Author: Yeghisabet Arthur

SPANISH FM SUPPORTS FREQUENT CONTACTS BETWEEN AZERBAIJANI, ARMENIAN PRESIDENTS

news.az
Jan 19 2010
Azerbaijan

Miguel Angel Moratinos Positive dynamic of frequent contacts between
Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents should not be wasted, Spanish
Foreign Minister.

The frequent contacts between the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan
had created "a positive dynamic that should not be wasted", Spanish
Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos told the OSCE Permanent
Council today.

On Georgia, Moratinos noted that though the EU has a mission in
Georgia, it was "in favor of restoring the OSCE’s presence on the
ground" and he called for talks in the 5+2 format to be resumed to
resolve the Transdniestra conflict.

"The efforts we are making to strengthen security and stability in
Europe are worth nothing if they do not contribute to the resolution
of real problems on the ground," he said.

THE DISPOSITION OF STEPANAKERT IS UNCHANGED

Aysor
Jan 18 2010
Armenia

Yesterday President of the Artsakh Republic Bako Sahakyan received
American co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Robert Bradtke and
accompanying him officials who arrived in Stepanakert on the same day.

As the information office of the NKR president informs issues related
to the current stage and prospects of the Azerbaijani-Karabagh conflict
settlement were discussed at the meeting.

President Sahakyan underlined that the position of official Stepanakert
on the settlement of relations with Azerbaijan remains unchanged. The
conflict cannot be settled in the absence of a direct dialogue
between Azerbaijan and Artsakh. Within this context the Head of the
State noted that Azerbaijan should refuse from non-constructive and
aggressive approaches. At the same time the President underlined
that independence and security of Artsakh are not subjects to any
speculations and any attempt to ignore this will make impossible
comprehensive settlement of the conflict.

In his turn Robert Bradtke underlined that any scenario of military
solution of the conflict is absolutely unacceptable.

At the meeting were also discussed the Armenian-Turkish relations. It
was mentioned that the Armenian-Turkish and Azerbaijani-Karabagh
relations were separate and unrelated processes.

More people visit museums of Tumanyan and Khachaturian
16.01.2010 17:05 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ 14 thousand 350 people visited the House Museum of
Aram Khachaturian in 2009 and 13 thousand in 2008. "Increase in the
number of visitors last year was natural since our permanent
exhibition was opened only in June 2008," Armine Grigoryan, director
of the House Museum of Aram Khachaturian told PanARMENIAN.Net. "By
spring we project to repair the outer arches of the building. If this
problem is solved then we will be able to perform many programs, " the
museum director said.

26 thousand people visited the museum of the great Armenian writer
Hovhannes Tumanyan in 2009, the year of Tumanyan’s 140th anniversary.
"This surpasses the last year’s figure by 8-10 thousand. We will try
to keep the level of attendance,’ director оÑ? House Museum of Tumanyan
Narine Tukhikyan said.

According to her, the museum staff have developed programs for
students. "We came up with various museum games, such as the fair of
tales, where museum visitors can buy the attributes of Tumanyan’s
fairy tales,’ Narine Tuhikyan said. For this purpose, the museum spent
its own funds. However, to participate in these games, visitors will
have to make an additional contribution: for example, to buy another
ticket.

The Museum of Tumanyan was established in 1953 in Yerevan by the
daughter of the poet Ashkhen Tumanyan. The museum recreates the
atmosphere surrounding Tumanyan the whole his life from 1900 to 1923.
Personal library of the poet of 8000 volumes on Armenian Studies,
history, culture, religion and folklore. The library is open to
scholars.

The museum of Aram Khachaturian, created by architect Edward Altunyan
with sketches of Mark Grigoryan, includes the house, gifted to the
composer by the Armenian government in 1947. Khachaturian’s music
sounds in all rooms. A grand piano in the study, original piano
scores, musical literature, working baton, posters and costumes for
ballets are exposed. Open competitions are held in the chamber concert
hall every two years, from 1 to 8 June, for the best instrumental
piece.

Trend, Azerbaijan
Jan 16 2010

Launching discussions over Ankara-Yerevan protocols now is
insignificant: Turkish official

16.01.2010 11:00

Launching discussions over the Ankara-Yerevan protocols now is of no
consequence, Turkish Parliamentary Foreign Relations Commission
Chairman Murad Mercan was quoted as saying by the Turkish Zaman
newspaper.

"Presently, discussions over the Turkish-Armenian protocols will be
immaterial," he said.

Turkish and Armenian foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu and Edward
Nalbandian signed the Ankara-Yerevan protocols on establishment of
diplomatic relations between the two countries in Zurich Oct. 10.

Diplomatic relations between Armenia and Turkey have been broken due
to Armenia’s claims of an alleged genocide, and its occupation of
Azerbaijani lands. The border between them has been broken since 1993.

RA CC DECISION NOT BINDING UPON TURKEY

PanARMENIAN.Net
15.01.2010 16:39 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The RA Constitutional Court’s decision pursues
political rather than legal goals, as it is aimed at resolving
domestic policy issues, Heritage parliamentary group member Stepan
Safaryan said.

"The conclusion is not legally binding upon Turkey," he told a news
conference in Yerevan.

At that, he noted that recent processes have split Armenian opposition
into 3 groups – Heritage which is strongly against CC decision, ARFD
Dashnaktsutyun which is partially satisfied and Armenian National
Congress which fully supports the process.

With regard to ARFD’s recent statement to continue struggle in
parliament, Mr. Safaryan found the such efforts fruitless.

As to Heritage party’s plans, the MP said they intend to hold protest
rallies to neutralize the negative effects of CC decision.

Founded in 2002, Heritage a National Liberal Party is national by
its roots, liberal in its economic principle, and an advocate of the
democratic system of governance and due process for its citizens. The
party’s objective is the development of Armenia as a democratic,
lawful, and rights-based country that anchors its domestic and foreign
policies in the nation’s sovereign interest. During the party’s Third
Congress on May 30, 2005, Raffi K. Hovannisian was elected chairman.

The other eight members of the party board were elected by secret vote.

The Protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the border between Armenia and Turkey were signed in Zurich by Armenian
Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet
Davutoglu on October 10, 2009, after a series of diplomatic talks
held through Swiss mediation.

On January 12, 2010, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of
Armenia found the protocols conformable to the country’s Organic Law.

EDWARD SHARMAZANOV: ANC RATING AMONG ARMENIAN POPULATION PLUMMETS DOWN

PanARMENIAN.Net
15.01.2010 19:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Republican Party of Armenia did not support any
candidate during elections to the National Assembly of Armenia at the
10th electoral district of Yerevan, Edward Sharmazanov , secretary
of the parliamentary group of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA)
told a press conference in Yerevan today.

According Sharmazanov, the Republican Party of Armenia condemns
all violations, occurred during these elections. "But a low voter
participation at the N10 constituency of Yerevan in the elections
showed that ANC’s rating plummeted down among the population," the
MP said.

According to CEC, on January 10 in elections to the National Assembly
of Armenia at the 10th constituency of Yerevan candidate of the
National Unity Party Ara Simonyan won a victory collecting 7,622 votes.

Three candidates were running for the NA deputy: Ara Simonyan (National
Unity Party) collected 7622 votes, David Hakobyan (head of the Marxist
Party of Armenia) – 299 votes, and being under arrest the chief editor
of the Haikakan Zhamanak opposition newspaper Nicol Pashinyan scored
5023 votes.

Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) was founded in 1990 by Ashot
Navasardyan. The ideological basis of the party is the doctrine of
the Armenian political and military leader of the First Republic
of Armenia Garegin Nzhdeh. The re-birth of the Republican Party is
organically linked with the national liberation struggle in 1988.

Institutional framework for the establishment of the Republican Party
was formed at the beginning of this struggle by the military-political
union "Army of Independence". As a political party it was registered
on 14 May 1991.

The party has made a significant contribution to the work of the
Coordinating Council of volunteer militias, helping to establish the
rule of law and order in the republic, and after the formation of a
regular national army in Armenia Armenian Republican Party declared
about its demilitarization.

In July 2006, the 10th extraordinary congress of the party declared
the Republican Party of Armenia as National Conservative Party.

Chairman of the party up to 1997 was Ashot Navasardyan, between 1997
and 2005 – Andranik Margaryan. At present, the party is headed by
the President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan.

EDITORIAL: COMMERCIAL LITIGATION IN THE CIS

Who’s Who Legal
Jan 15 2010

Fifty-eight individuals are included from eight jurisdictions in
this chapter.

Magisters leads the research in terms of the geographical reach and
number of inclusions. Five litigators appear in the following pages,
including Dmitry Dyakin in Moscow, who heads the disputes practice
group and Dennis Turovets, head of the Minsk office. Olexiy Reznikov,
who is co-head of the firm’s litigation practice, is listed from Kiev
and has represented clients such as President Victor Yushchenko and
Russian company MTS. Marta Khomyak heads the firm’s office in Astana
and has represented the leading CIS based companies in a variety
of sectors including the telecommunications, banking and energy
industries. Georgy Osipov is based in Moscow and is well regarded in
our research for his practice in the field.

Baker & McKenzie LLP’s Vladimir Khvalei, who heads the firm’s dispute
resolution practice group in Moscow, has participated in litigations
across the CIS and rivals have called him "outstanding." Azamat
Kuatbekov specialises in natural resources litigation in Almaty and
is a "first-class litigator." Gunduz Karimov in Baku and Svitlana
Romanova in Kiev were both highly nominated as well.

Salans achieves three inclusions in this chapter: James Hogan, Mikhail
Ivanov and Yuliya Mitrofanskaya. Hogan is the managing partner of
Salans’ Baku office while Mitrofanskaya is based in Almaty and heads
that office’s disputes and IP groups. Mikhail Ivanov is the managing
partner of the St Petersburg office and heads the Russian disputes
practice.

Our research identifies a further seven lawyers in Azerbaijan. From
Adalat Law Firm, Mukhtar Mustafayev provides "excellent" counsel and
at BM Law Firm, Frangiz Baghirova has over 26 years of experience
successfully representing major oil and telecommunications companies.

Javid Hajiyev is a senior lawyer at Fina LLP and is recommended for his
"very astute" practice. At Michael Wilson & Partners Ltd, Mehriban
Efendiyeva has extensive experience in corporate, finance and tax
legislation and at MGB Law Offices Anar Janmammadov is one of the
most highly nominated lawyers in this chapter and is regarded as an
"expert" in the banking and finance industries. From Omni Law Firm,
Ismayil Zargarli is highly recommended, as is Ibrahim Zeynalov,
the managing partner of InterJurService Ltd.

Mikhail A Rozenberg of Chadbourne & Parke LLP’s Moscow office is
"highly regarded" and has represented a number of prominent Russian
and international banks in disputes. Sergei Vataev in Almaty and is
praised for his work in representing oil companies in disputes.

In Kazakhstan a further four outstanding lawyers are featured. The
"highly talented" Yulia Chumachenko joined Aequitas in 1997 is well
known for her litigation work for domestic and international clients.

>>From McGuireWoods LLP, Vladimir Furman has more than 23 years
of litigation experience in a range of areas including securities,
corporate law, labour law, telecommunications and real estate. At
Bracewell & Giuliani LLP, Zhanar Kassymbekova is well regarded
for her litigation experience in the courts of Kazakhstan and from
Macleod Dixon LLP, Maxim Telemtayev heads the firm’s practice in the
country and has over ten years of experience concerning the mining,
oil and gas, uranium and telecommunications industries.

White & Case LLP’s co-head of disputes, Alexey Barnashov, is based
in Moscow and is "very respected" for his experience in construction
and product liability dispute resolution. Marat Ibragimov is included
from the firm’s Almaty office and is considered "an authority with
local expertise" in the area of natural resources disputes.

Clifford Chance LLP has two lawyers featured. Timur Aitkulov is based
in Moscow and is regarded as a "very reputable" lawyer providing
domestic and cross-border litigation services. Ivan Marisin is a
senior partner in Moscow and previously successfully represented
Mosnarbank in a US$100 million litigation.

Prominent Russian firm Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners has two
listings and is known for advising clients such as BP, Eurocement
Group and the government of the Russian Federation. In Moscow, Grigory
Chernyshov is considered "a top-notch domestic litigator" and Ilya
Nikiforov is "one of the best in St Petersburg." At Duvernoix Legal,
Igor Guschev joined the firm in 2003 and receives praise for his
counsel and at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, the "brilliant"
Yaroslav Klimov heads the firm’s dispute resolution practice
in Russia. The "first rate" Andrei Korelskiy is head of dispute
resolution at Vegas-Lex and the "superb" Dmitry Kurochkin at Herbert
Smith LLP heads the firm’s litigation group in Moscow. From Hogan &
Hartson LLP, Ilya Rybalkin has "excellent experience" in providing
legal strategies in connection with international litigations and
from Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, Sergei Volfson is head of the CIS dispute
resolution practice and has "extensive knowledge" in complex litigation
in Russia and internationally.

Two firms performed exceptionally well in Belarus. Businessconsult
achieves two inclusions and is considered by peers to have "an
outstanding disputes practice". Dmitry Bokhan and Timour Sysouev are
both highly nominated in our research. Vlasova Mikhel & Partners also
has two listings in the following pages. Managing partner Konstantin
Mikhel is "an important player in Belarussian litigation", while
Alexey Anischenko was praised by our sources for being "smart and
resourceful." From Law Group "Argument", Denis Aleinikov is "fantastic"
and at Borovtsov & Salei, Alexander Botian is an "innovative" lawyer
and is a member of the working group for the development of the civil
code of the Republic of Belarus. Alexander Khrapoutsky at Vashkevich
Sapego & Khrapoutsky provides "very precise and technical" counsel.

In Armenia, International Legal Consulting has two lawyers listed.

Artak Khachatrian and Edward Mouradian are well regarded for their
practice in the country. Karen Zadoyan is the managing partner of
Legal Alliance and specialises in commercial, corporate and labour
law. At Grant Thornton Amyot, Vahagn Mikayelyan is "highly respected"
for his banking practice.

Ukrainian firm Vasil Kisil & Partners sees two of its lawyers
recognised for their litigation achievements in this publication.

Oleksiy Filatov is head of the Vasil Kisil litigation group and is
considered "an expert in IP litigation." Oleg Makarov, who is the
managing partner of the firm, is "a star" who brings 20 years of
international and domestic litigation experience to the table. From
Arzinger, managing partner of the firm Sergey Shklyar is regarded
as a "tremendous" lawyer in the field and at Grischenko & Partners,
Sergei Voitovich is "highly reputable".

Rivals call Lorenz’s Stephan Wagner "a skilled and knowledgeable
litigator" and Niyaz Aldashev is also included from Bishkek,
Kyrgysztan. In Moldova, Turcan & Turcan has two inclusions. Managing
partner Alexander Turcan is "great for financial litigation" and
Carolina Parcalab is "smart and hardworking." Roger Gladei is managing
partner of Gladei & Partners and is regarded as a "very solid and
reliable" lawyer. Victor Burac at his own firm is "very skillful".

analysis/article/19719/editorial-commercial-litiga tion-cis/

ARMENIAN OFFICIALS TO TAKE PART IN FINAL GAME OF BRAIN RING OF PRIME MINISTER CUP

PanARMENIAN.Net
14.01.2010 18:12 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On January 15, Yerevan will host the finals of the
"Brain Ring" intellectual game of Prime Minister Cup, organized by
the "What? Where? When? " Yerevan Club on the initiative of the
"Association of Civil Servants ". Coordinator of the game is the
Ministry of Education and Science of Armenia. Teams of RA Government,
ministries and other governmental bodies will take part in the
competition. The final game will be attended by the Minister of
Education and Science, as well as the heads of other departments.

Winners will be awarded cups and diplomas.

Brain Ring is a game between two (or more) teams. The first game was
held between Dnipropetrovsk and Odessa clubs "What-Where-When".

The name of the game was invented in Dnepropetrovsk by Boris Borodin,
Oksana Balazanova, Marina Belotserkovskaya and Alexander Rubin in
1987, after the first international game of "What- Where-When. They
also registered the first rules of the game in 1988.

ISRAEL ANGRILY REJECTS TURKISH LEADER’S CHARGES

Associated Press Online
January 12, 2010 Tuesday 2:10 PM GMT
Jerusalem

Israel has responded angrily to Turkey’s latest criticism of the
Jewish state, saying the Turks should be "the last to preach morality"
and scolding their ambassador in a highly publicized snub.

Turkey’s ties with Israel have been strained by Turkish Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s fierce criticism of the Jewish state’s use of
force against Palestinians.

For years Israel’s isolation in the overwhelmingly Arab Mideast had
been eased by good ties with predominantly Muslim Turkey. In 2008,
it mediated several rounds of indirect talks between Israel and Syria.

But the alliance began to fray after Israel’s three-week military
offensive in the Gaza Strip early last year.

Erdogan, who heads an Islamist-oriented government, set off the latest
round of acrimony by accusing Israel of being a threat to world peace
and using disproportionate force in the Gaza war. The operation was
launched against Gaza militants, but hundreds of Palestinian civilians
were among the more than 1,400 dead.

"We can never remain silent in the face of Israel’s attitude. … It
has disproportionate power and it is using that at will, while refusing
to abide by U.N. resolutions," Erdogan said in Ankara Monday at a
joint news conference with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

Israel lashed back by insisting it had "the full right" to protect
itself against Islamic Hamas militants in Gaza, which had bombarded
Israel with thousands of rockets for years before the offensive,
and against Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas who struck Israel with
4,000 rockets during their 2006 war.

"The Turks should be the last to preach morality," Israel’s Foreign
Ministry said in a statement late Monday, an apparent reference to
Turkey’s past conduct against Armenians, Kurds and Greek Cypriots.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry rejected that criticism, saying Turkey
has always been a friend to Jews.

"Deep-rooted relations between Turks and Jews that precede the
establishment of the Israeli state and the general structure of
our relations give us the responsibility to make such warnings and
criticism," it said in a statement.

On Monday evening, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon
summoned the Turkish ambassador to criticize a Turkish television
drama depicting Israeli security forces as kidnapping children and
shooting old men. Another show broadcast last year also portrayed
Israeli security forces as brutal.

As the meeting started, Ayalon told cameramen the ambassador was
pointedly seated on a sofa lower than his own chair. He also noted
there was no Turkish flag on display and that Israeli officials
weren’t smiling.

Asked before the meeting whether he would shake hands with Ambassador
Ahmed Oguz Celikkol, he replied, "No. That’s the point."

Because Israel is so concerned about the deteriorating ties with
Turkey, there was much criticism Tuesday of Ayalon’s blunt conduct.

Cabinet Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer of the Labor Party, who has
been trying to repair ties, called it "uncalled for" and "humiliating."

Speaking to Army Radio, Ayalon refused to apologize. "It’s the Turks
who need to apologize," for both Erdogan’s remarks and the TV shows,
he said.

The Turks summoned Israel’s ambassador Gabriel Levy on Tuesday "to
express unease and seek explanation," Turkey’s state-run Anatolia
news agency said.

Turkey’s public fury with Israel peaked a year ago at the World
Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland, where Erdogan
stormed off a stage he shared with Israeli President Shimon Peres,
after telling him, "you kill people."

Turkey later scrapped a military exercise involving Israel. Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out Turkey’s resuming its
role as mediator in Israel-Syria talks, which broke down with little
tangible progress after the Gaza war.

COURT RULES ON TURKISH TIES

The Moscow Times
Jan 13 2010
Russia

YEREVAN, Armenia — Armenia’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday rejected
opposition complaints over the legality of a government push to end
a century of hostility with Turkey.

The ruling means accords calling for the establishment of diplomatic
relations and the opening of the Turkish-Armenian border can move to
the parliament, although there is little sign they will be adopted
soon.

The accords, which need parliamentary approval in both countries,
have been gathering dust since they were signed by the two governments
in October, with Turkey facing a backlash from Azerbaijan.