discussion brings to question whether protocol
negotiators were literally on the same page.

The drafted, debated, signed-and-sent-to-parliaments document makes no
reference to the Karabakh issue. Armenians saw Turkey’s introduction
of this controversy into the protocol talks (after they were signed)
as unacceptable. Washington diplomats – mindful of the delicate and
protracted negotiations over Karabakh – encouraged Turkey to seek
harmony with Armenia "without preconditions" – or in this case,
"postconditions," the author concluded.

CZECH JOURNALIST REBUFFS AZERI MISINFORMATION

PanARMENIAN.Net
10.03.2010 18:07 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azerbaijanis organized "exhibition" at the
Lidice-Memorial, which was called the worst mockery of the Lidice
victims by the Check journalist Dana Mazalova. The "exhibition" at
the Lidice-Memorial was aimed to spread misinformation about events
in Khojalu. Azerbaijanis tried to present the Czech village of Lidice
, destroyed by the Nazis, and the Azerbaijani town of Khodjalu as
twin towns.

The exhibition displayed "photographs" allegedly shot by civilian
and military journalist Chingiz Mustafayev, the author of the famous
cover of the Khojalu tragedy. None of the photographs has been made
by Mustafaev, Dana Mazalova , well-known Czech journalist told a news
conference in Yerevan jointly held with Ara Saghatelyan, Director of
the Public Relations and Information Office of Armenian President.

Dana Mazalova is an eyewitness of those events, she was covering the
hostilities in Karabakh.

"Unfortunately, the Czech authorities did not check what the
Azerbaijanis had said or shown. We together with my Czech colleagues
have decided to respond to the black PR of Azerbaijan. The only person
who can do it – it’s me, because I have seen all the raw materials,
which Chingiz Mustafayev made," Dana Mazalova said.

According to her, on the photographs, presented by the Azeri, naked
bodies of men are shown, but the photos by Mustafaev featured only
people in cloths.

After Mustafaev discovered the bodies of people, he carried some of
them and when he returned for the rest, the corpses had been already
mutilated and scalped, she said. The photos by Mustafaev featured
only people in cloths, she stressed.

According to the Check journalist, a video, shot by Mustafayev shows
that dead people are lying near Aghdam and one can see the single
moving person in the Azerbaijani uniform, not even reacting to the
helicopter above.

She said, that the "exhibition" is the worst mockery of the Lidice
victims.

The corridor between Armenia and Azerbaijan was open, there is
factual evidence, Ara Saghatelyan stressed. The interview of the
former Azerbaijani President Ayaz Mutalibov to Dana Mazalova in 1992
is another evidence to that.

Ayaz Mutalibov particularly said: "According to survived Khojalu
dwellers, everything was organized for my resignation". He said,
he does not believe that Armenians ever might be involved in such
fascist actions. "One can assume that some people were interested in
focusing everything on my person. If I say that it is the fault of
the Azerbaijani opposition…. The corridor to leave was left by the
Armenians. Why should they shoot then? Especially in the territory
close to the Aghdam, which had enough forces to go out and help people
or simply agree over civilians leaving? This was the practice all
the time ".

Saghatelyan also reported that in late March a film about the Sumgait
events will be screened, which will show the unique shots filmed by
Russia’s specialists.

CAN TURKISH AND ARMENIAN DIASPORAS OPEN THE CHANNELS OF DIALOGUE?

Hurriyet
March 8 2010
Turkey

The first round of the annual "genocide" resolution fight is over.

Though there are different interpretations for the close call and
controversially managed House Foreign Relations Committee voting,
both sides can claim victory following the result.

The Armenians announced that the victory was attained in spite of the
powerful lobbying forces of the Turkish government in Washington,
and the Turks argue that the close result was a testament to the
maturity of the Turkish diaspora in America which proved that it had
now learned the rules of the game.

I think even though the resolution passed at the committee last
Thursday and that this result declares the Armenians’ victory for now,
the same result also sent a chill to the powerful Armenian-American
diaspora, who always came to see this committee voting as a piece of
cake, until this year.

I have contacted many leaders in the Turkish-American community
after the committee vote to get a sense how they view the result. I
also tried to have the same conversations with leaders among the
Armenian-Americans, but I have failed to reach them so far.

One of the questions I asked to those Turkish leaders was whether the
Turkish and Armenian communities can ever reconcile, at least some of
their differences. Would it be possible to hold panels and discussions,
like the one just organized last week in Yerevan between Turkish and
Armenian thinkers?

Many of the executives and leaders of the different Turkish
associations said they have hopes for closer relationships with
the Armenian diaspora, nevertheless they stated that the pressure
that the Armenian diaspora utilizes at many levels, including the
stiff lobbying in states across America to append the events of the
1915 as a "genocide" in school textbooks, adds daily tension to the
relationships between the two communities.

"Being under constant attack was just one of the factors that pumped
up Turkish communities to fight harder this year," according to
Ali Cınar, one of the vice presidents of the Assembly of Turkish
American Associations, or ATAA. Cınar said, as the attacks on the
Turkish community increased, the grassroots of the Turkish community
also started to better organize.

Mr. Gunay Evinch, the president of ATAA, said to me in an interview:
"The ATAA led many different Turkish associations intellectually
and practically. They targeted those Foreign Affairs Committee
members across America that potentially can take stances against
the resolution."

Evinch said: "We worked systematically this year, did more aggressive
fundraising in many states and organize other events. We had meetings
at the State Department, with the staff of the National Security
Council and various Intelligent Communities to explain Turkey’s
position at the executive level."

And Evinch argued they were able to send clear messages to the Congress
arguing how this bill would damage the normalization process between
Turkey and Armenia, and how the Turks see this bill as humiliating.

The president of the Turkish forum, Mr. Kayaalp Buyukataman said in a
phone interview while he was in Turkey, "It took sometime to energize
the Turkish diaspora in the States, however it seems that the long
years of work have now born fruit."

According to Buyukataman, "Turkish-Americans are the most educated
and wealthy ethnic segment when one compares them with other people
that belong to the different backgrounds."

However, he said, "Until now, we have waited for the Turkish state
like a father to do everything for us, but Ankara also asked the
Turkish-American community to stay sedated when it comes to these
matters in the past. However the views have changed on both sides,
and the Turkish officials have come to appreciate our work."

Kaya Boztepe, president of the Federation of Turkish American
Associations, echoed the same sentiment in his email and announced
that Turkish-American organizations had stopped being on the defensive
with the latest 22-23 Thursday tally.

"Turkey’s increasing importance makes it more difficult for U.S.

administrations to let these resolutions be put on a vote in the
House floor," says Kemal Oksuz, president of the Turquoise Council of
Americans and Eurasians, one of the (Fethullah) Gulen organizations
that have been growing rapidly in recent years.

Oksuz was able to give the most detailed report on what happened
behind the scenes before and during the resolution debate at the House
Committee. Oksuz said, "The lobbying firms that have been paid loads
of money in Washington by Turkey actually worsen the image of Turkey
at the Congress, rather than helping. Instead, civil grassroots’
visits to the Congressional members, especially in their districts,
made the biggest differences run up to the Thursday voting."

All of the Turkish leaders in America I talked to past week, complained
about Howard Berman’s tendentious managing of the vote as head of the
committee. According to many firsthand accounts I have heard, Berman,
even chased a couple of the committee members to their offices to bring
them to vote and especially the junior ones faced the most pressure,
some who resisted to come to the voting room until the last minute.

Mahmut Yeter, the executive director of the Midatlantic Turkic American
Association, another Turkish-American association that has proximity to
the Gulen Movement, said: "Turkish constituencies maintain their close
relationships with their Congressional members and host them when it
is possible for dinners and award ceremonies, even if some of those
representatives were going to vote against to the Turkish position."

Yeter concluded: "With persistence, but while respectfully elaborating
their cause, those Turkish grassroots become more convincing and less
irrupting than the Armenians."

He also said, "[They is] more visible Turkish diplomacy in the
international arena, [their] work and arguing for Turkey’s position
to those Congressional members has also become easier."

These Turkish grassroots leaders expect to see more similar resolutions
appear, at least until 2015, when the hundredth years of the events
of 1915 will be remembered. However, if the resolution does not
pass this year amid heavily Democratic Party-dominated Congress and
ahead of an election year, with the supporters like Obama and other
key cabinet members who voted for similar resolutions in the past,
one wonders how will the similar resolutions will pass in the future.

One would think with the effectiveness that the Turkish grassroots
organizations have proved this year, the Armenians will have harder
times being successful in coming years.

None of the Turkish representatives that I talked to opposed to the
idea of having dialogue with the Armenian diaspora, accepting that the
both sides cannot settle all the problems. And I think nobody expects
from either side to give up on their causes, or change perceptions
about the past. However, maybe the time is for closer dialogue and
interactions should be near, at least for the newer generations of
both communities. This is maybe an early dream – but a dream that
will be realized sooner or later.

I will try more to get in touch with those leaders in the Armenian
community to reflect their views as well. I hope we can at least open
the channels of simple dialogue and the exchange of ideas for now.