Author: Vardapetian Ophelia

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE MODERN ISSUES OF ART CRITICISM TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN

ARMENPRESS
SEPTEMBER 24, 2009
YEREVAN

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 24, ARMENPRESS: In collaboration with its Armenian
branch (AICA Armenia) the International Association of Art Critics will
September 28-30 hold a three-day conference under "Between past and
the future; does the art criticism have future in the decentralized
contexts?" slogan.

Head of the Armenian National Association of Art Critics Nazaret
Karoian told Armenpress that nearly two dozen art critics, historians,
theorists and curators from Near East, Central Asian and South
Caucasian states as well as from Turkey, Iran, Russia and Europe will
take part in the scientific conference.

During the three thematic sessions of the conference reports will be
delivered on the establishment of the public sphere and civil society,
exchange of knowledge and skills between the generations as well as
restoration of the historical ties which are vital for development
of the modern art.

Reports and succeeding general discussions will be accompanied
with visits to museum and educational establishments as well as
meetings with the local art figures. The reports will be public and
open. The conference language will be English and Armenia ensured
with time-to-time translation.

The National Association f Art Critics in Armenia was established in
2005 and managed within the short period of its activity to organize
a number of international conferences and events in Yerevan. The
publications summarizing the materials of the two latest summer
schools are in process.

The Association also started preparation works with AICA-International
(being its member since 2006) to organize a two-round regional seminar
in Skopje (Macedonia) which will be targeted on the modern issues of
art criticism.

U.S. FINALLY ESTABLISHES ROOTS IN SOUTH CAUCASUS, SAYS POLITICIAN

Tert
Sept 23 2009
Armenia

"I think the U.S. will finally establish roots in the South Caucasus
within the coming 5 years. Washington, quite possibly jointly with
Russia, will locate its anti-ballistic missile defence bases in
Georgia and Azerbaijan, and then in Armenia — in place of Gyumri’s
present base."

As reported by Azerbaijan news site 1news.az, politician Vafa Guluzade
made the above comment, responding to information from Georgian
media which stated that the Pentagon is about to finish work on a
project that foresees establishing U.S. military bases in Georgia by
2015. According to preliminary data, two of those will be land-based,
while the other one will be a marine base.

"The U.S. has been preparing for this for a long time, and judging by
everything, they are entering the final phase. In this context, I am
not excluding that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will also be settled
in the near future. After the Armenian-Turkish border is opened, the
influence of the West and NATO on the region will increase. We must
be ready for those processes, since afterwards, these countries will
begin to prepare for accession to the EU and NATO more intensively,"
the politician stated.

TURKISH PM SAYS PROTOCOLS SIGNED WITH ARMENIA ARE OF GREAT SIGNIFICANCE

13:02 23/09/2009
oghan/

The reporter of Turkish Hurriyet managed to have a talk with the
Turkish Prime Minister Tayip Erdogan while he was walking in one of
New York streets.

One of the questions addressed to the Turkish PM concerned Armenian
matter and the protocols.

"I’d say that the so called closed-door session of the parliament
is going to be open. The pre-signed protocols with Armenia are very
important. I guess they are success but there is nothing definite
yet. The protocols will be presented to the committees first, and then
put on discussion. Let’s wait for the parliament’s decision which we
are looking forward to."

ARMENIA NOT TO BE INVOLVED IN 1915-23 ARMENIAN-TURKISH COMMITTEE

PanARMENIAN.Net
22.09.2009 16:33 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The time has come when we, Armenians, must unite
and stand behind our Leader, must use this given opportunity to
express our own opinion, engage in positive dialogue, maybe advocate
for amendments to the Protocols but only with thoroughly researched
documents, said Odette Bazil, Secretary of Armenia-Great Britain
parliamentary group. These Protocols, according to her, are currently
under professional scrutiny by various organizations and scholars
in Armenia and the Diaspora who are studying and analyzing each of
the legal, political, financial, logistical, diplomatic and cultural
inclusions in their wording.

"But a very important issue has been overlooked which can alienate
dramatically the countries , the parliaments , the governmental and
non-governmental organisations , the scholars and the individuals
who, painstakingly lobbied by various Armenian Organisations and
Institutions , have recognised our Genocide, have challenged Turkey`s
anger and have issued Declarations and Statements affirming that
recognition: the issue of setting-up a joint-committee to study the
documents relating to the events of 1915-1923. Such step will destroy
the good faith of these organisations in our integrity and will make
them feel – very rightly – mislead and deceived ," she added

ERDOGAN CONSIDERS DOMESTIC IMPACT OF U.S.-TURKISH RELATIONS
By: Emrullah Uslu

Jamestown Foundation
he=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=35522&tx_ttnew s%5BbackPid%5D=7&cHash=c5abec1fe7
Sept 22 2009

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will travel this week to
the U.S. to attend the 64th Session of the General Assembly of the
United Nations in New York and the G20 summit in Pittsburgh. During his
visit to the U.S., Erdogan will hold a number of bilateral meetings,
including talks with the U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the
heads of state and government of 20 countries.

Despite the fact that there is no single issue that Turkey is planning
to present at the U.N. or to discuss with international players at the
G20 summit, the timing of the meeting will fuel domestic debates that
have continued over the past few months. One of the issues that he
will discuss with world leaders is the Turkish government’s Kurdish
initiative. Erdogan stated: "We will explain what we have achieved
on the democratization initiative, if this is raised. It will be
constructive to share with our allies the positive results of our
initiative" (Sabah, September 22).

Erdogan will explain to world leaders three separate issues,
for example the Kurdish and the Alevi minorities as well as
the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement initiatives, all of which
have contributed to fractious domestic political debates, under
the overarching umbrella of the "democratization initiative"
(Zaman, September 21). Indeed, these issues have proven to be the
main sources of tension between the government and the opposition
parties. The opposition accused Erdogan of implementing policies that
are dictated by the United States and the European Union. Chairman
of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Devlet Bahceli is the
foremost advocate of the allegation that the Erdogan government is
simply implementing initiatives planned in Washington and aimed at
dividing the country (EDM, August, 21, September 10). The Chairman of
the Republican Peoples Party (CHP), Deniz Baykal rejects Erdogan’s
policies surrounding the Kurdish initiative and the re-opening of
the Turkish-Armenian border.

Erdogan’s trip to the U.S. also provides an opportunity for the
opposition parties to stir up domestic political issues by linking
Erdogan to U.S. plans and interests in the region. Devlet Bahceli
argues that Erdogan traveled to the United States to seek approval for
his Kurdish initiative, and that he will return with an approved plan
(Hurriyet, September 22). Meanwhile, Deniz Baykal criticized Erdogan
using similar rhetoric to accuse him of trying to divide the country
(Milliyet, September 22). Erdogan responded: "We will not abandon our
initiative. Those who wish to help the democratization process are
welcome; those who present obstacles to the initiative should know
that we will eliminate such obstacles and pursue our plans alone"
(Milliyet, September 22).

Meanwhile, the U.S. ambassador to Ankara, Jim Jeffrey, joined the
debate and supported the government’s initiative. Jeffrey stated
that "any step that would help to remove the Kurdistan Worker’s Party
(PKK) terrorism would be a good step and we would support it." Jeffrey
further suggested that the "Turkish government is taking courageous
steps to implement its democratization initiative. This is good and
I am optimistic about the process" (Aksam, September 21).

Moving the focus of the debate from Ankara to Washington might damage
the Kurdish initiative because the majority of the Turkish public
remains skeptical toward U.S. foreign policy. Turkish nationalist
dailies have already actively linked the Kurdish initiative with
the West, in order to deepen the level of public skepticism over the
policy. For instance, the nationalist daily Yenicag ran a headline
underlining this theme: "Before explaining to Bahceli and Baykal,
Erdogan will explain the Kurdish initiative to his allies," implying
that Erdogan is implementing a plan orchestrated by international
actors (Yenicag, September 21).

Erdogan has taken the rather surprising step of revealing that Turkey
will open a consulate general in Arbil if necessary. "Turkey will
improve its relations with the northern Iraqi administration in a
very different way," Erdogan said as he explained that Syria and Iraq
were jointly supporting the "democratic move" (Turkish Daily News,
September 18). Such statements might provide additional "evidence"
for nationalist skeptics to promulgate the view that the Kurdish
initiative is geared toward establishing a "Kurdish national state
in northern Iraq."

However, Erdogan’s trip to the U.S. might have no significant impact on
Turkish foreign policy initiatives, yet it could potentially change the
direction of the domestic debate. This may have a negative impact on
the Kurdish initiative, because the Turkish public remains skeptical
toward the U.S. and the E.U. It is imperative that Erdogan bridge
this gap in order to stimulate domestic support for his agenda.

ARMENIA VIOLATES INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS FOR AARHUS CONVENTION

20 09/09/22 | 13:38

Ecology

Two out of three main principles of the Aarhus Convention are not met
in Armenia, i.e. public participation in decision-making and access
to justice in environmental matters.

This charge is included in the letter addressed by 3 NGOs,
"Transparency International – Anticorruption Center", "EcoDar" and
the Helsinki Civil Assembly Office in Vanadzor, to the Secretariat
of the Aarhus Convention on September 15, 2009.

As a reminder: these organizations twice applied to the Administrative
Court of RA: first time with a lawsuit to recognize illegal the
following documents: two positive expert opinions of the State
Environmental Expert Commission of the Ministry of Nature Protection
of RA, the government decision on the exploitation of Teghout deposit,
as well as licenses issued to Armenian Copper Program (AÑÐ) permitting
the exploitation of Teghout deposit, second time with an appeal for
the dismissal to deal with this lawsuit. The Administrative Court
refused the examination of both lawsuits.

The letter addressed to the Secretariat points out the violations of
the main provisions of the Aarhus Convention, which Armenia ratified
in May 2001. The Aarhus Convention is an effective instrument for
implementing democratic principles in the environmental sphere.

Thus, the letter points out that "the decisions and actions of the
state bodies in regard to the exploitation of Teghout deposit violate
Paragraph 2, Article 6 (about ensuring public participation in the
initial stages), Paragraph 4, Article 6 (ensuring effective public
participation), Paragraph 8, Article 6 (the decisions shall reflect
the results of public participation), and Paragraph 9, Article 6
(public shall immediately informed about the decisions adopted)". The
dismissal of the lawsuits by the Administration is a direct violation
of the third section of the Aarhus Convention – access to justice.

The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
September 19, 2009 Saturday
1 – State Edition

Darchinyan’s tall order

SUPER flyweight world champion Vic Darchinyan is planning his first
major Australian fight for five years, but his immediate objective is
overcoming the tallest challenger of his career.

Darchinyan has revealed an ambitious wish-list for 2010 after
returning to the gym this week in preparation for his December 12 WBC
and WBA super-flyweight title defence against Mexican Tomas Rojas
(174cm) in California.

The 33-year-old southpaw’s plans for next year include a potential
rematch with his first conqueror Nonito Donaire and world title fights
in his nation of birth Armenia and adopted country Australia.

BALLOT DRAWS NEW POLITICAL LINE — RYDE COUNCIL
CHARIS CHANG

Northern District Times
September 16, 2009 Wednesday
Australia

THIS year’s Ryde mayoral election has been filled with controversy but
on September 8 only two candidates stood: Labor’s Michael Butterworth
and the Liberals’ Artin Etmekdjian.

Outgoing mayor Vic Tagg, who had his own hopes of being mayor and had
been endorsed as the Liberals’ nominee, was sidelined when independent
councillors Ivan Petch, Sarkis Yedelian and Terram Perram refused to
support him.

Faced with Cr Tagg being "unelectable", the Liberals candidate became
Cr Etmekdjian.

In the vote Cr Etmekdjian was supported by his Liberal teammates Bill
Pickering and Roy Maggio and Crs Petch, Yedelian and Perram.

Cr Butterworth was supported by his Labor teammates, Crs Nicole
Campbell, Gabriel O’Donnell and Jeff Salvestro-Martin and Cr Tagg,
who had by this time resigned from the Liberal Party and become an
independent, and Cr Justin Li.

The six-all vote required caretaker general manager Michael Whittaker
to draw the new mayor’s name Cr Butterworth out of a wooden box.

There were three candidates for deputy mayor: Labor’s Cr O’Donnell,
Liberals’ Cr Maggio and outgoing deputy mayor Cr Yedelian.

Cr Yedelian was knocked out of the first round after receiving the
votes of only Crs Petch and Li.

Cr Maggio, who resisted pressure from Cr Tagg to leave the Liberals
last week, was elected with support from his Liberal teammates and
all independents except Cr Perram.

—– LABOR COUNCILLORS —–

MICHAEL BUTTERWORTH

Mayor, West Ward

First elected to council in 2004. His good working relationship with
Cr Vic Tagg helped Cr Butterworth to secure the former Liberal Cr
Tagg’s support for the mayoral vote.

NICOLE CAMPBELL

Central Ward

Has stood four times in state and federal elections as a Labor-endorsed
candidate. Increased her vote at the last council election but did not
stand for mayor last year as she was a candidate in Ryde by-election.

GABRIELLE O’DONNELL

East Ward

Has been a councillor since 1995. Was the Labor Party’s candidate
for deputy mayor but was supported only by her Labor team-mates.

JEFF SALVESTRO-MARTIN

Central Ward

Elected in 2007 with a special interest in council finances. Has a
background in corporate business.

—– LIBERAL COUNCILLORS —–

ROY MAGGIO

Deputy Mayor, East Ward

Elected in 2008, with a special interest in sports funding. Vic Tagg’s
preferences helped elect Cr Maggio and the former mayor hoped to entice
Cr Maggio away from the Liberals but Cr Maggio stuck by his team-mates.

BILL PICKERING

Central Ward

Elected in 2008 as one of the first Liberal-endorsed councillors
in Ryde. Has expressed interest in the mayor’s position but did not
stand this year.

ARTIN ETMEKDJIAN

West Ward

Elected in 2008 and was put up as the Liberal candidate for mayor this
year but lost the draw after a six-all vote. He was also supported
by independent councillors Petch, Yedelian and Perram.

—– UNALIGNED INDEPENDENT COUNCILLORS —–

VIC TAGG

East Ward

Elected as an independent in 2004, then as Liberal in 2008 and elected
mayor. Liberal Party member for about 10 years. When Crs Petch,
Yedelian and Perram refused to back him as mayor, Liberals switched
to Cr Etmekdjian, Cr Tagg then resigned from the party and voted for
a Labor mayor.

JUSTIN LI

West Ward

Was elected in 2007 and supported Vic Tagg for mayor last year and
voiced his support for his re-election. Voted for a Labor mayor,
partly in solidarity with Cr Tagg.

TERRY PERRAM

West Ward

Councillor for 22 years and a former mayor, he has traditionally
voted with Labor councillors but this year voted with the Liberals
because he did not support Cr Tagg for mayor. Has a long-standing
rivalry with Cr Petch.

—– RYDE COMMUNITY VISION INDEPENDENTS —–

IVAN PETCH

East Ward

Was elected in 1977 and has been mayor five times. Was also a former
Gladesville Liberal State MP. Has a long-standing rivalry with Cr
Tagg and refused to back him for mayor this year.

SARKIS YEDELIAN

Central Ward

First elected in 2004, he has links to the Armenian community and
would like to be Ryde’s first "multicultural mayor". Supported Cr
Tagg as mayor last year on the promise of the deputy position but
declined to back him again this year.

AMBASSADOR VLADIMIR DOROKHIN: "AZERBAIJAN IS NOT WELL KNOWN IN RUSSIA" – INTERVIEW – PHOTOSESSION

APA
Sept 18 2009
Azerbaijan

-How do you assess the state of political, economic, humanitarian
relations between Azerbaijan and Russia within the eight months
of 2009?

-The results are good. The relations are developing. We cal
each strategic partners and it has been proved in practice. Our
presidents met four times within the past period, political dialogue
was dynamic. Days of Azerbaijani Culture were held in Moscow and
Kazan, we are making arrangements for the Days of Russian Culture in
Azerbaijan in autumn.

-Has the global financial crisis affected the economic relations
between our countries? Will the trade turnover reach the planned
level by the yearend?

-The crisis has had a negative influence. Fall is observed in
Russia-Azerbaijan trade relations. The level of this fall is
less compared with the falls in Russia’s trade with other CIS
countries. According to our calculations, trade turnover fell by 20
percent within the eight months, according to Azerbaijan’s calculations
trade turnover fell by 12 percent. We will likely fail to reach the
last year’s figure – $2.4 billion. We suppose that the mutual trade
turnover will make up $2 billion.

-How are the documents signed during Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev’s June visit to Azerbaijan being implemented? We particularly
mean division of the Samur river, delimitation of borders, purchase
and sale of Azerbaijan’s gas and location of diplomatic offices.

-Agreement principle was reached on all these issues in Baku. There
is an agreement in principle on the line of border line. I reiterate
that this agreement in principle was reached due to Azerbaijan’s
constructive position in the division of the Samur river. Azerbaijan
made a wise proposal on joint use of the river and it paves the way for
the compromise in the border issue. Work continues on giving mandate
to the delegations for holding negotiations. The aim is to prepare
the necessary documents by the yearend. Anyway, in the fourth quarter
the sides must report to the presidents about the stage of the work.

As regards the gas, Gazprom and SOCAR are having talks. This is an
economic issue, not a political one. SOCAR says the contract will be
signed soon.

Agreement was reached to hold the meeting of experts in connection
with the location of diplomatic offices. I hope the draft documents
will be on the table.

-On what stage is the establishment of Economic Cooperation
Organization of the Caspian States? Which littoral states supported
this idea?

-The establishment of the organization is on the initial stage, even
at the stage of initiative. Russia, Kazakhstan and Iran support
this initiate. Azerbaijan has also expressed its support. Only
Turkmenistan remains. I think this idea will be realized, because
economic cooperation covers the interests of millions of people. It
means new jobs, money, profit. There is an opinion that it is early
to establish an organization determining the legal status of the
Caspian Sea. It is hard to protest against it, but on the other hand,
one can think the other way: if the organization is established and
the cooperation has practical results, it may give stimulus to the
determination of the status.

-May four littoral states of the former USSR introduce a unique concept
concerning the status? Why wasn’t Iran invited to the informal summit
of the Caspian states in Aktau?

– It was not a Caspian summit, but an informal meeting of four
presidents. Probably Caspian issues were also discussed there, but
they didn’t address any issue related to the Caspian status. Everyone
considers that there are five littoral states and all five have to
make joint decision on this issue. Iran had certain questions. I
think participants of Aktau meeting gave quite enough answers to its
questions. The negotiations are conducted within format of five and
it will continue so. No one proposed four sides to be united against
one. The work is done between five countries and everyone is satisfied
with that.

– Are the reports true that Russian co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group
Yuriy Merzlyakov will be replaced with Grigoriy Karasin?

– Merzlyakov is expected to be appointed to new office by the end
of year. The reports about Karasin were officially denied. Russia
will announce its new co-chair when he is appointed. The versions
are speculations.

– Parts to Nagorno Karabakh conflict, international mediators say
that the negotiations are in final phase. Is Chisinau meeting of the
presidents expected to bring results?

– I can’t say anything on behalf of the parts of conflict. As a
representative of mediator country, I would like to say that Russia
doesn’t prefer thunderous statements and prognoses. I think the
mediators should be calmer to do fruitful work. We will make all
efforts to reach positive results in Chisinau.

– Azerbaijan doesn’t like participation of neighbor countries in the
peacekeeping forces to be deployed in the conflict zone. How is Russia
reacting to that?

– I read statements and opinions of political analysts in Azerbaijani
newspapers. Russia relies on the official statement of Azerbaijan’s
Ministry of Foreign Affairs on this issue. The Foreign Ministry’s
officials said that peacekeeping mission, its mandate and authorities
were complicated and long-prospective issue and it is not on agenda
today.

-How the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations will impact on
the solution of Nagorno Karabakh problem?

– Russia supports Turkish-Armenian relations in the context of
contribution to the regional peace and stability and prevention of
new tensions.

– Some political analysts consider that protocols to be signed between
Turkey and Armenia will annul 1921 Kars treaty. Is it possible legally?

– The scientists and analysts have a large imagination and earn
money on that. Russia recognizes the Kars treaty. It is a document
of international law in force and we are not going to refuse that.

– Is it true that Russian citizens living in Uryanoba and Khrakhoba
villages of Khachmaz region are going to receive Azerbaijani
citizenship? How many homes and population in those villages?

– Azerbaijani newspapers pay great attention to this issue. They
are writing such things that can be called an insinuation. There
are five homes in one village and 60 – in other one. 300 people
are living there. The status of those people who are living in
Azerbaijan’s territory with Russian passports was not determined
yet. We highly appreciate tolerance of Azerbaijani government. Those
people were allowed to determine their status. The embassy officials
visited those villages recently. I talked with the prime minister of
Dagestan on that issue. He intends to help those people in calmness
and non-political atmosphere.

– You are working in Azerbaijan for six months. What can you say
about the country?

– There are few ideas about Azerbaijan in Russia. I realized for
myself in the past six months that we know few things about your
country and don’t give necessary appreciation. It is not good for
us. Russia must adequately appreciate its close neighbor and partner.

AZERBAIJAN VIOLATES CEASE FIRE

Information-Analytic Agency NEWS.am
Sept 17 2009
Armenia

Violations of the cease-fire regime were registered at September
16-17 night on NKR-Azerbaijan contact line.

Azerbaijani side fired (with subcaliber arms and sniping rifles) at
NKR Army positions in Horadiz, Ashaghi Abdurahmanli, Chahrli, Ashaghi
Veysali, Marzili, Karakali, Djraberd and Verin Chaylu localities,
NKR Defense Ministry press service reports.

"The adversary was coerced into silence after Karabakhi unit return
fire," NKR Defense Ministry press service informs.