Author: Zakarian Garnik

RA PARLIAMENT SPEAKER: WAR IS NOT SOMETHING TO SCARE US

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
15.12.2009 20:34 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ RA-NKR inter-parliamentary friendship group
Tuesday convened its 7th session. Discussion focused on Karabakh
peace process. "We seek for peaceful conflict settlement. We don’t
want a war, but that is not something to scare us; I assure you,"
said RA Parliament Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan.

At that, he noted that Karabakh conflict can be resolved exclusively
within OSCE MG format.

Touching upon the law "On the Social Security of Servicemen and their
Families", the Speaker stressed that NA Committee on Social Affairs
kept the issue in the spotlight.

For his part, NKR National Assembly Speaker Ashot Guulyan stressed
the importance of Karabakh’s direct involvement in the talks.

"In that context, we attach special importance to international
organizations’ strict propaganda over the settlement of Karabakh
conflict," Ashot Gulyan said, RA NA press service reports.

AZERBAIJANI DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS POSSIBILITY OF WAR ALWAYS HIGH

news.az
Sat 12 December 2009 | 08:37 GMT

Safar Abiyev Safar Abiyev says possibility of war always high.

Azerbaijan’s Defense Minister Safar Abiyev told reporters that the
"possibility of war is always high" answering their question about
the possibility of resumption of war with Armenia.

He said the defense ministry takes it into account and always keeps
army combat ready.

Meanwhile, he said the exact answer to this question will be known by
results of the current negotiations. The co-chairs are proposing new
initiatives, hold consultations which means the negotiation process
continues", the minister said.

Clinton calls Sarksyan over his warning to Turkey

14 December 2009, Monday
TODAY’S ZAMAN ANKARA

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

It has emerged that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton telephoned
Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan last Thursday only hours after the
Armenian leader threatened to annul the protocols signed by Ankara and
Yerevan in October for the normalization of relations if Ankara fails
to unconditionally implement them.

Following a White House meeting with US President Barack Obama last
Monday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an said progress in
ongoing efforts at normalization between Armenia and Turkey was
related to progress concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute between
Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In Yerevan on Thursday, in an apparent response to ErdoÄ?an’s remarks,
Sarksyan explicitly threatened to walk away from its landmark
agreements with Turkey if Ankara continues to make their
implementation conditional on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.

Armenian media, citing Sarksyan’s press office as a source, reported
that Clinton initiated a telephone conversation late on Thursday to
brief the Armenian leader on Obama’s talks with ErdoÄ?an last Monday.

`During the phone conversation, Secretary of State Clinton once again
emphasized that the United States will continue with its consistent
support for a speedy normalization of relations between Armenia and
Turkey without preconditions,’ the presidential office said in a
statement. It also cited Sarksyan as reaffirming Yerevan’s readiness
to press ahead with the normalization process and expressing hope that
`the Turkish side will display similar readiness and responsibility,’
Armenian media reported, noting that there was no word on whether the
two touched upon the Armenian threats to walk away from the deal.

Grikor-Sevak Mekhitarian awarded grandmaster status
12.12.2009 15:11 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Brazilian chess player of Armenian descent
Grikor-Sevak Mekhitarian gained 7.5 points at the Brazilian
championship and shared the 3-4th positions with Rafael Leitao. Thanks
to this result, Mekhitarian was awarded grandmaster status.

ARMENIA’S PRESENT LEADERSHIP LACKS POLITICAL WILL: ANALYST

Today.Az
10 December 2009

"It is obvious that the Amenian leadership has no unity of command,"
expert at Azerbaijan’s Lider TV channel Tofiq Abbasov said.

"The position on key issues and approaches put forward by the
president, foreign minister and speaker of Armenian parliament have
differed on many occasions. This suggests that the Armenian political
elite today is experiencing a crisis, if not a critical stage, and
shows debility to the community of those countries that are closely
engaged in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, not to mention
Azerbaijan," he said.

"Armenia’s present leadership lacks political will to express
unequivocal position. On one hand, they want rapprochement with
Turkey, to make compromise on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and on the
other hand they are afraid that this could have a tragic impact on
their political destiny," Abbasov said.

"Armenia has delayed the negotiations under various pretexts so far.

It turns out that in Armenia no one wants to undertake initiative
at a time when turning point is nearing and finally it is high to
develop a plan to resolve the crisis with Azerbaijan. It is known
that the situation is compounded by acute clan struggle within the
" long-suffering " republic. Karabakh Armenians have failed to find
common ground with the brothers in Yerevan."

"This is beneficial for the diaspora not to lose its influence in
the light of emerging new trends in the region," the expert said.

"So, it is possible that there will be even no one to talk to in the
final stage of peaceful resolution of the Karabakh problem. Who is
chief of the Armenian team? Who makes decisions and who fully controls
the situation? I believe even people fully knowledgeable of internal
intrigues in Armenia can provide no clear answer to these questions,"
he said.

"The current situation in Armenia is that there is conflict between
the president and the speaker of the parliament. In the meanwhile,
foreign minister demonstrates loose position, voicing conflicting
assessments on the Armenian-Turkish protocols," the expert added.

"All this suggests that the most unexpected scenarios can be realized
in Yerevan. There are little hopes that these scenarios will bring
something positive for the regional scenario," Abbasov added.

TURKISH ENVOY RESIGNS AFTER WASHINGTON SUMMIT

AZG DAILY
11-12-2009

International

Turkey was shocked by the surprise resignation of Turkish Ambassador
to Washington Nabi Å~^ensoy in the aftermath of Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan’s critical meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama
early this week, Turkish Hurriyet Daily reported.

"Our Ambassador to Washington, Mr. Nabi Å~^ensoy, requested to return
to his post in the Foreign Ministry. The request of the ambassador
was accepted by [Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu]," said a written
statement released by the ministry late Wednesday.

Behind the scenes, Å~^ensoy’s resignation reportedly came after an
argument with Davutoglu, who was offended because he was excluded from
the Erdogan-Obama meeting in the White House and accused Å~^ensoy
of not fulfilling the request from Ankara that Davutoglu be part of
the meeting.

"I don’t want to make a comment," Å~^ensoy said when asked by the
Dogan news agency why he had resigned.

Well-placed sources said Davutoglu had requested that the White
House meeting be in a four-way format known in diplomatic jargon as
"one plus one," which includes two countries’ leaders and foreign
ministers, and told the ambassador to convey that request to the U.S.

administration.

The meeting in Washington, however, did not take place in the
expected format. When the foreign ministers were excluded from the
tête-a-tête meeting between Obama and Erdogan, a battle of words
took place between Davutoglu and the ambassador. Davutoglu asked
Å~^ensoy why the meeting was not held in the four-way format,
noting that the meeting in Ankara during Obama’s first overseas
trip in April included the foreign ministers. Sources said Å~^ensoy
told the minister that the request could not be conveyed and said,
"You can dismiss me if you like," the Daily News has learned.

In the back corridors, there has been speculation that Å~^ensoy was
reluctant to stay on as ambassador in the one of the world’s leading
capitals after the tense dialogue with his minister and asked if he
could return to the Foreign Ministry.

Å~^ensoy had been serving in the United States since January 2006, and
his tenure as ambassador was set to expire in the first half of 2010.

The Foreign Ministry said a new ambassador would be appointed to the
Turkish Embassy in Washington in the coming days.

When asked about the resignation while in Mexico, Erdogan said only:
"Let’s hope for the best."

CONGRATULATORY ADDRESS OF NKR PRESIDENT

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
2009-12-11 14:07

Congratulatory Address of NKR President Bako Sahakyan in Connection
with the Day of NKR State Independence Referendum and Constitution

Dear compatriots,

In the modern history of Artsakh December 10 twice proved to be
pivotal. In 1991 on this day the Artsakh Armenians expressed their
unified will and confirmed the dedication of creating an independent
statehood. On the same day of 2006 again through the nation-wide
referendum the basic law of our state, the Constitution, was adopted
registering another great victory of our state, which succeeded in
defending its independence and freedom and was firmly staying on the
path of democracy.

December 10 is also celebrated as International Human Rights Day. This
fact is symbolic for itself as the Artsakh movement, the birth and
the very existence of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic are the integral
parts of human rights, the reflection of the basic universal rights
of equality and self-determination of nations.

The people and authorities of Artsakh are adherent to the principles
that the December 10 twin holiday has entrusted with us. For us the
powerful, independent, sovereign, democratic and legal state is an
exclusive value that has no alternative.

I congratulate our entire people on this crucial holiday and wish
peace, robust health and all the best.

Stepanakert,

December 10, 2009.

Armenia’s present leadership lacks political will: analyst

10 December 2009 [17:33] – Today.Az

`It is obvious that the Amenian leadership has no unity of command,’
expert at Azerbaijan’s Lider TV channel Tofiq Abbasov said.

`The position on key issues and approaches put forward by the
president, foreign minister and speaker of Armenian parliament have
differed on many occasions. This suggests that the Armenian political
elite today is experiencing a crisis, if not a critical stage, and
shows debility to the community of those countries that are closely
engaged in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, not to mention
Azerbaijan,’ he said.

`Armenia’s present leadership lacks political will to express
unequivocal position. On one hand, they want rapprochement with
Turkey, to make compromise on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and on the
other hand they are afraid that this could have a tragic impact on
their political destiny,’ Abbasov said.

`Armenia has delayed the negotiations under various pretexts so far.
It turns out that in Armenia no one wants to undertake initiative at a
time when turning point is nearing and finally it is high to develop
a plan to resolve the crisis with Azerbaijan. It is known that the
situation is compounded by acute clan struggle within the "
long-suffering " republic. Karabakh Armenians have failed to find
common ground with the brothers in Yerevan.’

`This is beneficial for the diaspora not to lose its influence in the
light of emerging new trends in the region,’ the expert said.

"So, it is possible that there will be even no one to talk to in the
final stage of peaceful resolution of the Karabakh problem. Who is
chief of the Armenian team? Who makes decisions and who fully
controls the situation? I believe even people fully knowledgeable of
internal intrigues in Armenia can provide no clear answer to these
questions,’ he said.

`The current situation in Armenia is that there is conflict between
the president and the speaker of the parliament. In the meanwhile,
foreign minister demonstrates loose position, voicing conflicting
assessments on the Armenian-Turkish protocols,’ the expert added.

"All this suggests that the most unexpected scenarios can be realized
in Yerevan. There are little hopes that these scenarios will bring
something positive for the regional scenario,’ Abbasov added.

N. Abdullayeva
Day.Az

CEC REGISTERS KORYUN NAHAPETIAN AND MKHITAR HAROUTIUNIAN NA DEPUTIES

Noyan Tapan
Dec 8, 2009

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 8, NOYAN TAPAN. The RA Central Electoral Commission
at a December 8 meeting registered National Assembly deputies
non-partisan Koryun Nahapetian elected by the majority system from
Yerevan electoral district N 8 and Bargavach Hayastan (Prosperous
Armenia) party member Mkhitar Haroutiunian elected by the majority
system from Kotayk region electoral district N 25.

REASONS OF CORRUPTION

Lragir.am
09/12/09

Transparency International anti-corruption centre issued a statement
in connection with UN International Day for the fight against
corruption. The statement in particular runs that Armenia remains
within the 180 most corrupt countries of the world. Since 2003,
entrepreneurs and experts assess Armenia as a country which does not
record progress in combating corruption. Transparency international
issued other indexes in June, in accordance with which the 43 percent
of the Armenian citizens, participated in the survey, gave bribes and
the 48 percent assessed as ineffective the governmental initiatives
to struggle against corruption although some measure taken.

In particular, the RA authorities adopted a series of legislative
and statutory amendments against corruption, the Control Chamber
disclosed financial abuse in state bodies, officials are called to
responsibility for acts of corruption, the public is informed about
the negative impact and so on.

So why is however Armenia among the countries with high corruption
risks?

The reasons are clear. Total corruption cannot be overcome without
recourse to justice those who stand at the head of the pyramid, without
disclosure of the actual state of high officials and their families,
without struggle with the fusion of public and economic interests,
without the involvement of the oligarchs in the tax field, the fight
against the artificial monopolies, without justice and universal
equality before the law, without promotion of fair elections and
healthy political competition, without guarantees of freedom of speech
and press, fundamental rights and freedoms.

And yet in our country the main problems are ignored by both the
government and their sponsors, and our society tolerates injustice,
lawlessness and immorality, corruption in Armenia will continue its
destructive invasion, exacerbated by economic and social crisis,
the statement says.