Author: nina hovnanian

8 DIE IN TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS IN ARMENIA WITHIN A WEEK

Aysor.am
Thursday,May 12

65 cases of causing bodily injury were recorded in Armenia in
the period from May 4 to 11, 60 of them were disclosed, 3 robbery
cases were registered, 1 of them was disclosed, 24 fraud cases were
registered, 22 of them were disclosed, the press office of police
reported.

6 hooliganism cases were disclosed in the period under review.

46 traffic accidents occurred in Armenia within a week, leaving 8 dead,
75 injured.

AZERBAIJANI SNIPER SHOT KILLS PEACEFUL RESIDENT IN ARTSAKH

Aysor.am
Thursday,May 12

“The Azerbaijani army keeps violating ceasefire on the contact line.

Only within the past two days, the enemy violated ceasefire more than
400 times. The Armenian side sustained a casualty,” the NKR Defense
Army press office reported.

According to the report, “Arayik Balasanyan, 33, resident of the
village of Kyuratagh, Hadrut region, was injured in his head from
Azerbaijani sniper shot on May 11, at around 18:05 pm, in the southeast
sector of the contact line when doing agricultural works by tractor. He
died on the way to hospital.”

HUNCHAKIAN PARTY: KOCHARIAN FRIGHTENED BY POSSIBLE SARGSYAN-ANC DIALOGUE

PanARMENIAN.Net
May 12, 2011 – 16:29 AMT

Member of the Armenian National Congress (ANC), Chairperson of Social
Democrat Hunchakian Party Lyudmila Sargsyan said that Armenia’s
second president Robert Kocharian is frightened by the possibility
of a political dialogue between incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan
and Armenian National Congress (ANC), as well as investigation of
the March 2008 tragic events.

“This is proved by the recent interview with Kocharian,” Sargsyan
told a press conference in Yerevan.

According to her, Kocharian is the key person responsible for the March
1, 2008, tragic events in Yerevan. Sargsyan said she doubts sincerity
of the incumbent President, who promised a deeper investigation. “Serzh
Sargsyan is also responsible,” she said.

In his recent interview with Mediamax news agency, Kocharian rejected
his fault for human losses in the March 2008 events, saying that all
the attempts to lay the blame for the losses on him are reasoned by
the fear of “the political factor of Kocharian.” He also stated that
he hails the dialogue between the authorities and opposition, if it
refers to establishment of civilized rules of political struggle and
rejection of its radicalization.

Kocharian also said he knows what exactly is taking place between the
authorities and opposition. “Thankfully, I do not participate in that
process,” he said.

RENCO TONDO: WE FOUND OUR COMMON CHRISTIAN ROOTS IN ARMENIA

armradio.am
12.05.2011 16:18

President Serzh Sargsyan received today Renco Tondo, Governor of
Frijuli-Venecija-Ä~Pulija region of Italy.

History has created good prerequisites for the development of
Armenian Italian relations, President Sargsyan said, adding that
Armenia attaches great importance to the development of the bilateral
political dialogue, inter-parliamentary cooperation, economic and
educational-cultural ties.

President Sargsyan stressed the importance of decentralized cooperation
between the local self-government bodies of the two countries, hailing
the collaboration between Italy’s Frijuli-Venecija-Ä~Pulija region
and Armenia’s Tavush marz.

Italian businessmen have arrived in Armenia within the delegation
headed by Renco Tondo to discuss the perspectives of development of
cooperation with their Armenian counterparts.

Sharing his impressions from the visit to Armenia, the Governor of
Frijuli-Venecija-Ä~Pulija region said: “During the visit to Armenia,
we found our common Christian roots. I’m deeply impressed by your
beautiful country.”

The Governor visited also the Armenian Genocide Museum Institute.

Renco Tondo said all he saw and heard there was very touching.

ARMENIA HAILS IRAN’S MEDIATION IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH DISPUTE

FARS News Agency
May 11, 2011 Wednesday

TEHRAN (FNA)- Armenian envoy to Tehran thanked Iran for its helpful
mediation over the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

“Iran has not adopted an impartial and passive stance on the conflict.

It took a mediatory position which was very helpful,” the Armenian
ambassador said, addressing a meeting on regional geopolitics held
in Tehran on Tuesday aimed at resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

“Negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh issue are continuing and the
framework of the talks had better to be kept,” he added.

“Iran has proved its honesty and friendship with Armenia over last
20 years,” the ambassador said according to the Iranian students
news agency.

He then referred to the Armenia-Turkey issue, and said, “Now the two
sides have suspended talks on resumption of ties, since Turkey had
said that Nagorno-Karabakh issue should be resolved ahead of dialogues
on resumption of relations, but Armenia believes that the two matters
are completely separated.”

He reiterated that the matter of dispute should be settled only
through a referendum.

“Referendum is the only way through which Nagorno-Karabakh case can
be fixed fairly. On the other hand, holding a referendum does not go
against international rules.”

He called for signing a contract to prevent any use of force against
the two countries, adding that Azerbaijan has refused to ink such a
contract so far.

Also regarding Yerevan-Karabakh flights, the ambassador said,
“Armenia has decided for resumption of the flights as it used to be
during the time of the Soviet Union ruling, but Azerbaijan’s Aviation
Organization has threatened Armenia. Armenian President has given
response to the threats.”

He also added, “Armenia and Azerbaijan membership in the European
Union can help settlement of such problems such as Nagorno-Karabakh.”

ARMENIAN REGULATORS APPROVE TRANSFER OF HRAZDAN POWER PLANT TO INTER RAO

Interfax
May 11 2011
Russia

Armenian regulators have cleared Russian Inter RAO UES (RTS: IRAO)
to buy 100% minus one share in Hrazdan Power Plant (HrazTES) from
Rosneftegaz, the general director of the power plant, Ashot Manukyan,
told Interfax.

The deal will be concluded in the next few days, Manukyan said. He
did not disclose financial details.

Inter RAO will also receive the remaining share in the power plant
from the current owner, state property agency Rosimushchestvo.

All of HrazTES’ strategic development programs were worked out in 2002
in line with intergovernmental agreements between Armenia and Russia,
he said. The change in ownership will have no material effect on them,
Manukyan said.

Armenia transferred stock in generating companies worth $31 million
to Russia in 2003to repay debt. Rosneftegaz acquired 100% minus one
share (1,597,429 shares) in HrazTES in July 2009.

President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree ordering the transfer
of a number of electricity assets, including HrazTES, to Inter RAO
last September.

HrazTES is a balancing plant used mainly during maintenance shutdowns
at Armenia’s nuclear power plant.

ARMENIA WELCOMES OUTSIDE TEAM TO INSPECT NUCLEAR SAFETY

Xinhua General News Service
May 10, 2011 Tuesday 1:18 AM EST

Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan on Tuesday said that his
country would welcome a special Operational Safety Review Team acting
under the auspices of IAEA to inspect the country’s Metsamor Nuclear
Power Plant.

Sargsyan said that he had already asked the country’s energy minister
and other stakeholders to make a thorough review of the nuclear power
plant’s operational safety.

Armenia’s nuclear power plant at Metsamor resumed generation of
electricity after a routine five-day stoppage for cleaning last month.

Armenian energy ministry sources said that regular IAEA inspections
had revealed no violation in the safety and technical conditions of
the power plant.

The Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant was built and commissioned into
electricity generation in 1976 but was shut down after the 1988 Spitak
earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2.

The country had to re-commission the nuclear power plant after it
had run into an acute electricity shortage in the early 1990s.

The Metsamor plant now generates up to 40 percent of Armenia’s
electricity.

The South Caucasus country is planning to build two more nuclear
power plants.

Ashot Martirosian, chief of Armenia’s nuclear safety committee, said
that the authorities had planned to resort to stress test developed
by the European Nuclear Regulation Association to check the safety
of the nuclear power plant at Metsamor.

The stress test is targeted to assess the safety margins of the
Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant in the light of events in the magnitude
as that in Fukushima of Japan.

“IF TURKEY HAD BEEN PUNISHED FOR ARMENIAN GENOCIDE, THE TURKISH INVASION AGAINST CYPRUS MAY NOT HAD TAKEN PLACE”

Times.am
May 12 2011
Armenia

President of the House of Representatives Marios Garoyian on Tuesday
stressed the responsibilities of the international community in regard
to Turkey’s crime of the Armenian Genocide saying that if Turkey had
been punished for that crime, the Turkish invasion against Cyprus
may not had taken place.

Describing Turkey as an international terrorist, he called upon Ankara
to admit its crime and apologize to humanity for it, Asbarez.com
informs.

If Turkey had been punished for its enormous crime of the Armenian
Genocide of 1915, the Turkish invasion against Cyprus may not have
taken place, he stressed, addressing Tuesday a school event entitled
Armenian Genocide from the past to the present.

Garoyian stressed the responsibilities of the international community,
saying that the Armenian Genocide must be condemned and recognized
by all and called upon Turkey to admit its crime and apologize to
the Armenian people and all humanity.

He went on to add that the international community’s failure to punish
Turkey increases Ankara’s intransigence and described Turkey as an
international terrorist, who, through military power, attempts to
impose its rule on neighbors and non-neighbors alike.

As long as Turkey remains unpunished, the international community
has no right to be proud of today’s world order, he stressed, adding
that the international community should feel as an accomplice as long
as the Armenian Genocide and other ethnic cleansing crimes of Turkey
remain unpunished.

He recalled that Cyprus was the first country to raise the issue in
the 1960s before the UN General Assembly, asking for an international
condemnation of the Genocide and said that the Cypriot House of
Representatives as well as the Greek Parliament were among the first
parliaments to have condemned it.

ARMENIA’S POPULATION DECREASES

Messenger
May 12 2011
Georgia

According to official statistics there are 3.2 mln people registered
as living in Armenia. However contrasting unofficial data suggests
that there are only 2 mln people. There is speculation in the country
that people are leaving in large numbers amid difficult times. There is
an opinion however that these rumours are mostly spread by opposition
forces in an attempt to discredit the ruling party.

HAMSHEN ARMENIANS TO RESETTLE IN KARABAKH

Armenian Weekly
Thu, May 12 2011

YEREVAN (Yerkir)-Around 200 Hamshen-Armenian families living in
Kyrgyzstan are opting to resettle in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

The leader of the Hamshen-Armenian community, Ruslan Karabadjakov
has traveled to Yerevan, from where he will go to Artsakh to look
into logistics for the relocation of 200 families there.

“Our place is here, in Armenia,” said Karabadjakov. “For 250 years
fate has forced us to move from place to palce-Adzharia, Central Asia.

Finally we’ve decided to seek refuge on our own soil.”

It is anticipated that the Hamshen Armenians will establish residency
in the Mardakert region of Artsakh. The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
authorities will provide land and opportunities for economic
developments and will subsidize this effort until the families are
self-sufficient.

Armenians of Hamshen in Western Armenia were conquered by the Ottomans
in the 15th century. The majority of them were forced to convert to
Islam. A resurgence of Hamshen Armenians has begun in recent years,
with a group in Armenia forming community organizations and publishing
a newspaper.

The Hamshen Armenians settled in Adjaria, from where they were driven
out and a large majority settled in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.