Author: Zakarian Garnik

HIEROMONK PHILLIP’S STATEMENT NOT REFLECTING RUSSIA’S ORTHODOX CHURCH POSITION

news.az
Jan 14 2010
Azerbaijan

Ilgar Ibrahimoghlu News.Az interviews Ilgar Ibrahimoghlu, chief of the
Center of Protection of Religion and Freedom of Conscience (DEVAMM).

What do you think about the statement of hieromonk Phillip (Ryabikh),
chief of department of external church ties of the Moscow Patriarchate,
that there are three temples of the Moscow Patriarchate in Armenia
including one in Yerevan, the second at Russian military base in
Gumri and the third in Nagorno Karabakh?

Such statements occur when people voicing them are merely incompetent
in the issues they are speaking about or in case they fulfill any
lobbyist mission. I do not think that celibate priest’s statement
which presents Nagorno Karabakh, an integral part of Azerbaijan, as an
Armenian land, reflects the position of the Russian Orthodox Church
and the Moscow Patriarchate in this issue. I think in the nearest
future we will hear the confirmation of my words as a statement from
the side of the Moscow Patriarchate. Anyway, Azerbaijan should react
to this statement and voice its regret about this issue.

What do you expect from the visit of Patriarch of Moscow and All
Russians Cyril to Armenia scheduled for March?

These visits occur throughout the world. The March visit of the
Patriarch of Moscow and All-Russians Cyril to Armenia should be viewed
in terms of the policy of the Russian Orthodox Church that strives
to have good relations in all countries not only in our region but
also throughout the world. Naturally, this visit cannot be bound to
the resolution of the Karabakh conflict.

In other words, you do not think that during the visit of the Russian
Patriarch to Armenia, the sides will discuss the Armenian-Azerbaijani
conflict…

I do not see reasons why the Karabakh conflict can be a subject of
discussions during the visit of the Russian Patriarch to Armenia.

How do you assess prospects of the just resolution of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno Karabakh in the nearest
perspective?

My personal opinion in this issue is that I do not see any grounds to
state that Armenia is ready to release the occupied Azerbaijani lands
in Nagorno Karabakh and around it. Certainly, there is a theoretical
possibility of such actions by Armenians but excessive optimism in
this issue is untimely.

FATHER STABBED BY 19-YEAR-OLD SON IN YEREVAN

Tert.am
15:48 ~U 13.01.10

Yerevan police received news of a murder in the neighbourhood of
Silikya at 6:55 pm on January 12, say RA police.

It became evident that at 6:30 pm on the same day, during an argument
in one of the houses in the neighbourhood, 19-year-old Manuk Grigoryan
hit his father, 46-year-old Jivan Grigoryan, with a sharp object.

Jivan Grigoryan, who had a criminal record, received two injuries to
the eye and four to the neck, which resulted in his death.

At 1 am on January 13, Manuk Grigoryan was arrested in the apartment
at 40 Tsovakal Isakovi Avenue and subsequently confessed to the
stabbing. Preliminary investigation is underway.

RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN RELATIONS ARE STRATEGIC: RF DEFENSE MINISTER

news.am
Jan 13 2010
Armenia

Russian-Armenian military relations are of strategic and partnership
nature, RF Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov stated at the Jan. 13
meeting with his Armenian counterpart Seyran Ohanyan.

Officials discussed prospects of Armenian-Russian military-technical
cooperation expansion, as well as regional security issues, ITAR
TASS reports referring to RF Defense Ministry press secretary Irina
Kovalchuk.

According to her, the matter on Armenian servicemen training in RF
Defense Ministry educational institutions was discussed as well.

VICTIMS IN SUNDAY’S DOUBLE SLAYING IDENTIFIED
By Mike Blasky

Las Vegas Review – Journal
tims-in-Sundays-double-slaying-identified-81245522 .html
Jan 12 2010
Nevada

The Clark County coroner’s office, as well as family members, have
identified the victims in Sunday’s double slaying as Anoush Sarkisian
and Mariam Sarkisian, two women involved in a highly publicized
immigration case in 2005.

The death of Anoush Sarkisian, 50, of Las Vegas, was listed as homicide
from a gunshot wound to the head.

Officials did not release the second victim’s name, but family member
Gonya Sarkisian confirmed Tuesday that the woman is Mariam Sarkisian,
in her early 20s. She also confirmed that Anoush was Mariam’s mother.

The victims were shot and killed Sunday when Gregg Thomas, 23, of
Las Vegas, entered their residence at 1809 Warrenville St., upset
over a custody dispute regarding the 1-year-old infant he had with
his girlfriend, police said.

Thomas then turned the gun on himself, police said, in an apparent
murder-suicide.

Mariam and her sister, Emma, made headlines in 2005 when the two —
then ages 17 and 18, respectively — were rescued from the brink of
deportation to the Republic of Armenia when then-U.S. Secretary of
Homeland Security Tom Ridge intervened at the request of Sen. Harry
Reid, D-Nev.

The girls would have been shipped back to the land of their birth,
despite not speaking the language or having the resources to survive
in the struggling nation that once was part of the former Soviet Union.

They had lived in the United States since 1991, when they emigrated
with their father, Rouben Sarkisian, but immigration officials voided
their applications for residency after Rouben divorced his American
wife, their stepmother.

Gonya Sarkisian, who is Mariam’s aunt, said Mariam’s father was not
living at 1809 Warrenville at the time of the slayings. He had been
divorced from Anoush, who was not a U.S. citizen and had also battled
immigration officials. Still, he kept in contact with his daughters
and will return to Las Vegas Wednesday, she said.

Emma Sarkisian is currently staying with another aunt, and has
possession of Mariam’s child, she said.

There are three additional teenage Sarkisian sisters, said Gonya,
all of whom were born in the United States: Michelle, Elizabeth and
Patricia. She did not have their exact ages.

Patricia Sarkisian, who is staying with Gonya, witnessed the slayings
and is "quite fragile," said Gonya.

"They’re all very fragile," she said. "This is very shocking."

REPUBLICAN PARTY OF ARMENIA: ARMENIA WILL SEEK RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE BY TURKEY

ArmInfo
2010-01-12 14:35:00

ArmInfo. Armenia will continue the process of international recognition
of Armenian Genocide and will seek its recognition also by Turkey,
Eduard Sharmazanov, RPA Spokesman and RPA faction Secretary, said in
a briefing at the Constitutional Court on Tuesday.

"I can say as a historian that denial of the fact of Genocide is equal
to its commitment," he said. Sharmazanov believes that closed borders
are inadmissible in the 21st century and the only reasonable decision
is normalization of relations without preconditions. "If Turkey talks
to us with preconditions, it will get an adequate response," he said.

As regards the decision of the Constitutional Court to discuss the
Armenian-Turkish Protocols in the written order, E. Sharmazanov said
the decision meets the Constitution of Armenia. He welcomed the fact
that the Constitutional Court took into consideration the written
statement by the ARFD Party, which will make it possible for the
Court to adopt a holistic decision. The parliamentarian highlighted
the importance of throughout discussion of all the necessary documents
by the Court since the issue is of vital importance for the country.

On January 11 2010 the Constitutional Court of Armenia launched
discussion of the Armenian-Turkish Protocols signed in Zurich on
October 10.

RECOGNITION OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE – IN UNITED STATES’ INTERESTS

PanARMENIAN.Net
11.01.2010 17:53 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ U.S. Administration will be sadly mistaken in case
of deciding to undermine Armenian organizations’ efforts towards
achieving recognition of Armenian Genocide, NAS Oriental Studies
Institute Director Ruben Safrastyan told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter.

In February 2010, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will meet
with representatives of Armenian- American organizations to conduct
consultations over RA-Turkish Protocols. Meeting will bring together
representatives from Armenian Assembly of America (AAA), Armenian
General Benevolent Union (AGBU), Eastern and Western Prelacies
of Armenian Apostolic Church in United States, Knights of Vardan
organization and Armenian National Congress of America (ANCA).

The Armenian Assembly of America (AAA) was founded in 1972. It aims
to strengthen U.S. Armenia and U.S./Nagorno Karabakh relations,
promotes Armenia’s and Karabakh’s democratic development and economic
prosperity and seeks universal affirmation of the Armenian Genocide"
via "research, education and advocacy.

The protocols aimed at normalization of bilateral ties and opening of
the common 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.

The Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Empire (1915-23) was the 21st
century’s first genocide characterised by the use of massacres, and
deportations involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead
to the death of the deportees, with the total number of Armenian deaths
generally held to have been between one and one-and-a-half million.

The date of the onset of the genocide is conventionally held to be
April 24, 1915, the day that Ottoman authorities arrested some 250
Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in Constantinople.

Thereafter, the Ottoman military uprooted Armenians from their homes
and forced them to march for hundreds of miles, depriving them of
food and water, to the desert of what is now Syria. Massacres were
indiscriminate of age or gender, with rape and other sexual abuse
commonplace. The Armenian Genocide is the second most-studied case
of genocide after the Holocaust.

The Republic of Turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire,
denies the word genocide is an accurate description of the events. In
recent years, it has faced repeated calls to accept the events as
genocide.

To date, twenty countries have officially recognized the events of
the period as genocide, and most genocide scholars and historians
accept this view. The Armenian Genocide has been also recognized by
influential authoritative media including The New York Times, BBC,
The Washington Post, The Associated Press.

The majority of Armenian diaspora communities were founded as a result
of Genocide.

ARMENIAN REVOLUTIONARY FEDERATION RALLY AND MARCH TODAY

Tert.am
12:07 ~U 11.01.10

A rally organized by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(Dashnaktsutyun, or ARF-D) against the Armenian-Turkish Protocols
will commence at 4:30 pm today at Stepan Shahumyan Square (near the
French Embassy). The rally will be followed by a march toward the
Constitutional Court in central Yerevan.

Another demonstration, with the participation of ARF-D as well as 14
united political and public bodies who are against the Protocols,
is set to take place in front of the Constitutional Court building
at 11 am on January 12, when the Armenian-Turkish Protocols will be
raised in the court.

Saakashvili has no intention to once again run for Georgian president
10.01.2010 18:19 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Current Georgian leader Mikheil Saakashvili has no
intention to once again run for president, ruling National Movement
party member, parliamentarian Koba Khabazi stated.

Recently, Georgian media circulated local politicians’ statements on
Saakashvili’s intention to introduce changes in Constitution, to
become a presidential candidate for the third time. Some Georgian
politicians believe, upon expiry of his term of office, Saakashvili
will assume Prime Ministerial position, offering presidential post to
one of his henchmen, rusnovosti.ru reported.

news.az, Azerbaijan
Jan 8 2010

Turkey has no levers of pressure on Russia
Fri 08 January 2010 | 11:36 GMT Text size:

Rovshan Ibrahimov The negotiations with Russia mean that Turkey
attempts to influence Russia to change its position, political
scientist.

The Turkish side has already understood Azerbaijan’s position and it
says that unless there is no progress in the Karabakh issue, there
will be no achievements in ratification of protocols, said political
scientist Rovshan Ibrahimov.

According to the political scientist, the Turkish side discussed
Nagorno Karabakh in the United States and Germany.

"The Turkish side discussed return of lands around Nagorno Karabakh.
There are no achievements on this issue so far. On the other hand, the
Turkish government considers that Armenia’s position is now flexible,
therefore, their actions targeting Azerbaijan and Turkey in terms of
recognition of the so-called genocide should get prompt reaction. If
the lands around Karabakh are not returned, the protocols will not be
ratified", the expert said.

He noted that initially Turkey attempted to persuade the United States
to exert pressure on Armenia in the conflict settlement which did not
occur.

"The negotiations with Russia mean that Turkey attempts to influence
Russia to change its position. But Turkey has no additional levers of
pressure. There can be negotiations and discussions and nothing more",
he said.

1 news.az

APA, Azerbaijan
Jan 7 2010

Letter of Armenian-captured Azerbaijani soldier delivered to his
family: Don’t worry about me, everything is all right

[ 07 Jan 2010 14:29 ]
Aghdam. Teymur Zahidoglu ` APA. The letter of the Azerbaijani soldier
captured by Armenians Anar Hajiyev has been delivered to his family
today. The captive’s mother Naila Mammadova told APA’s Karabakh bureau
that the letter was written on December 29.

The letter writes:
`Hello, mother. Don’t worry about me, everything is all right.
Celebrate your New Year. Give my regards to grandma, grandpa, Samir,
uncle Asif, Elshan, aunt Sevinj, aunt Yegana, Elchin, Keyti, uncle
Hajibala, uncle Mehdi, aunt Najiba, Nazkhanim, Guler, Husniyye. Why
has Elchin postponed his wedding for five years? Happy New Year!’

Mammadova said she will write a letter to her son today.

Anar Khanbaba Hajiyev was drafted from Goranboy. He was captured by
Armenian Armed Forces in Fuzuli on May 10, 2009.