Author: Nalchajian Markos

FORUM OF ARMENIAN ASSOCIATION OF EUROPE [FAAE] CALLS ON BARACK OBAMA TO USE THE TERM ‘GENOCIDE’ IN HIS EVERY YEAR SPEECH ON 24APRIL

ArmInfo
2010-04-13 12:30:00

Arminfo. FAAE is grateful to US President Barach Obama for using the
term ‘Mets Yeghern’ his last year speech on 24 April and called on him
to use the international-legal term ‘genocide’ during his forthcoming
speech this year.

As FAAE reported, in his letter to Barch Obama, the head of the forum
Ashot Grigoryan also called the American leader to give an opportunity
to US Congress to confirm the Resolution 252 on the Armenian genocide.

Head of Orinats Yerkir Party Faction: Aspiration of opposition to
achieve its goals by all means reprehensible be it in Bishkek or
elsewhere

2010-04-09 15:56:00

ArmInfo. Aspiration of the opposition to achieve its goals by all
means is reprehensible be it in Bishkek or elsewhere, said Yeghine
Bisharyan, Head of Orinats Yerkir Party Faction, at parliamentary
briefings on Friday, when commenting on the recent unrest in Bishkek,
Kyrghyzstan.

"Another matter who took repressive actions: the government or the
opposition. I have always condemned such actions," she said. Over 70
were killed and 1500 were injured during unrest in Bishkek.

SOME REFORMS RA GOVERNMENT HAS CARRIED OUT HAVE NOT YIELDED THE DESIRED RESULT: IMF

Tert.am
12:09 09.04.10

Armenia’s commitment to making radical changes in the tax
administration sector is justified and well-founded, the
newly-appointed Resident Representative of the International
Monetary Fund in Armenia Guillermo Tolosa has said in an exclusive
interview with the local Armenian daily Capital when asked about
tax administration.

In his words the level of taxation in Armenia is rather small in
comparison to the volumes of the economy, and that indicator should
be raised.

According to Tolosa some of the reforms the Armenian government has
carried out in assistance with IMF have unfortunately not yielded
the result anticipated. Some of the reforms have been made slower
than-expected.

FIDH’S 37TH CONGRESS PAYS TRIBUTE TO MEMORY OF VICTIMS OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

ArmInfo
2010-04-09 15:55:00

ArmInfo FIDH’s 37th Congress pays tribute to the memory of the
victims of the Armenian Genocide and salutes the efforts of its member
organisations in Armenia and in Turkey (Civil Society Institute (CSI,
Armenia), Human Rights Association (IHD, Turkey) and Human Rights
Foundation of Turkey (HRFT, Turkey)) and brings its full support to
the joint Declaration that they have concluded in the context of the
37th FIDH Congress, including perspectives for actions identified in
the Declaration.

Afterwards, FIDH President Souyer Belassen said in a press conference
that Yerevan has become the capital of human rights for 4 days, since
human rights defenders from 155 human rights federations worldwide have
gathered in the capital of Armenia. She also highlighted the importance
of the meeting of Armenian and Turkish human rights defenders who got
a good opportunity to discuss the issues of mutual interest vis-a-vis.

ARMENIAN-TURKISH DIALOGUE ACROSS THE ATLANTIC: WHAT COULD BE THE OUTCOME OF THE SARGSYAN-ERDOGAN MEETING?

Today
April 8 2010
Azerbaijan

Voltaire used to say: "If God did not exist, then he would have been
invented." Some politicians act exactly the same way. If there is
no "diplomatic victory," then it should be invented, for example,
by describing everything as a "stunning success."

This comes to mind whenever not only Armenian, but also other
analysts claim that President Serzh Sargsyan’s invitation to the
"nuclear summit" in the United States is a "great diplomatic victory
for Armenia." They also say that the Erdogan-Sargsyan meeting
should be arranged far from Baku, both literally and figuratively,
so Azerbaijan "will not interfere with" its objections and protests
in the advancement of the Armenian-Turkish dialogue. And they talk
about this upcoming meeting as a fait accompli.

The funny thing is that these analysts miss the main point. There
is no strong need for Armenia’s presence in the global summit on
nuclear security, even despite the presence of the Metsamor Nuclear
Power Plant. It is hard to imagine that Sargsyan’s presence is a
prerequisite for fruitful discussions on the Iran issue.

It only makes sense to discuss placing an end to the smuggling of
detonators on civilian flights from Tehran-Yerevan-Beirut as this tiny
and impoverished Armenia shares a 42-kilometer-long border with Iran.
This issue may be discussed and solved at the ambassadorial level,
who will convey U.S. concerns to Yerevan.

Only extremely naive people believe that once Recep Tayyip Erdogan is
far from Baku, he will immediately forget about Azerbaijan. Wherever
Sargsyan meets Erdogan, if even in Australia, if even on the island
of South Georgia, if even on board a Russian icebreaker near the
North Pole, Erdogan will ultimately return to Ankara and have to
answer the questions of his fellow citizens, And 98 percent of them
are against opening the Armenian-Turkish border until the Karabakh
conflict is settled.

And the Turkish PM is unlikely to forget about Azerbaijan’s existence
in general, as well as opinion polls and ambitious oil projects.
Erdogan emphasizes in almost all his interviews that the border
will not reopen until Armenia withdraws its troops from occupied
Azerbaijani lands.

Washington does not want to ignore Azerbaijan for the sake of Armenian
interests either. U.S. officials constantly stress the "strategic
partnership" between the two countries. You also don’t have to be
a sophisticated analyst to see that the very clear statements from
Yerevan that it will not agree to form a joint committee of historians
to investigate Armenia’s historical and territorial claims are a
serious obstacle to developing bilateral ties.

Finally, it is no secret that, from the outset, Washington saw the
Armenian-Turkish negotiations as a measure to protect oil and gas
communications coming from the Caspian to Europe. And if a forced
Armenia-Turkey rapprochement would lead Azerbaijan to switch to other
transit routes, then would it really be worth pushing for a dialogue
"at any price?" Furthermore, the United States and Turkey are engaged
in serious talks on Iran, where the positions of the two countries do
not coincide. The same goes for the Middle East. On this backdrop,
it would silly to risk one’s relations with Ankara for the sake
of Armenia.

It turns out that Sargsyan was invited to the summit not to discuss
reviving political declarations of World War I, but rather to strongly
advise him to take a more constructive attitude toward the Madrid
principles, as opposed to trying to push new initiatives such as an
agreement on the nonuse of force.

However, Armenia has one more trump card in store, as claimed by many
Armenians and pro-Armenian journalists. According to these individuals,
the balance of forces in the region will change radically after
April 24 after U.S. President Barack Obama utters the word "genocide"
as he promised during his election campaign.

However, a year ago, in his traditional appeal to ethnic Armenian
Americans, Obama did not use the word "genocide." The Armenians were
strongly offended, and even demanded that he lose his Nobel Prize.
This year, it seems they will be let down yet again.

EVGENI KIRILOV PROPOSES EU STRATEGY FOR SOUTH CAUCASUS

Focus
April 7 2010
Bulgaria

Brussels. The European Parliament’s Committee for External Relations
will consider this week a report by Bulgarian MEP Evgeni Kirilov from
the group of Socialists and Democrats on ‘The Need for an EU Strategy
for South Caucasus’, the MEP’s press office announced.

Evgeni Kirilov’s report points at the need for enhanced strategic
involvement of the European Union in South Caucasus and calls for the
development of an entire EU strategy with regard to the countries in
the region (Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan).

The report focuses on the unsettled conflicts in Georgia (Abkhazia,
South Ossetia) and the so-called frozen conflict in Nagorno Karabakh
(between Armenia and Azerbaijan). According to conclusions of the
report, these conflicts are the key obstacle for establishing political
stability, consistent social-economic development in the region and
improvement of the investment climate, especially in the context of
European energy security.

The report further outlines the strategic geopolitical location of
the three countries and their increasing significance as an energy,
transport and communication corridor, connecting the Caspian region
with Central Asia and with Europe. The document also emphasizes the key
importance of the region for European energy cooperation and security
(the implementation of the Southern energy corridor – the pipelines
Nabucco and White Stream).

Evgeni Kirilov’s report will be voted at a session of the European
Parliament’s Committee for External Relations next Thursday.

EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER: AZERBAIJAN PLAYS KEY ROLE AS ENERGY PRODUCER

Trend
April 7 2010
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan plays a major role as a producer and transit country,
European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy
Stefan Fule said before his upcoming visit to Baku.

The statement notes that energy is central to EU-Azerbaijan relations.

"Europe offers an attractive market for producers looking to diversify
their customer structure," he was quoted by the EU Baku Office as
saying. "This provides a basis for constructive relations benefiting
both Azerbaijan and Europe."

The commissioner expressed hope for Azerbaijan’s continued commitment
to develop the Southern Corridor, which will facilitate gas transport
from Azerbaijan and the wider region to Europe. European companies
are prime investors in developing Azerbaijan’s full hydrocarbon
export potential.

The Southern Corridor is a priority EU energy project. The project
aims to diversify routes and supply sources, thus increasing EU energy
security. The Nabucco gas pipeline, which is the main element of the
Southern Corridor Project, aims to transport gas from the Caspian
region and the Middle East to the EU. Azerbaijan is considered as a
potential gas supplier for the project.

AZERBAIJANI HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER ADDRESSES PROTEST ACTION OF ARMENIAN OPPOSITION IN YEREVAN

APA

A pril 7 2010
Azerbaijan

Baku – APA. Iranian human rights defender of Azerbaijani origin,
Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi addressed the protest action staged
by Armenian opposition in Yerevan on April 6, APA reports quoting
Armenia today news portal.

On behalf of 150 human rights organizations Shirin Ebadi demanded
immediate release of political prisoners in Armenia.

President of the International Federation for Human Rights Souhayr
Belhassen also addressed the protest action. He said he joined the
demand to release the political prisoners.

"We are here to support you. We will do our best for the release of
the political prisoners," he said.

NOUVELLES MENACES DE BAKOU
par Gari

armenews
mardi6 avril 2010
AZERBAÏDJAN

L’Azerbaïdjan a profere de nouvelles menaces a l’encontre de
l’Armenie, en laissant entendre qu’il etait pret a declencher les
hostilites contre le Haut-Karabagh au cas où les pourparlers de
paix sous l’egide du Groupe de Minsk de l’OSCE ne produisaient pas
une solution a sa convenance. Ces menaces renouvelees interviennent
alors que des informations faisaient etat d’un règlement a court terme
du conflit armeno-azeri, y compris en Turquie, où l’on evoquait une
telle eventualite. Il n’est donc pas indifferent que Ramiz Mehdiyev,
le chef du cabinet du president azeri Ilham Aliev en charge des
question militaires, ait mis a profit une visite en Turquie pour
proferer ses menaces, qui interviennent moins d’une semaine après la
tournee effectuee par les copresidents russe, francais et americain
du Groupe de Minsk de l’OSCE dans la zone du conflit. Les mediateurs
internationaux avaient alors rencontre les dirigeants de la Republique
du Haut-Karabagh a Stepanakert ainsi que le president de la Republique
d’Armenie Serge Sarkissian et son ministre des affaires etrangères
Edouard Nalbandian a Erevan, avec lesquels ils avaient discute de la
dernière mouture des principes fondamentaux dits de Madrid de leur
plan de paix pour le Karabagh. L’Armenie a jusqu’a present refuse de
clarifier publiquement sa reponse concernant les amendements encore
confidentiels apportes au plan de paix. Les dirigeants armeniens ont
fait savoir qu’ils continuaient de considerer les principes dits de
Madrid comme "la base des negociations", tout en insistant sur le fait
qu’aucune solution ne devrait priver le peuple du Haut-Karabagh de
son droit a l’autodetermination. Le president du Haut-Karabagh, Bako
Sahakian, avait de meme declare la semaine dernière que l’independance
et la securite du Haut-Karabagh ne sauraient etre sujets a debat
ou negociation.

L’Azerbaïdjan, pour sa part, continue a exclure l’autodetermination et
a fortiori l’independance de tout scenario de règlement du conflit du
Haut-Karabagh, qu’il considère toujours comme etant partie integrante
de son territoire. Alors que leur allie turc Bakou s’engageait
sur la voie d’une normalisation des relations avec l’Armenie, les
responsables azeris ont multiplie les declarations belliqueuses,
menacant a plusieurs reprises de reconquerir le Karabagh par la force
si leurs exigences n’etaient pas prises en compte dans le plan de
paix propose par les mediateurs.

R.Mehdiyev, a reitere vendredi 2 avril ces mises en garde, en declarant
que si l’Azerbaïdjan oeuvrait a une resolution pacifique du conflit du
Haut Karabagh, il pourrait avoir recours a "une intervention militaire
si necessaire." "Nous pouvons recourir a d’autres moyens, y compris
l’intervention militaire, si les moyens pacifiques avances autour de
la table des negociations ont echoue", a declare M.Mehdiyev lors d’une
conference de presse a Istanbul, où il signalait que l’Azerbaïdjan
avait perdu patience. Le responsable azeri a egalement accuse la
Russie et les Etats-Unis de soutenir l’Armenie dans le processus de
règlement, tout en precisant que Moscou s’etait montre "plus sincère"
dans ses efforts pour resoudre le conflit. " Si l’Armenie ne s’etait
pas sentie soutenue par l’un ou l’autre, elle se serait retiree du
Haut-Karabagh", a ajoute M. Mehdiyev.

Le responsable azerbaïdjanais effectuait en visite officielle en
Turquie a la tete d’une delegation diplomatique afin de finaliser un
accord avec Ankara en vue de reduire les restrictions de visa entre
les deux pays. M. Mehdiyev a rencontre a cette occasion le president
du Parlement de Turquie, Mehmet Ali Sahin, ainsi que le premier
ministre Recep Tayyip Erdogan et le ministre des affaires etrangères
Ahmet Davutoglu, lors d’entretiens separes le vendredi 2 avril. Il
a ensuite ete l’invite d’honneur d’un banquet preside par M.Davutoglu.

Le jour-meme, M. Erdogan annoncait qu’il se rendrait finalement le
12 avril a une conference sur le nucleaire a Washington, precede de
l’ambassadeur turc aux Etats-Unis qu’il avait rappele debut mars après
le vote d’une commission du Congrès americain sur la reconnaissance
du genocide des Armeniens. Le premier ministre turc devrait y croiser
le president armenien et peut-etre le rencontrer en marge de cette
conference, pour discuter du processus de normalisation des relations
armeno-turques et du processus de paix au Karabagh a quelques jours
de la commemoration du 95e anniversaire du genocide des Armeniens,
autant de questions qui ont ete evoquees lors des discussions entre M.

Mehdiyev et ses interlocuteurs turcs.

TIGRAN PETROSSIAN TAKES LEAD IN DUBAI OPEN CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP

PanARMENIAN.Net –
April 6, 2010 – 19:14 AMT 14:14 GMT

On April 4-14, 12th Dubai Open Chess Championship will be hosting
150 chess players from 32 countries including Armenia.

5 chess players represented Armenia, with 4 of them scoring victories
and 1 ending the game in a draw in the first tour of the championship.

Tigran Petrossian is leading in Dubai Open Chess Championship with
1 point to his score.

Results after the 1st tour:

Sargissian Gabriel – Bhagwat Vinod (India) 0,5:0,5 Petrossian Tigran –
Shihab Khaled (Lebanon) 1:0 Melkumyan Hrant -Ayyad Husain (Bahrain)
1:0 Kotanjian Tigran – Arellano Robert (Philippines) 1:0 Harutjunyan
Gevorg – De Guzman Carlos (Philippines) 1:0.