Author: Nalchajian Markos

PRESIDENT OF CROATIA PAYS WORKING VISIT TO ARMENIA

Panorama.am
16:30 19/05/2009

The President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan hosted today the new appointed
Ambassador of Croatia to Armenia Mrs. Vesna Tsvetkovich-Kourelets
(residence – Athens) to hand her credentials to the President,
President’s Cabinet reports. The President congratulated the Ambassador
and expressed his hope that measures would be taken to strengthen
the bilateral cooperation.

The President emphasized that the evidence to strengthen the
Armenian-Croatian relations and to make them more developed is sure the
Croatian President’s forthcoming working visit to Armenia (May 21-23).

Moj News Agency. Iran
May 16, 2009 Saturday

Iran, Armenia Urged Expansion of Banking, Insurance and Customs Ties

Tehran and Yerevan should further increase bilateral ties in various
fields of economy, commerce, energy and transportation, said Arsalan
Fathipour at a meeting with Armenian national parliament speaker. He
said that the two sides should remove bans on the way of boosting ties
in banking, insurance, tax and customs sectors. He also invited
Armenian speaker Hovik Abrahamian to visit Iran in near future. Hovik
Abrahamian, for his part, emphasized the key role Iranian and Armenian
parliaments play in expansion of economic, political and cultural ties
between the two countries. 2009/05/16

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT ATTENDS THE OPENING CEREMONY OF ARMENIAN-RUSSIAN ENTERPRISE PRODUCING OXIDIZED ROAD AND CONSTRUCTION BITUMEN IN SURENAVAN COMMUNITY OF ARARAT PROVINCE

ARMENPRESS
May 15, 2009

YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS: Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan was
today present at the opening ceremony of Armenian-Russian enterprise
in Surenavan community of Ararat province, which produces oxidized
road and construction bitumen.

Presidential Press office told Armenpress that with the help of
schematic map set up at the entrance to the factory the head of the
factory presented the productive cycle of bitumen.

Afterwards the Armenian vice Prime Minister, Minister of Territorial
Administration Armen Gevorgyan and Russian vice Prime Minister Sergey
Ivanov cut the red ribbon after which the officials walked round in
the factory. High level mechanization of the experiment system is
characteristic of this enterprise. Here a modern factory laboratory
and coordinating system functions, on which the first testing of the
raw material and production of bitumen was conducted.

Systemized cleaning systems are constructed and a mechanized system of
condensation of bitumen steam is set up for reduction of environment
polluting exhausts.

In the factory yard the President also took part in the symbolic
tree planting.

FASSIER: NO BREAKTHROUGH BUT MOVEMENT

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
16.05.2009 13:09 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ OSCE Minsk Group French Co-chair Bernard Fassier
said he fact that he arrived in the region to meet with the Armenian
and Azerbaijani Presidents a week after the Prague summit shows there
are many issues on the table that need to be resolved.

Fassier said each round of talks must not be viewed separately. "When
you look after one photo, you do not get any impression of
movement. One needs to see a film to get full view of the movement,"
the French mediator said.

"If people meet so frequently, they have something to say to each
other. We are hopeful for a constructive solution," Fassier said.

He said the meeting in Prague was not failure as some observers
say. "If it were failure, I would not be here after several days to
continue talks. Maybe we do not have breakthrough, but we have made
some advance," Fassier said. "The co-chairs have outlined some items
together with presidents. Once they are fulfilled, the work on next
items of the Madrid document can begin."

Fassier also said his visit to Turkey is planned by the OSCE Minks
Group and is not directly linked with the resolution of the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict, Trend Azeri news agency reported.

PREMIER: INTEREST REVELATION INSTITUTE TO BE INTRODUCED IN ARMENIA

ARKA
May 14, 2009

YEREVAN, May 14. /ARKA/. Armenian Government approved the amendments
to the country’s laws about civil service, declaring of property and
income of individuals, as well as to the Criminal Code. The draft
laws are to be submitted to the parliament.

It is a quite serious step as approval of these draft laws means
introduction of an interest revelation institute in Armenia, the
country’s Premier Tigran Sargsyan said at the government meeting.

According to him, the package creates real mechanisms for official
persons, including parliament members and ministers, not to conduct
business, define their interests and settle the issues with affiliated
people.

This is done to enable the public maintaining full control over
observance of constitutional norms in the country, the Premier said.

The draft law package has also anti-corruption content and the
authorities undertake the obligation to apply the respective
mechanisms.

Undoubtedly, there will be a need for public discussions to be held on
the matter in the future to make the society aware of the mechanisms
to be applied, the Premier added.

ARMENIANS ALREADY EXERCISED SELF-DETERMINATION RIGHT WHILE ESTABLISHING ARMENIAN STATE: AZERBAIJAN PRESIDENT

Trend
May 14 2009
Azerbaijan

"Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be solved based
on the international law norms," said the President of Azerbaijan
Ilham Aliyev while receiving the members of the US Council on Foreign
Relations, AzerTaj state news agency reported.

"As to Armenia’s attempts to put forward an argument on
self-determination, I want to say that Armenians exercised this
right when Armenian state was established. With this logic, there
must be many Armenian states in the world. It is a wrong approach,"
Aliyev said.

"During talks, we always try to draw Armenian side’s attention to
the Helsinki Final Act. The articles about territorial integrity
and self-determination are clearly set forth in the final act:
self-determination may not contradict the principle of internationally
recognized territorial integrity of states. Therefore, resolution
of the conflict must be, first of all, based on the international
law norms, which will allow us to restore our territorial integrity
and Azerbaijani population to return their homes to live in peace,"
Aliyev said.

The Head of State said that in the light of processes concerning
integration and opening of borders in Europe, no country must build
its future in isolation. "Today, the situation Armenia got into was
created by them through pursuing an aggressive policy".

"The United Nations Security Council adopted four resolutions
demanding unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops from occupied
lands. The world community recognized the fact of occupation of
our lands. Territorial integrity of Azerbaijan was recognized and
supported internationally. Minsk Group co-chairs made statements a few
times supporting Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. When Azerbaijan
joined the UN, it recognized the country’s territorial integrity,"
Commander-in-Chief of Azerbaijan said.

"As to the progress in negotiations, I assess it as the positive
process and progress in some points of the agreement, which
was impossible a few years ago, has been achieved. However,
this progress is not enough to solve the problem and secure the
agreement. It is 17 years since Minsk Group has been established and
notwithstanding the progress there is no any result. The situation
remains unchanged. Our lands are under occupation. Seven regions
located outside Nagorno-Karabakh border were occupied by Armenians,"
the State Head said.

ALVARD PETROSIAN: WHEN I LOOKED AT YEREVAN ROOFS FROM MONUMENT HILL I FELT SICK

Noyan Tapan
May 13, 2009

YEREVAN, MAY 13, NOYAN TAPAN. The ownership right of residents evicted
from realization zones houses will be restored if the Armenian
National Congress (ANC) wins Yerevan Council of Elders elections
of May 31. ANC representative, Chairwoman of the Social-Democrat
Hnchakian Party Lyudmila Sargsian said at the May 13 dispute. She
said that radical opposition’s preelection program consists of two
parts, political and dedicated to Yerevan’s problems. Reforms aimed
at protection of Yerevan residents’ rights, collapse of the "robber
corruption pyramid," restoration of the constitutional order in the
country are proposed in the political part.

According to L. Sargsian, Yerevan Tamanian center has been distorted
today, even buildings’ roofs have been developed and turned into
profitable entities, parks and green zones have been destroyed.

The other dispute participant, NA ARFD faction member Alvard
Petrosian opposed to L. Sargsian saying that her generation did not
admire Tamanian Yerevan at all. "When I looked at Yerevan roofs from
Monument hill I felt sick. The center was filled with scorpions, it
was very difficult to live," the deputy said. Meanwhile A. Petrosian
said that people loved even such Yerevan, as there was a spirit
there. A. Petrosian also advised her opponent not to name "robber
chiefs" the authorities, as it is not a right opposition position.

ARKA NEWS AGENCY PUBLISHES "INDICATORS OF ACTIVITIY OF ARMENIAN INSURANCE COMPANIES" BULLETIN BY Q1

ARKA
May 12, 2009

YEREVAN, May 12. /ARKA/. ARKA News Agency published next quarterly
bulletin "Indicators of activity of Armenian insurance companies"
by the first quarter of 2009. The bulletin is based on official
financial reports published by insurance companies.

The bulletin consists of some 40 pages of tabular material on
indicators of insurance companies and has eleven main sections:

1. General description of insurance companies.

2. Assets.

3. Liabilities.

4. Capital.

5. Financial indicators of activities.

6. Structure and formation of technical reserves.

7. Financial Flow of Means.

8. Indicators of Profitability.

9. Indicators of Capital Adequacy.

10. Indicators of Paying Capacity and Liquidity.

11. Indicators showing insurance activities. The Agency intends to
add a section for indicators by types of insurance in the future.

The information contained in the book, makes it possible to provide an
overall picture of the financial condition of the insurance companies
and carry out a comparative analysis of their activities.

ARKA Agency operates from May 1, 1996, and specializes in financial,
economic and political information. The agency issues a quarterly
bulletin, "The Main Indicators of Armenia’s Banks" since 1999,
a quarterly bulletin, "Lending Agencies of Armenia", since March,
2005, "Financial Indicators of Banks " since May 2006, "Indicators
of Insurance Companies" since July 2008.

DJIVAN GASPARYAN: MY BIGGEST WISH IS FOR THE BORDER GATES BETWEEN TURKEY AND ARMENIA TO OPEN

armradio.am
08.05.2009 14:00

World-renowned Armenian duduk virtuoso Djivan Gasparyan said it is
"the right time" for all Turkish and Armenian people to raise their
glasses "arm-in-arm for peace and brotherhood."

"Come, let’s share our pains," said the musician. "No matter that
you are Muslims and we are Christians. The holy things we worship,
and all the paths to him, are the same," Gasparyan told the Hurriyet
Daily News & Economic Review.

Gasparyan’s family owes its life to a Turkish family, he said,
explaining: "The roots of my family date back to the Anatolian city of
MuÅ~_. My grandfather had six children. In 1915, our Turkish neighbor
saved the life of these children by hiding them under the fodder in
the barn."

His grandfather spoke about this Turkish family with love and respect
until the end of his life, Gasparyan said, adding, "The biggest wish
of my grandfather was to see this family before his death and give
them his blessings, but his wish did not come true."

"My biggest wish is for the border gates between Turkey and Armenia to
open as soon as possible," Gasparyan told the Hurriyet Daily News &
Economic Review. This would accelerate the dialogue process between
both countries, he said, adding, "I want to see our peoples make
peace before I die."

Gas paryan performed a special concert in the Armenian Presidency
Palace for President Abdullah Gul when the Turkish leader went
to Armenia to view a football match between the two countries on
Sept. 6. "I performed many songs," he said. "Gul thanked and presented
a plaque to me. It was a historic moment."

>From time to time, Gasparyan said, the ownership of songs is debated in
Armenia, just as it is in Turkey. "There are big similarities between
some Turkish, Armenian and Iranian songs," he said. "For example,
‘Sarı Gelin’ (Yellow Bride) is always the focus of discussions. But
it doesn’t make sense to politicize songs. It is nonsense to debate
the ownership of anonymous music."

ARMENIA INTENDS TO TAKE ACTIVE PART IN EASTERN PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM

Noyan Tapan
May 7, 2009

YEREVAN, MAY 7, NOYAN TAPAN. RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met
with Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the European Commissioner for External
Relations and European Neighborhood Policy, on May 6 in Prague.

At the meeting they had a detailed talk about various spheres
of Armenia-European Union cooperation, in particular, about the
implementation process of the Actions Plan envisaged by the European
Neighborhood Policy, work of the EU advisers assisting reforms at
Armenian state structures.

Speaking about the Eastern Partnership program’s summit, E. Nalbandian
said that this new format of cooperation with the European Union
contains considerable potential, and Armenia is going to take an
active part in that program.

At B. Ferrero-Waldner’s request the RA Foreign Minister presented the
latest developments in the normalization process of Armenian-Turkish
relations. The EU Commissioner on behalf of the European Commission
expressed complete support to steps undertaken in that direction.

According to the report of the RA Foreign Ministry Press and
Information Department, the interlocutors also touched upon the
possibilities of Nagorno Karabakh settlement and problems of regional
security.