Author: Tumanian Talar

ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT REGULATIONS OF INTERPOL IS NON-POLITICIZATION OF CRIMES
Mariam Levina

ArmInfo
2010-05-06 16:14:00

Interview of Head of Armenian National Central Bureau of Interpol,
Colonel of Police Vardan Yeghiazaryan, with ArmInfo news agency

Mr. Yeghiazaryan, would you tell us a little about the organization
and Armenia’s participation in it?

Interpol is a universal and, one can say, unique organization. After
the UN, it is the biggest international organization by the number
of its participants; currently it has a total of 188 participant
countries. Armenia has been a member of Interpol since 1992, and I can
say that we are normally cooperating with all the member countries. It
cannot be otherwise, as everything is controlled by the Regulations,
rules and standards that are to be observed by all the participants.

We are most actively cooperating with 97 countries, particularly,
Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Turkey, Iran, the United Arab
Emirates, the United States, etc. One can say these are the countries
we have common "interests" with.

How many people are wanted on the Armenian party’s inquiry?

At present, on the Armenian law enforcers’ inquiry, there are 272
people on the Interpol international wanted list, 185 of them being
on Red Corner Notices, and 87 – on Diffusion Notice. However, these
figures are changing constantly, some people are detected, and some
are put on the wanted list.

How many citizens wanted by the Armenian law enforcers have been
detected in foreign states?

In 2008 a total of 95 Armenian citizens wanted by Armenian law
enforcers were detected in other states, 20 of them were on the
international wanted list. 54 of the wanted persons were arrested,
and 20 were extradited. In 2009 a total of 99 citizens were detected,
44 of them being on the international wanted list. 84 of the wanted
were arrested, and 18 were extradited. In Q1 2010 a total of 41 persons
were detected, 12 being on the international wanted list. 24 of the
wanted persons were arrested, 8 were extradited.

Taking into account Armenia’s active cooperation with the rest of
Interpol member states, how many persons wanted by foreign states
have been detected in Armenia in 2010?

Over Q1 2010 Armenian law enforcers detected 9 persons, 3 of them
being on the international wanted list. Just for comparison: in 2008
our law enforcers detected 16 persons in the territory of Armenia,
7 of them being internationally wanted. In 2009 a total of 29 persons
were detected, 13 of them being on the international wanted list. That
is to say, we are searching for not only the persons internationally
wanted, but also those wanted at the national level.

Are there any data on search of Armenian citizens by other states?

Certainly, there are, like our search of other states’ citizens, who
have committed a crime in our country’s territory. There are few of
them, at present we are searching for around 250 internationally wanted
persons – they are either citizens of Armenia or persons of Armenian
nationality, as very often we are guided by the surname ending "-yan"
peculiar to most Armenians. This mainly concerns Russia, Germany,
Poland, France, the United States, as well as around 200 persons
wanted at the national level.

Vano Siradeghyan, former interior minister of Armenia, is also wanted.

Are there any data on this issue?

Vano Siradeghyan is also a wanted person, like the rest. He is still
on the international wanted list.

Does the National Central Bureau of Armenia have any problems when
contacting the Turkish National Central Bureau?

We have no problems with Turkey. The Turkish party accurately
implements all our inquiries. The interaction mainly concerns
identification of persons, register verification, as well as
anti-trafficking fight. For example, in October 2009 Armenian law
enforcers detected and extradited Turkish citizen Sayid Cakmak,
who had been on the international wanted list.

What about contacts with the National Central Bureau of Azerbaijan?

As regards Azerbaijan, there is certain cooperation within the
organization. For instance, when responding to inquiries from other
countries, we also inform the countries the inquiry has been sent to.

If Azerbaijan was among them, consequently, we inform Azerbaijan as
well; that is to say, we communicate with it somehow. But there are no
direct "affairs" with Azerbaijan. There are no inquiries from them –
and no responses from us either. Actually, if we receive an inquiry
from them, we will respond to it within our competence and legislative
acts. We have made no inquiries due to the lack of a common ground.

The Azerbaijani party regularly disseminates "information" on search of
internationally wanted several dozens of Armenians, who are allegedly
accused of crimes against humanity. The Azerbaijani party has recently
stated about the search of internationally wanted Georgian citizen
of Armenian origin Mardun Gumashyan accused of mass murder at the
Azerbaijani State Oil Academy in Baku. How would you comment on this?

Each National Central Bureau has the right to put any person on the
international wanted list if there is a relevant criminal case and
the accusation meets the national legislation. However, the Interpol
Regulations, to be more precise, the third article of the Regulations
envisages non-politicization of crimes (Interpol does not deal with
political, religious, military or race-related cases). If something
contradicts Article 3, the Interpol General Secretariat conducts
extra investigation of circumstances and afterwards puts the case
into circulation.

At present "Armenian criminals" and Gumashyan are lacking on
this Interpol wanted list consisting of around forty persons. As
regards Gumashyan, I can say that the process of putting him on the
international wanted list is delayed. If the Azerbaijani party states
that this person is put on the Interpol wanted list but he is lacking
on this list, it does not mean that he will also be lacking on the
list tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Probably, the process
is underway. We are keeping a close watch on the situation on the
above-mentioned lists as well. However, we are sure that these are
political insinuations; moreover, this is not the first case, earlier
we also had such "experience" and exerted big efforts to suppress
the process.

For instance, we have received no inquires on these lists, so we have
nothing to respond. If this happens, I will immediately send a return
inquiry to find out the validity and legality of putting them on the
international wanted list. That is another matter whether they will
respond or not.

To be back on our own problems, what level is Armenia at by the number
of Interpol inquiries?

We are in one of the most favorable situations in all senses. This
is, first of all, thanks to our countries’ law enforcers. But one
should not rule out the national mentality. There are a lot of types
of crime, which are not peculiar to Armenia. In this respect, we
are advantageous unlike many other countries. For instance, sexual
crimes against minors are not peculiar to Armenia, drug addiction
and computer crimes are at a lower level here.

As regards international search, Armenia’s approach to this issue is
quite reasonable – a person is put on the international wanted list if
he/she has committed a grave crime and there is reliable information
that he/she is outside the country. By the way, many countries put
people on the wanted list because of "inessential" crimes, such as
theft, unsanctioned sale of CDs or violation of copyright, etc. I’d
like to say that not the whole information about the internationally
wanted persons is available at the Interpol website. On the contrary,
most part of the information is closed for simple visitors and it is
wrong to make conclusions on the basis of the Internet data.

How do you assess the work of your structure?

The Armenian National Central Bureau of Interpol is by right considered
one of the best bureaus, and this is proved by both figures and
results of surveys conducted by the General Secretariat. Our staff is
small, and the young employees annually participate in short-term and
long-term training courses in Lyon. We accurately pay the membership
fees – around 14 thsd EUR per year. It should be noted that membership
fees in Interpol are differentiated, and Armenia pays by the lowest
rates. Thanks to the I-24/7 system, i.e. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
we work online with our foreign colleagues. The incoming information
is processed, analyzed and provided to competent bodies.

That is to say, the Bureau mainly operates as an analytical department
contributing to prevention and detection of crimes. In this respect,
the films about Interpol on TV make us smile. Our task is not running,
shooting or jumping with parachutes, but providing information and
analyzing. Certainly, some country’s authorities may involve their
foreign colleagues in special operations, but this participation will
be restricted to coordination of actions with the police structures
of other countries, provision of information and up-to-date forms
and methods of working.

As regards the activities held by the General Secretariat of Interpol,
Armenia takes an active part in both General Assembly’s sittings and
regional conferences. For instance, in November 2009 the Heads of
Interpol National Central Bureaus of CIS States held their 4th annual
meeting in Armenia, and I am going to participate in the meeting of
Heads of Interpol National Central Bureaus of Europe in late May 2010.

We also take an active part in all start-up activities of the
organization.

TRADITIONAL ‘NIGHT IN MUSEUM’ TO BE HELD IN NATIONAL PICTURE GALLERY ON 15 MAY

ArmInfo
2010-05-06 15:30:00

ArmInfo. The traditional ‘Night in museum’ event will be held in
National Picture Gallery on 15 May.

As deputy director of National Picture Gallery Zhanna Harutyunyan told
Arminfo correspondent, this year the event will be held under a slogan
‘Music os a cultural basis of social harmony’.

Various directions music will sound in the gallery on 15 May begging
from 6:00 PM – rock, jazz and classical music. The graphical drawings
of a painter Ernest Barsegyan will be exhibited in the gallery. The
musical puppet show will be also performed and the puppet exhibition
opened.

To recall, it is already for the 6th time that Armenian National
Picture Gallery is taking part in the action ‘Night in museum’.

SARDARAPAT MOVEMENT PARTICIPANTS ADDRESS NKR PEOPLE

PanARMENIAN.Net
May 5, 2010 – 17:29 AMT 12:29 GMT

Sardarapat movement participants issued an address to NKR people.

"Karabakh war participants can’t turn a blind eye to measures aimed
at Karabakh conflict settlement. Status quo established in May
1994, as well as the Armenian army are guarantors of safety and on
non-resumption of hostilities in Artsakh," the statement emphasized.

Movement participants urged Karabakh people to disbelieve promises
of Turks and Azeris, who’ll attack the moment they take Armenian army
at unawares.

PRESS RELEASE
Haigazian University
Mira Yardemian
Public Relations Director
Mexique Street, Kantari, Beirut
Email: [email protected]

HAIGAZIAN UNIVERSITY INAUGURATES ITS NEW HERITAGE BUILDING

Beirut, May 3, 2010 – On April 29, 2010, Haigazian University held the
inaugural ceremony of the Heritage Building as a proud culmination of
five years of fundraising, planning, construction and hard work.

This building, whose construction notably took three years of dedicated
effort that preserved the Lebanese architectural heritage of the
exterior, will serve a dual administrative and academic purpose with its
6 floors, including offices as well as classrooms.

The Heritage Building originally built around 1930 does not only serve
as a valuable addition to an educational institution, but also stands as
an effort by Haigazian University to preserve the Lebanese cultural
heritage in general and of the traditional and prestigious neighborhood
of Kantari in particular. With this addition, Haigazian University now
possesses two buildings of Lebanese architectural heritage as classified
by the Ministry of Culture.

This grand event was conducted under the High Patronage of the President
of the Council of Ministers, H.E. Mr. Saad Hariri, represented by the
Minister of Culture, Mr. Salim Wardé. Also in attendance at this
impressive occasion were Minister of State Jean Oghasabian, members of
Parliament Walid Joumblat, Hagop Pakradounian, Tamam Salam, Arthur
Nazarian, Serge Toursarkissian, and Shant Chinchinian. Representatives
of the Commanders of the Army, General Security and Internal Security
were also present, in addition to the Armenian Ambassador to Lebanon,
Mr. Ashod Kotcharian, President of the Supreme Council of the
Evangelical Community in Syria and Lebanon, Rev. Salim Sahyouni,
President of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near
East, Rev. Megrdich Kargeozian, Bishops Kegham Khatcherian and Vartan
Ashkarian, previous ministers and members of parliament, community
leaders and dignitaries, in addition to Haigazian faculty, staff and
students.

The HU Board of Trustees, twelve of whom came with their spouses from
the USA, were among the distinguished guests at the inauguration, which
coincided with the annual HU Board of Trustees meeting in Beirut that
took place from April 30 to May 1.

Following a musical prelude of classical pieces skillfully performed by
four Haigazian University students, the official ceremony kicked off
with a live performance of the national anthem presented by Nare
Havatian, Karoun Bardakjian, Talar Mandoyan and Sarine Karajian.

The introduction and welcoming address was given by Dr. Ani Darakjian,
the Chair of the HU Board of Trustees, who extended a warm welcome to
all. "With its traditional Lebanese architecture, the Heritage Building
will be a valuable addition to Haigazian University" said Darakjian. She
concluded by accentuating the great role this university plays in
shaping future leaders of society.

Rev. Meguerdich Karageozian offered the Prayer of Dedication, asking God
to bless all those who will enter this building. "This building is
dedicated to be the home of Truth, Freedom and Service," Karageozian
concluded, emphasizing the university motto.

After a riveting performance of "The Prayer," beautifully sung as a duet
by Haigazian graduate Joyce Saddi and Ricardo Daou, President of the
Armenian Missionary Association of America, Dr. Hrair S. Aharonian
brought his greetings from the AMAA, as one of the two main sponsors of
the project. Aharonian shared experiences about his childhood in this
neighborhood, adding that the Heritage Building has "never looked as
beautiful as it does today."

Aharonian reminded the audience of the purpose that this building would
serve as a means to ensure growth of the university and expansion of its
graduate school. He ended with a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt: "The future
belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

A congratulatory note was then given by Mr. Walid Joumblat, Member of
Parliament, who was introduced as a neighbor of HU. Joumblat praised the
university, declaring that "where various municipalities have failed to
preserve the heritage of Beirut, Haigazian has succeeded," leading the
audience to roar with applause.

In the festive spirit of the occasion, the Haigazian University Dance
Club performed the traditional Lebanese Heritage Dance, more commonly
known as Dabke, to the tune of "Lebanon will Return" by Joseph Attiyeh.

In his President’s Address, Rev. Dr. Paul Haidostian opened with a quote
from the Bible (Psalm 118: 24) and introduced the Heritage Building as
"our gift for the 55th anniversary of Haigazian University." Haidostian
then proceeded to speak of the close association between Mexique Street
and HU for the past 55 years and how we would now be also linked to May
Ziadeh Street. He referred to the connection that the university has
with the area and placed the street names in historical context.
Haidostian added that the Heritage Building would be fully operational
in September and thanked all those who worked hard to make this building
possible, highlighting the fact that with three years of work and
hundreds of laborers there was only one minor injury. Before inviting
the Minister of Culture to give his message, Haidostian concluded
saying, "Haigazian University stands in awe and praise before the Lord,
and thanks all the donors, Board members, friends, volunteers,
technicians and staff who have transformed stones and dust into a
magnificent home-like university building."

Minister of Culture Salim Wardé addressed the audience on behalf of
H.E. Mr. Saad Hariri to express his gratitude and congratulations. He
then praised the role Haigazian University played in preserving this
Heritage Building, informing the audience of the upcoming strategy of
the Ministry of Culture in setting strict rules to preserve the heritage
aspect of the city of Beirut.

Dr. Ani Darakjian then invited Mr. Salim Wardé, Rev. Dr. Paul
Haidostian, Rev. Meguerdich Karageozian and Dr. Hrair Aharonian to cut
the ribbon, thus officially inaugurating the building.

The audience was then invited to enter the building to attend the
unveiling of the plaque that revealed Sirpuhe Philibosian Conte Hall as
the name of the multipurpose hall. Mrs. Joyce Stein, daughter of
Sirpuhe, emotionally expressed the vision of her parents and their
sustained love and support of Haigazian University.

After touring the building from the inside and the beautiful floor tiles
that were preserved from the original structure, everyone had the chance
to view an outdoor exhibition featuring pictures and descriptions of old
Lebanese heritage buildings and the defining characteristics of their
architecture, taken from a book by Mr. Robert Saliba.

The program concluded with a reception accompanied by live music by
another Haigazian graduate, the talented Shahan Kilaghbian on the
keyboard.

In addition, for this special occasion a booklet was published featuring
a brief history of Haigazian University and its most recent acquisition,
the Heritage Building, as well as pictures of the construction work in
progress and a list of all those who generously donated to this project.

In addition, Haigazian University received many congratulatory notes
from many friends from around the world, including from the Armenian
Minister of the Diaspora, Mrs. Hranoush Hagopian which said "Glory and
honor to all donors, to authorities and staff of the University for
their contributions to the enlargement, development and strengthening of
this Armenian institution notwithstanding these difficult times of
economy and globalization… Haigazian University has a high reputation
in the Republic of Lebanon and its distinguished place in the country’s
educational system."

The refurbishment of the Haigazian University Heritage Building was
conducted by:

* IDEA Consultants S.A.R.L. as Architects and lead consultant
* DG Jones & Partners (M.E) LTD as Project Manager
* Building Construction & Contracting Co. as Contractor

GOVERNMENT CONTRIBUTES TO SET UP OF MONOPOLIES: ARA NRANYAN

news.am
May 4 2010
Armenia

"I have never agreed with opinion that there is a failing struggle
against monopolies in Armenia," ARF Dashnaktsutyun MP and economist
Ara Nranyan told NEWS.am. He stated that Government and Central Bank
had assisted the set up of monopolies for years. Nranyan noted that
artificially supporting the AMD exchange rate, government itself
halted domestic production, encouraged import and furthered slump
in competitiveness.

"Presently everyone admits that basically import sector enjoys
the monopoly, which is true, but no one says that monopolies were
created as a result of policy implemented by RA Government and
CBA. Government constantly introduces to National Assembly bills
entailing the boosting of various economic sectors. In the context of
anti-crisis measures, government assisted one or two enterprises, not
certain sectors. It means, they tried to pull through these companies,
neglecting others," Nranyan said, adding that the mentioned moves
bring to the establishment of monopolies.

RESOLUTION OF ARMENIAN-AZERBAIJANI CONFLICT KEY TO COEXISTENCE

news.az
May 4 2010
Azerbaijan

Elin Suleymanov News.Az interviews Elin Suleymanov, Azerbaijan’s
consul general in Los Angeles.

Do you think the attendance of the Armenian Catholicos at the religious
summit in Baku will affect Azerbaijani-Armenian relations?

Catholicos Garegin ll’s presence in Baku has introduced a positive
element into the situation in the region. On the whole, the summit
reiterated Azerbaijan’s importance in intercultural dialogue and also
showed that religious figures can contribute to strengthening peace
and security.

It is too soon to predict the influence of the Catholicos’ visit
to Baku on Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, since an improvement
in the situation requires progress in the resolution of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict and that the Armenian authorities give up
their policy of confrontation with their neighbours. At the same time,
Garegin’s participation in the religious summit and his meetings in
Azerbaijan pave the way for greater mutual understanding on a purely
human level.

How do you assess the appearance of the first Armenian-language
website in Azerbaijan?

Azerbaijan is one of the leading countries in the region, therefore,
the appearance of information resources both in Armenian and in other
languages of our neighbours is timely and useful. I would like to
wish success to the leadership and the staff of the website. This is
a very interesting initiative.

Are Armenians interested in getting information about Azerbaijan?

It is difficult to judge the interest of Armenians. Much depends on
whether the information on your website is provided in a form that is
interesting to the readers. At the same time, certainly, information
about Azerbaijan should arouse interest amongst Armenian readers since
there is a definite lack of information and this does not promote
mutual understanding. Let’s recall that immediately after the elections
of the Armenian president in 2008 the country imposed censorship and
the leading Armenian websites announced that the information posted
their had passed the official censors. Tackling the problem of the
Armenian press is certainly not the job your website, but this example
again proves the importance of increasing the information exchange.

How realistic do you consider the peaceful coexistence of Azerbaijanis
and Armenians once the Karabakh conflict has been resolved?

I think our peoples simply have no choice. We are neighbours through
the hand of God. Though today we are facing negative moments in
history and the present, we have the experience of coexistence and
a successful neighbourhood. Our neighbours in Armenia simply have
to realize that we are responsible for the future of our region and
narrow ethnic ideology will not be useful in the multi-ethnic Caucasus.

The resolution of the Karabakh conflict as soon as possible is
certainly the key to peaceful coexistence. The real tension in the
region comes from the occupation of Azerbaijani lands and the driving
of about one million civilians from their homes rather than abstract
emotions on the basis of ethnic affiliation. Armenians should ask
themselves a simple question: how do they imagine the future of the
whole region if the status quo does not change? I do not doubt that
anyone with any sense realizes the need for progress on the resolution
as soon as possible.

Are Azerbaijanis and Armenians able to restore cooperation in different
spheres, for example, in transnational projects, forgetting their
previous quarrels?

It is not that we have to forget our history. Historical memory is an
integral part of national consciousness. When we talk about ‘quarrels’,
we again imply the implications of the Armenian aggression that killed
thousands, made hundreds of thousands refugees and caused great damage
to the economy. This cannot be forgotten!

We should better strive to ensure that the lessons of history do not
damage our future. That is, we should demonstrate sound pragmatism and
realize that there are no alternatives to coexistence as neighbours and
regional integration. Azerbaijan has repeatedly proven its pragmatism
and openness for cooperation on a mutually profitable basis. It is
now Armenia’s turn, which must prove that it is a really independent
state and a full member of the regional community. For this purpose,
for Yerevan, the priority must be the welfare of Armenian citizens
rather than ideological euphoria.

As for the lessons of history, probably, it is time for Armenians to
understand that it is important to find a common language with their
neighbours which meets the interests of the Armenian people.

DAVUTOGLU’S SPEECH AT OXFORD BRINGS NOTHING NEW TO TURKEY’S FOREIGN POLICY

ArmInfo
2010-05-03 16:36:00

ArmInfo. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s speech at Oxford
has brought nothing new to Turkey’s foreign policy, says Doctor of
Science, Psychology, Levon Shirinyan.

He told media on Monday that demonstrating Ankara’s tolerant attitude
and readiness to open the border, Davutglu just tried to reinforce
Turkey’s endeavors to regulate the processes in the region. "There
was nothing new in his statement," Shirinyan said.

To recall, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on
Saturday that Turkey was eager to open its borders with Armenia,
because it wanted a full integration with its neighbors. "However,
it would not be enough to open Turkey-Armenia border. We also want
that Armenia-Azerbaijan border is opened so that regional stability
could be restored," said Davutoglu.

THE PROBABLE SCENARIOS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE REGIONAL SECURITY
RUSSIA-GERMANY

"Noravank" Foundation
30 April 2010

Gagik Ter-Harutyunyan

The developments round Armenian-Turkish relations went beyond the
scope of the regional format and moved to global politics. There are
grounds to believe that regardless of the results at the current stage
of the diplomatic processes the relations between Yerevan and Ankara
will stay at the agenda of our foreign policy for quite a long time,
because it is of strategic importance and in its significance it does
not cede to the problems with Azerbaijan on the NKR. It should also be
stated that till now the RA policy was systematized and it excelled in
diplomatic proficiency the Turkish party, which made serious mistakes
during the process of negotiations. Thus, the fears of some observers
that Turkey which has `imperial’ experience would `outsmart’ the RA
officials, proved to be fully wrong. As a result of the developments
connected with Turkey the positive political atmosphere has been
formed around Armenia and, in addition, the `Armenian Question’ has
again been actualized and became a subject to discuss for the
governments and parliaments of different countries.

No less important is the fact that the Armenian-Turkish processes
enriched Armenian political thinking and became a stimulus which
boosted the searching of the new resources and possibilities in the
sphere of the foreign policy of the RA. In this context the global and
regional changes going on as a result of the multi-polar system
formation are worth of attention. Particularly, the developments going
on within the European Union imply the same logic, and those
developments in our opinion contain new opportunities for the foreign
policy of the RA.

`Post-American’ region. It is difficult to present in a brief report
the complex of the military and political processes going on a global
plane, because they contain many shades of meaning, components of
civilizational, economical and other character. At the same time, let
us try to consider schematically the main tendencies which are caused
by rather morbid formation of the multi-polar world. The changes are
happening gradually and due to this, unlike the revolutionary collapse
of the bipolar system, they are not always noticeable in short-term
periods. At the same time the system changes, despite their intensity,
are always fraught with unpredictable consequences. It is not a mere
chance that some political scientists compare the current realities
with the situation before World War II.

Under such conditions, passing by the issue of the overstrengthening
of China and all the scenarios connected with that (they need special
scrutiny), from the point of view of the elaboration of the
prospective policy the most topical for Armenia is the relative
weakening of the influence of the United States in the region. The
manifestation of this are, particularly, the difficulties with Turkey
this power had while carrying out the mediatory mission in the
Armenian-Turkish relations. It is characteristic that like at the
beginning of the last century, today the representatives of the US
establishment are more often turning to the necessity to conduct the
policy of `isolation’ by the US. Particularly, the Congressman Ron
Paul who is taking leading positions in the Republican party today and
is one of the possible candidates at the presidential elections in
2012 not only plumped the full withdrawal of the US troops from Iraq,
but also called to leave the UN and NATO, to dismiss the Federal
Reserve system and to restrict the interference of the US in the
affairs of other countries.

Meanwhile, according to some analysts, the retreat of the Americans
may cause the explosive situation in the Near and Middle East, South
Asia (the so-called Eurasian Balkans). Let us mention that this region
today is also in a rather unstable condition, particularly because of
the processes going on in Iraq and Afghanistan, which has been mainly
provoked by that very US. But the US presence, though curiously
enough, proves the `stability of that instability’, the stationarity.
That means that the current chaos is more or less controllable, and
such a situation will hardly be preserved after the departure of the
Americans. It is a common belief that the retreat of the Anglo-Saxons
is more dangerous than their offence.

It is obvious that the creation of such uncontrollable region which
countries either possess or tend to possess the nuclear weapon (Turkey
among them) is a new challenge for Armenia and new resources and
political partners are needed to resist them. In this aspect new
developments taking place in Europe are of a certain interest.

The formation of `German’ Europe. It is known that the plans to create
`United Europe’ have rather long and rich history and the conceptual
approaches to the today’s EU were elaborated before the end of World
War II mainly by the joint Anglo-American efforts (it was mostly
contributed by the prime-minister of Great Britain Winston Churchill).
After that first practical steps were made in that direction, i.e. the
signing of the agreement by France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,
Belgium and Luxemburg in Maastricht in 1951.

The EU was created as a structure which is based on interconnectivity
which should prevent the separate countries and first of all Germany
to act independently and restore as a mighty power. That mechanism was
rather effective in bipolar and one-polar systems. Consequently, the
EU, which is the biggest economics in the world, plays no serious
geopolitical role on global plane. But in multi-polar world and amid
the financial crisis when their own national interests became more
important the processes of division were initiated. This manifests
itself both in the weakening of the ties between the US and Europe and
the up growth of the contention and in the growth of the gap in
economic and other spheres between the countries of the EU.

Germany appeared to be the most prepared to the new situation. It is
suffice to mention that for recent 10 years the contention of the
German goods and services, as compared to other countries of the EU,
has grown on 25%. As a result, Germany today is not only the most
mighty economics in the EU but also the country which dictates (less
relying on France) the rules of the EU activity. It is remarkable that
the Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel is often called in
international media `Frau Europe’.

The military and political claims of that country have also grown.
Today the representatives of the German elite sound the ideas about
the reforming NATO (meaning the growth of the role of Europe),
possessing nuclear weapon, withdrawal of the American bases from
Europe and etc. This comes to prove that in the near future the
`Germanized’ EU or, according to some scenarios Germany and its allies
acting out the EU format, will tend to take the descent place on
global geopolitical plane.

Russia, Germany and `Great Europe’. In the context of the
aforementioned trends the newly edited `Great Europe’ creation
programme which was offered by German military circles is remarkable.
It implies the involvement of Russia in NATO and thus, the
`Eurasification’ of that structure. Such a scenario can especially get
topical in case if the self-isolation tendency of the United States
(let us remember the statement by Congressman Ron Paul about the
withdrawal of the US from NATO) shift from the theoretical reflections
into a practical plane. It is obvious that such a development firstly
implies the preparedness of Russia, particularly if we take into
consideration the problems of the later with NATO and its expansion to
the East. But today the tendencies, which can make `Great Europe’
project real, are observed in the policy of Russia and this is
conditioned not only by the traditional considerations regarding
Moscow-Berlin geopolitical axis.

At current moment Germany is the main economic partner of the RF; they
implement big geo-economic energy programmes. There are some
agreements in the political sphere as well (particularly in the issue
of Georgia’s NATO membership). It is also important that in recent
years Russia has preferred indirect actions, i.e. it conducts more
subtle policy. E.g. the opponent of the `officially’ pro-Russian
Yanukovich on the presidential elections in Ukraine Timoshenko had not
had anti-Russian orientation, i.e. unlike the past experience the
favourable political field was formed before ahead1. The appraisal of
the elections by the Europeans has also been well-wishing. They, amid
the relative weakening of the US possibilities, are more adequate in
their appraisal of Russia’s influence on their `rightful’ territories
and they aspire not to `tear’ Ukraine off but to turn it into the
ground of cooperation between the EU and RF. A great number of
analytical materials devoted to that subject which have appeared on
the information field indirectly speak to the strengthening of the
ties between Russia and Germany2. There are also some European
integration tendencies observed in the Moscow-Warsaw relations.

There are many such examples and one can state without going into the
details that the idea of the creation of the `Great Europe’ being
adequate both to the logic of political commonalities and to the
realities of the multi-polar world seems to be acceptable to the
parties. Under such conditions the US and Great Britain, in contrast
to their distinctly negative stance to the relations between Russia
and Germany, now should not be opposed basically to `Great Europe’
programme, because such a union, according to some geopolitical
scenarios, may become a natural obstacle in case of the
Eastern-Chinese expansion.

The probable influences of the project on the region. Being located in
the neighbourhood of `Eurasian Balkans’ where the tendencies to the
loss of the control are observed, one of the main guarantees of the
security of Armenia still remains the military cooperation with the RF
and the military base of the later. In this aspect the possible
participation of the RF in `Great Europe’ project will undoubtedly
enlarge the possibilities of our ally. In such condition the German
presence can be useful.

Germany, acquiring some influence in Eurasian military and political
field, can use our region as a platform for the implementation of its
geopolitical claims (this kind of aspiration is shown by the Germans,
e.g. in Afghanistan) and in this case those claims should not
contradict to our national interests. The following factors speak to
that:

Germany does not have oil interests, which play the key role in the
policy of other Western powers and which are manifested in the partial
attitude towards Azerbaijan, in our region.
The official Berlin has serious problems with Turkey and here the fact
that there are about 3 million Turks living in Germany, 1.7 million of
whom are the citizens of Turkey and a considerable part of them on
principle and some by the directions of Ankara do not want to
integrate into the German society, plays role. That factor caused the
problems of civilizational and demographic character in German
society, which is partially reflected in the foreign policy
approaches.
1Õ?Õ¸Ö?&#xD 5;½Õ¡Õ½Õ¿Õ ¡Õ¶ÕµÕ¡Õ&# xB6; Õ¶Õ¸Ö Õ¼Õ¡Õ¦Õ´&# xD5;¡Õ¾Õ¡ÖÕ&#xB 8;Ö?Õ©ÕµÕ¡&#xD5 ;¶ Õ¡Õ¼Õ¸Ö?Õ& #xB4;Õ¸Õ¾ Õ¢Õ¶Õ¸Ö?Õ& #xA9;Õ¡Õ£ÖÕ¡&#x D5;¯Õ¡Õ¶ Õ§ Õ?ÖÕ²Õ¦Õ½& #xD5;¿Õ¡Õ¶Õ¸&#x D6;?Õ´
Õ¾Õ¥Ö&#x D5;»Õ¥ÖÕ½ Õ¿Õ¥Õ²Õ« Õ¸Ö?Õ¶Õ¥Ö? Õ¡Õ® «Õ£Õ¸Ö?Õ¶& #xD5;¡Õ¾Õ¸Ö Õ°Õ¥Õ²Õ¡&# xD6;?Õ¸Õ – Õ¸Ö?Õ©ÕµÕ& #xB8;Ö?Õ¶Õ¨», Õ¸ÖÕ¶ Õ¡Õ¯Õ¶Õ°&# xD5;¡ÕµÕ¿Õ¸&#xD 6;Õ¥Õ¶
«Õ´&#xD5 ;¸Õ½Õ¯Õ¸Õ& #xBE;ÕµÕ¡Õ¶» Õ®Õ¡Õ£Õ¸&# xD6;?Õ´ Õ¸Ö?Õ¶Õ«Ö?

2See, for example, «ÐоÑ?Ñ?и йÑ?ко-Ð ³ÐµÑма&# xD0;½Ñ?киÐ&#x B5; оÑ?ноÑ? ениÑ? в конÑ?Ð& #xB5;кÑ?Ñ?е
Ð µÐ²Ñоп&# xD0;µÐ¹Ñ?кÐ&#x BE;й безо&# xD0;¿Ð°Ñ?нÐ&#x BE;Ñ?Ñ?и», под Ñед. пÑоÑ?. Ð’.Ð`. ВаÑ?иÑ?&#xD0 ;µÐ²Ð°, -Ð`.: Ð`Ð – ÐÐ?Ð’,
2009.

Other issues of author

YEREVAN-ANKARA: NEW STAGE OF POLITICAL MANOEUVRES [25.03.2010]
CONTEXT OF THE RA-TURKEY RELATIONS [09.10.2009]
NATIONAL SECURITY AND IDEOLOGY [11.06.2009]
ISSUES OF ORGANIZATION OF ARMENIANCY [16.04.2009]
ON THE PROSPECTS OF THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE USA AND CHINA [23.02.2009]
CHALLENGES OF MULTI-POLAR WORLD [26.01.2009]
SOME ISSUES OF `INFORMATION SOCIETY’ [21.07.2008]

PROTOCOLS EXIST DE JURE BUT DEAD DE FACTO: AGHVAN VARDANYAN

Tert.am
28.04.10

"The Armenia-Turkey Protocols do not exist in practice any more.

Though in a diplomatic language, but that is what was said in Serzh
Sargsyan’s latest speech. I think that the Protocols will not be
discussed in that form. They exist de jure, but are dead de facto,"
member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutiun, ARF-D)
and former Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Aghvan Vardanyan said
a press conference today.

In his words Armenia could have also "closed the door." i.e. withdraw
its signature from the Protocols, "which would be the right thing to
do." But "unfortunately, we are not yet the country that has so much
power, self-dependency."

"We are not yet Turkey," said Vardanyan, adding that the topic is
already off the agenda.

Vardanyan also said that if the Protocols leave room for the two sides
to make completely opposite statements about them, then it testifies
to the fact that they are badly-negotiated documents.

Regardless what the Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan said,
according to Vardanyan, the facts prove something else.

WORLD – ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN MASS KILLINGS DRAWS TENS OF THOUSANDS

Morning Star
April 26, 2010 Monday
UK

Tens of thousands of Armenians in Yerevan laid flowers at a monument
to the victims of mass killings by Ottoman Turks at the weekend,
marking the 95th anniversary of the start of the genocide.

Across the world, hundreds of thousands of the Armenian diaspora
marked the anniversary.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I.

Turkey denies that the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has
been inflated and those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

Residents of Yerevan and other regions and representatives of the
Armenian diaspora marched to a monument on a hill overlooking the
capital. Some carried placards such as "Nobody and nothing will be
forgotten!" and "Genocide never gets old."

Armenian President Serge Sarkisian described the slaughter as
"unprecedented in its scope, monstrosity and graveness of its
consequences" in an address to the nation.

In Paris, about 1,000 people took part in a commemoration which
climaxed at the Arc de Triomphe.