THE TWO ROBERTS: KOCHARIAN AND BRADTKE DISCUSS NAGORNO-KARABAKH
Tert.am
13:08 ~U 01.04.10
Second president of the Republic of Armenia Robert Kocharian and
OSCE Minsk Group co-chair Robert Bradtke met last week in Kocharian’s
office.
The two parties discussed the current stage of talks in resolving
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said Kocharian’s office manager Viktor
Soghomonyan to Tert.am.
Soghomonyan adding that the meeting was initiated by the American side
(that is, by Bradtke).
AMERIABANK, CASCADE BANK TO MERGE IN 2010
ARKA
March 31, 2010
YEREVAN, March 31. /ARKA/. Ameriabank and Cascade Bank will merge
before the end of this year, Artak Hanesyan, director general of
Ameriabank and chairman of the bank’s directorial board, said at a
news conference on Wednesday.
"Our banks’ shareholders sealed merger deal today. Such a merger of
two banks on market conditions is unprecedented in Armenia. This is a
new phenomenon uniting our services, widening the range of our services
and improving these services. Our clients will benefit from this deal."
The aim of this merger is to support Armenia’s financial sector and
create a firm financial platform for post-crisis development.
Hanesyan said that the two banks’ consolidated capital of will
reach $75 million, aggregate assets will total about $400 million,
liabilities $262 million and joint credit portfolio $180 million
after the merger.
"The merged bank will be among three leaders on these indicators,"
he said adding that the calculations have been based on the figures
of late 2009, and indicators of joint development in 2010 haven’t
been taken into account.
Answering the question ARKA News Agency put up to him, Hanesyan said
that joint discussions have resulted in a decision to function under
the name "Ameriabank".
The banker said that the merging is not completed and the shares of
the parties are not decided so far.
Under the agreement, he said, two stages have to be implemented before
the final merger.
"At the first stage, a merger program will be worked out by joint
efforts and all agreements with third parties, including the central
bank and international organizations cooperating with banks, will be
sealed," Hanesyan said adding that after that the second stage would
be launched.
He said that the bank’s strategy may be changed, though the two banks’
strategies and in tune with each other – that is why he find changes
unlikely.
"Changes, if any, can be positive and related to growth, development
and enlargement of joint activity."
Aharon Levonyan, executive director of Cascade Bank, who spoke at
the same news conference, said that the merger would strengthen
competitiveness.
"The merger is aimed at creation of a stronger financial organization,
which will become a serious competitor and one of three leaders among
Armenian banks," he said.
Ameriabank is a corporate bank with integrated investment-banking
and a limited number of retail banking services. The bank board of
directors is headed by Ruben Vardanian. Its CEO is Artak Hanesian.
Ameriabank’s strategic partner is one of the biggest Russian investment
cosmogonies Troika Dialog.
Cascade Bank was established in 2005 after Cascade Capital Holdings
purchased 100 percent shares of Emporiki Bank. It cooperates now with
EBRD in micro-financing project. Millennium Challenges Armenia Fund
has chosen this bank to handle its account as part of a five year
program of assistance to Armenia by the US government.
CHANCELLOR MERKEL VISITS TURKEY
Turkish Press
March 31 2010
Chancellor Merkel’s first stop will be a visit to Ataturk’s Mausoleum,
after which she will meet Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and
President Abdullah Gul.
Following her contacts in Ankara, Chancellor Merkel will move on to
Istanbul to attend the Turkish-German business forum.
Turkey’s EU bid will dominate the agenda of Chancellor Merkel’s visit.
Ahead of the trip, Merkel sent messages to Turkey through the media.
Merkel reiterated the option of "privileged partnership" and stated
her opposition to opening Turkish high schools in Germany.
Turkey’s reaction to these statements came pretty quick.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan noted that is German high school in
Turkey and that they will give a huge property in Beykoz for Germany’s
university requests.
Erdogan said "I don’t understand the reason of their hatred and grudge
against Turkey. I wouldn’t expect this attitude from Merkel. I will
share my opinions with her. Turkey is not a whipping boy."
Another issue waiting to be resolved between Turkey and Germany is
the visa-free travel problem.
Fight against terrorism, Cyprus, normalization of relations between
Turkey and Armenia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Iran’s nuclear program
are other important topics in the agenda.
U.S.-TURKEY POLICY, A NATIONAL DISGRACE: TURKEY’S U.S. PAID FOREIGN AGENTS
By Gene Rossides
Hellenic News of America
March 30 2010
U.S.-Turkey policy, in general, is a national disgrace. It involves
several issues: Turkey�s Cyprus invasion and occupation; Turkey�s
threats in the Aegean and violation of Greek airspace; the lack of
religious freedom in Turkey; religious desecration and cleansing by
Turkey in Cyprus; the lack of human and political rights for Turkey�s
20% Kurdish minority, and more.
It also involves Turkey�s paid U.S. agents of influence registered
as foreign agents with the Department of Justice under the Foreign
Agents Registration Act. Turkey has spent millions of dollars annually
on U.S. lobbyists since at least 1980 to get benefits from the U.S.
Congress and Executive Branch and to lobby against passage of the
Armenian Genocide resolution.
Currently on Turkey�s payroll are two former leaders of the House of
Representatives, Dick Gephardt (D-MO) and Dennis Hastert (R-IL). In my
view their acceptance of employment as U.S. foreign agents for Turkey
is a stain on the House of Representatives and a national disgrace for
the U.S. because they have agreed (1) to deny the Armenian Genocide,
(2) to support Turkey�s illegal invasion and occupation of 37%
of Cyprus in violation of the rule of law and the UN Charter;
(3) to support Turkey�s threats against Greece in the Aegean and
violation of Greece�s airspace; (4) to deny religious freedom for
the Eastern Orthodox Christians in Turkey, the protection of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate and the reopening of the Halki Theological
School; (5) to deny Turkey�s 20% Kurdish minority full human and
political rights, and much more.
Dick Gephardt
In 2007, Dick Gephardt, a leading Democrat, who had been a strong
supporter of the Armenian Genocide resolution, when he was in
Congress, sold out and changed his views for $1,800,000 from the
Turkish government.
Since 2007, for millions of dollars annually Gephardt has been the
mouthpiece in the U.S. for Turkey�s denial of the Armenian Genocide
against the near unanimous views of genocide scholars and the broader
academic community. Denying the Armenian Genocide is equivalent to
denying Nazi Germany�s Holocaust against the Jews.
In 1989, he was elected by the Democrats in the House to the number 2
spot as majority Leader. In 1994 he was elected by the House Democrats
as their Leader. The Democrats were in the minority in the House that
year and he was referred to as Minority Leader.
Dennis Hastert
In 1999, Dennis Hastert became Speaker of the House of
Representatives. The Speaker is the third highest elected official in
the U.S. and is third in line to the presidency. He served 4 terms
as Speaker and resigned from Congress in November 2007. Hastert was
first elected in 1986 to the House.
Hastert is noted for his reversal of position on the Armenian Genocide
resolution H. Res. 596 in October of 2000. As Speaker he was supporting
passage of H.Res 596, but in an about-face he withdrew H.Res 596,
introduced by Rep. George Radanovich (R-CA), from the Congressional
docket just 5 minutes before it was due to be considered on the
House floor.
Hastert�s flimsy excuse was that he did it because of a letter from
President Clinton citing national security concerns and implications
of the legislation.
In his subsequent terms as Speaker Hastert became the main obstacle
to getting the Armenian Genocide resolution to the House floor and
became a key apologist for Turkey.
In 2008, shortly after leaving office, Hastert began working as a U.S.
foreign agent for Turkey through the Dickstein Shapiro firm which
is working as a subcontractor under an agreement with the Gephardt
Government Affairs organization.
Gephardt and Hastert join the list of U.S. foreign agents selling
out to Turkey.
Legislation to counter Turkey
I suggest that Members of the House of Representatives can reverse
the damage done to the House by Gephardt, Hastert and others, by
introducing and passing legislation that would prohibit aid of any
kind to any country that hires former Members of the House as U.S.
foreign agents and further would withdraw any and all benefits that
such country presently receives or enjoys from the U.S. Members of
the House should also refuse to talk to any former Members registered
as U.S. foreign agents.
Call and write to your Representative
Call and write to your Representative and (1) ask them to support the
legislation mentioned above; (2) urge them not to speak to U.S. paid
foreign agents registered with the Justice Department; and (3) urge
them to support the Armenian Genocide Resolution H. Res. 252 which
passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee on March 4, by a vote
of 23-22 and urge the leadership of both parties to bring it to the
floor of the House for an up and down vote!
Please remember that the failure of our Congress to pass the Armenian
Genocide resolution would encourage the genocide perpetrators like
the president of Sudan who is currently under criminal indictment.
Gene Rossides is founder of the American Hellenic Institute and former
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
l?newsid=11715&lang=US
TURKISH PRIME MINISTER ONCE AGAIN THREATENED TO EXPEL ARMENIAN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
Today
March 29 2010
Azerbaijan
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in an interview with
German weekly Der Spiegel once again threatened to expel the Armenians,
which illegally live in Turkey, CNN Turk television channel reported
on Sunday.
"Armenians live in Turkey: both as citizens and illegally. So far
we have not raised the question of their deportation [of illegals],
but if the Armenian Diaspora will continue to exert pressure, we will
be forced to do it," Erdogan said.
According to the Turkish prime minister, in 2005 in a letter to
former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, he noted that the issue
of so-called "Armenian genocide" is not a matter of politicians,
but should be studied by historians.
"If in the future as a result of historical research it turns out
anything serious, we are ready to accept our past. But it is very
important that Armenia must be ready to accept its past," he said.
On the question of using by U.S. President Barack Obama the word of
"genocide", Erdogan said that "if he used that word, it’s his mistake."
"Use of any word by any head of state does not make it [the word]
right. In this matter the United States, like other States, is sitting
on the grandstand for the spectators. This is our history," said the
Prime Minister of Turkey.
Armenia’s Defense Minister meets the US Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group
armradio.am
27.03.2010 15:35
On March 27 the Defense Minister of Armenia, Seyran Ohanyan, received
the delegation headed by US Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Robert
Bradtke. US Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Armenia
Marie Yovanovitch was present at the meeting.
Greeting the guests, Seyran Ohanyan expressed gratitude to Robert
Bradtke for his activity as Co-Chair of the Minsk Group.
Touching upon the Karabakh conflict settlement, Seyran Ohanyan
underlined that negotiations were the only option for the settlement
of the issue, while the constant bellicose statements from Azerbaijan
only create a strained atmosphere in the region, thus hindering the
settlement process.
The Defense Minister voiced hope that a solution acceptable to both
parties would be found within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.
The parties stated that linking the Karabakh settlement to the
Armenian-Turkish normalization was unacceptable.
Hurriyet, Turkey
March 26 2010
Armenians shoulder Laleli’s dwindling suitcase trade
Thursday, March 25, 2010
VERCÄ°HAN ZÄ°FLÄ°OÄ?LU
ISTANBUL ` Hürriyet Daily News
The Emniyet Bus Station in Istanbul’s Aksaray neighborhood is the
nexus for the suitcase trade between Turkey and Armenia. Every
Wednesday, 15 buses go to Armenia one after another. Many Armenians
make their living relying on the trade, but those who can’t afford the
$50-$70 return journey risk overstaying their visas and becoming an
`undocumented worker’
In the back alleys of Istanbul’s Aksaray district, the Emniyet Bus
Station looks as if it has long been abandoned. A more careful glance,
however, uncovers notices in Armenian and Georgian plastered on
windows of bus company offices.
The station was mainly used by Russian and Romanian passengers in the
early 1990s for shuttle trade, but lately it has been serving those
from Armenia and Georgia who pack their suitcases with items to sell
at street markets back home.
Every week, scores of buses depart for Turkey’s eastern neighbors,
charging passengers between $50 and $70 depending on the final
destination. Wednesdays are especially brisk with the majority of
buses heading to Armenia via Georgia departing that day.
The Istanbul-Yerevan journey would take 22 hours, but because the
Turkish-Armenian border remains closed, the actual travel time is 36
hours. For those who can afford the luxury of air travel, there are
constraints; flights depart from Istanbul’s Atatürk International
Airport bound for Yerevan twice a week.
Traders in Laleli, a neighborhood in Aksaray famous as a shuttle trade
hub, insisted on speaking on the condition of anonymity out of a
growing anxiety that the trade is coming to a halt.
On one of the ordinary days at the terminal last week, passengers
reached the bus station early in the morning, followed by porters
carrying heavy luggage. Suitcases and cardboard boxes were weighed;
bargains were made and the cargo was loaded up. Passengers making the
journey have a luggage allowance of 200 kilograms.
Falling into the `undocumented’ gap
One passenger, speaking to Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review on
condition of anonymity, said Armenians generally come to the city with
between $2,000 and $5,000. Those who come with less money typically
cannot find enough money to return to Armenia when their visas expire
and consequently become one of the `undocumented workers’ who were
threatened with deportation by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an
during comments made last week.
A.H., a 44-year-old nurse identified only by her initials, worked in
hospitals for many years in Armenia. "I have worked in Turkey doing
domestic work for others and have saved money,’ she said. `Now it’s
time take off.’
H.B. is from Gyumri, an Armenian city not far from the eastern Turkish
province of Kars, and said he makes his living off suitcase trade.
`Why are the politicians plaguing poor people like us? Why are the
borders closed? Why are we not allowed to pass freely? It sometimes
feels like I have all the weight of the world on my shoulders.’
Kohar Gasparian, 50, said he runs a luxurious boutique in Yerevan. `I
come because textiles are cheap and of good quality here,’ he told the
Daily News.
Almost all spoke fluent Turkish and many of the passengers, bus
company employees and drivers know each another.
Bus driver Mehmet KapıcıoÄ?lu said he has been driving passengers to
Armenia for 14 years. `The journey takes 36 hours, sometimes 38 hours.
Some passengers cover the distance without food and water because they
have no money. Seeing that is really painful.’
Ali, declining to give his surname, said he had been working at the
bus station for 12 years and is fluent in Armenian. `I’ve learned it
by talking with passengers as the years go by,’ he said, adding that
Armenians have been crucial in reviving Laleli’s otherwise-fading
shuttle trade.
`From the mid-1990s until last year, there used to be 30 bus trips per
day from Turkey to Armenia. This year, the number decreased by half,’
he said.
ARMENIAN PRESIDENT PUTS FLOWERS ON THE TOMB OF ANDRANIK MARGARYAN
95926/lang/en
2010-03-25
YEREVAN, MARCH 25, ARMENPRESS: On the third anniversary of death of the
Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan President Serzh Sargsyan
accompanied with the leadership of the country visited today Komitas
park pantheon and put flowers on the tomb of Andranik Margaryan,
presidential press office reported.
MOBILE VERSION OF HAYLAND.AM LAUNCHED
PanARMENIAN.Net
25.03.2010 18:17 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The mobile version of the largest Armenian social
network Hayland.am was launched. According to Hayland.am project leader
Artashes Lazarian, economical and fast mobile version of the social
networking site supports virtually all its most important functions:
editing own pages, adding photos, correspondence, viewing web pages
and messages from friends, etc. In the near future, developers are
going to improve a WAP-version of the site, adding the function of
forum and groups, blogs and gifts.
Hayland.am social network was established in 2008 and currently
has more than 86 000 registered users. The site has a system of
personal URL, which enables users to create their own unique address
on Hayland.am
TURQUIE: REPRISE DES OFFICES DANS UNE EGLISE ARMENIENNE
RIA Novosti, Russie
25 Mars 2010
Le ministère turc de la Culture et du Tourisme a autorisé de
célébrer un office par an dans une église arménienne se trouvant
sur l’île d’Akdamar sur le lac de Van (sud-est du pays), ont annoncé
jeudi les autorités de la province de Van.
"La décision d’Ankara d’autoriser des offices a l’église d’Akdamar
constitue un nouveau pas vers la normalisation des relations
turco-arméniennes", estime la chaîne CNN-Turk.
Auparavant les autorités turques avaient rejeté toute possibilité
de reprise des offices dans l’église, la qualifiant de musée et
non pas de lieu de culte.
Le premier office sera célébré en septembre 2010, a déclaré Munir
Karaoglu, gouverneur de la province de Van a la chaîne NTV. Selon
lui, la réouverture de l’église était principalement prônée par
des représentants du tourisme.
L’église d’Akdamar a été construite entre 915 et 921 et restaurée
il y a quelques années par des spécialistes arméniens grâce aux
fonds du ministère turc de la Culture et du Tourisme.
L’Arménie et la Turquie n’entretiennent pas de relations diplomatiques
bilatérales depuis l’indépendance de l’Arménie en 1991 et la
frontière commune entre les deux pays est fermée depuis 1993 a
l’initiative d’Ankara. Les relations complexes entre les deux pays
s’expliquent par une série de facteurs, notamment par le soutien
d’Ankara a la position azerbaïdjanaise sur le conflit du Haut-Karabakh
et par la réaction violente de la Turquie a la reconnaissance
internationale du génocide arménien de 1915 dans l’Empire ottoman.
En octobre 2009 l’Arménie et la Turquie ont signé en Suisse des
protocoles sur l’établissement des relations diplomatiques, qui
doivent être ratifiés par les parlements des deux pays.
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