The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

I wish Russia would say the same about Artsakh as it does here.

RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY ACCUSES HILLARY CLINTON OF BIAS

PanARMENIAN.Net
July 7, 2010 - 20:22 AMT 15:22 GMT

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has noted the statements by
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her visit to Tbilisi on
July 5 that the United States will not accept the "Russian occupation
of Georgia's territories" and will seek "de-occupation of Georgia."

"Under international law, occupation is a temporary stationing of
the troops of one state on the territory of another in conditions
of a state of war between them. Moreover, authority in the occupied
territory is exercised by the military command of the occupying state.

Thus, the use by Secretary of State Clinton of the term "occupation"
has no foundation beneath it. There is not a single Russian service
member in the territory of Georgia. In the region there are Russian
military contingents, but they are stationed in the territories of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which have seceded from Georgia as a result
of the aggression unleashed by the Saakashvili regime. At the same
time Abkhazia and South Ossetia have their own democratically formed
legislative, executive and judicial authorities fully operational;
political parties are actively working there.

Russian troops and bases in the two republics are stationed on the
basis of bilateral interstate agreements in full accordance with the
norms of international law.

We expect that our partners will take account of this objective reality
in their public and practical activities," reads the statement of
the Russian Foreign Ministry.

[Eddo211]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

However she didn't refer to Artsakh as occupied territory and she did not refer to Azerbaijan as a sovereign state like she did to Georgia. She also visited the AG memorial.....not that I would defend her or anything, far from it. The West wants both borders opened but they have no real control in the region.

I know that a lot of Azeris and Turks are very upset about this to say the least....hahaha

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

ARMENIAN POLITICIAN: RUSSIAN AND THE UNITED STATES HAVE FOUND A COMMON LANGUAGE IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS

ArmInfo
2010-07-09 16:43:00

ArmInfo. As a result of "restart" of relations between Russia and
the United States, these powers have agreed their positions in the
South Caucasus, Chairman of the Constitutional Law Union Party Hayk
Babukhanyan said at today's press conference.

According to him, the core of the agreement reached is that the
specified region is the "zone of influence" of Russia; on the other
hand, Moscow reckons with Washington's interests connected with the
transit of energy resources. Babukhanyan also thinks that the period
of "color revolutions" in the post-Soviet area and the NATO expansion
to the East have completed, and at the moment the process of the CIS
countries' consolidation is going on according to Europe's example.

Moreover, he said that Washington will not hinder the consolidation of
the CIS countries, which is going on under Moscow's "patronage". "It
is much better for the USA to see Russians in Middle Asia than
various Islamic movements which threaten both the USA and Russia",-
he stressed.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

THE END OF THE BATTLE FOR KOSOVO

U.TV

http://www.u.tv/News/The-end-of-the-battle-for-Kosovo/477010d0-a146-42ba-bdec-92365c996428

July 22 2010

Simon Tisdall: When the dust settles, common sense and self-interest
may dictate Serbia's acceptance of Kosovo's independence

Separatists, secessionists and splittists from Taiwan, Xinjiang and
Somaliland to Sri Lanka, Georgia and the West Country will welcome
today's precedent-setting legal opinion from the UN's international
court of justice effectively upholding Kosovo's unilateral declaration
of independence from Serbia.

With hindsight it seems clear the 1990 reunification of Germany ran
contrary to modern history's tide, marking a sort of last stand for
the old 19th-century model of the unitary nation state. Since the
Berlin wall came down and the Soviet Union disintegrated two years
later, things everywhere have been falling apart.

Fractious minority movements seeking recognition, autonomous rights,
or outright independence since the cold war's end loosened the global
geostrategic straitjacket have become commonplace across Europe. Spain
frets about its Basques and Catalans, the unifying impact of its
World Cup success notwithstanding. Italy's Germans often give cause
for concern.

The United Kingdom may prospectively be obliged to change its name,
should breakaway Scottish and Welsh nationalist parties have their
way. Some speak passionately of independence for the ancient kingdom
of Kernow, otherwise known as Cornwall. And if it's Kernow redux,
then why not Northumbria, Mercia, and Wessex, too? In Wiltshire they
await a new Arthur.

The accelerating trend towards the assertion of minority national,
basically tribal rights, usually defined in terms of sovereign
territory, delineated borders, ethnicity, language and history,
appears global in nature. Vuk Jeremic, Serbia's foreign minister,
who led opposition to Kosovo's UDI, suggested the fracturing of the
nation state paradigm, like cracks in glass plate, could spread widely
and do great damage.

Speaking before Kosovo's formal 2008 break with Serbia, Jeremic looked
beyond the Balkans to countries such as Sudan, a country that is likely
to break in half this winter. In Africa, he said, "there are about
50 Kosovos waiting to happen". International acceptance of Kosovo's
unilateral act "would be a very dangerous signal, a signal that
there are no rules. Serbia wants to play by the rules. You just can't
come along and say they don't matter any more." Boris Tadic, Serbia's
president, revisited this argument this week. A ruling favouring Kosovo
"would destabilise many regions of the world", he said.

Now that Serbia's worst fears have been realised, it remains to be
seen whether such dire predictions prove accurate. More prosaically,
the world court's delayed advisory opinion hardly came as a surprise
and must now be managed politically if new strife, most possibly in
ethnically mixed northern Kosovo, is to be avoided. In the end the
ruling was more a matter of hard-headed realpolitik than carefully
appraised international law.

The US, Kosovo's principal sponsor, was adamant all along the court's
opinion would have little practical impact, a view echoed by Tony
Blair, Kosovo's self-styled liberator, during a visit this week. Joe
Biden, the US vice-president, also emphasised that independence was
a done deal while affording Kosovan prime minister Hashim Thaci the
Washington red carpet treatment on Wednesday.

Independence was not primarily a matter of law, a White House spokesman
said. "We do not believe that declarations of independence are legal
acts whose legality is affirmed or denied by this international
court. They are political facts that have to be established
through political realities." The US has its own experience in this
department. In 1776, American independence came at the muzzle of a
musket, not in the form of a lawsuit against George III.

Despite their protestations, and they will be long and angry, Serbia
and its main backer, Russia, half expected this outcome. Their best
course now may be to turn it to their maximum advantage rather than
play a spoiler's game at the UN general assembly (which must endorse
the ruling). One obvious approach is to accept the EU's proposed
technical talks on creating a pragmatic modus vivendi between Belgrade
and Pristina while seeking support, as a tacit quid pro quo, for a
renewed effort to advance Serbia's EU membership bid.

The US may think it's got ahead. But Russia could win both ways, not
least in terms of its Georgia intervention. The court's failure to
oppose Kosovo's secession "would automatically weaken the west's case
against the recognition of [the independence of] Abkhazia and South
Ossetia by Russia," said Petr Iskenderov of the Russian Academy of
Science in International Affairs magazine. Moscow could also use the
decision to push for an "overhaul" of the international community's
approach to frozen disputes in the Balkan and Caspian regions that
affect its interests, such as that between Armenia and Azerbaijan
over the breakaway enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, he said.

Serbia now faces the prospect of increased international recognition
of Kosovo, the country's prospective membership of the UN, and the
permanent loss of a territory its regards as a defining part of its
sovereignty and history. At the same time, the gates to Europe swing
open. It is a bitter pill to swallow. It could trigger domestic
political upheavals. But when the dust settles, common sense and
self-interest may dictate acceptance of the outcome. Like the Battle
of Kosovo Field in 1389 that was so critical to Serbia's identity,
the modern day battle for Kosovo is lost.

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

RUSSIAN EXPERT: "MOSCOW UNDERSTANDS THERE'S NO ALLY EXCEPT YEREVAN"

Panorama
July 22 2010
Armenia

"I don't think OSCE MG activities should be optimistically or
pessimistically expressed. We should acknowledge that the conflict
should be settled by the conflict sides," Russian political expert
Albert Zulkharneev referred to NK conflict resolution in a talk with
"Day.az He said neither Moscow, nor Washington or Paris could do
anything if their recommendations are disliked by the conflict
sides. The expert said the conflict can be settled only by the
conflict sides.

"I've been Baku recently, then I met with Armenian representatives
in Moscow, and, I should point, regretfully, that the dispositions
of the sides are far from being close," Russian expert said.

To the question how Russia would act if a war starts, he said:
"Everything depends on the situation. Moscow understands they have
no other ally except Yerevan, and if they don't support Armenia,
they would have tough disposition beyond the CSTO states."

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

PRESIDENT SERZH SARGSYAN HAD A TELEPHONE CONVERSATION WITH THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION DMITRY MEDVEDEV

president.am
Aug 9 2010
Armenia

Today, President Serzh Sargsyan had a telephone conversation with
the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev.

The President of Armenia once again expressed condolences and sympathy
for the victims and losses caused by the wildfires ravaging in Russia.

President Sargsyan noted that the Armenian people know too well how
important the support of friendly states is in emergency situations and
offered the assistance of the Armenian firefighters and rescue teams in
extinguishing fires and eliminating the consequences of the disaster.

The Presidents of Armenia and Russia agreed to engage Armenian
firefighters and rescue operation team in fighting this natural
disaster.

[Federate]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

Closer Military Ties With Armenia To Boost Russia's Regional Clout

August 12, 2010

Russia looks set to strengthen its foothold in the South Caucasus by means of a new defense agreement with Armenia that will formally make it a guarantor of the country's security and pave the way for more Russian arms supplies to Yerevan.

The deal, which may well be sealed during Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to Armenia next week, will have important repercussions for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the No. 1 threat to peace and stability in the entire region.

In what could be an effort to placate, and gain more leverage against Azerbaijan, Moscow is at the same time reportedly planning to sell sophisticated air-defense missiles to Armenia's arch-foe. The Azerbaijani government has so far been silent over this new twist in Russian-Armenian military cooperation that could further limit its ability to win back Karabakh and the Armenian-controlled territories surrounding it by force.

The deepening of Russian-Armenian military ties will take the form of amendments to a 1995 treaty regulating the presence of a Russian military base in Armenia. Armenian officials have essentially confirmed Russian media reports that Moscow will have its basing rights extended by at least 24 years, to 2044, and that the mission of some 4,000 Russian troops headquartered in the northern Armenian city of Gyumri will be upgraded.

The Interfax news agency reported on July 30 that a relevant "protocol" submitted to Medvedev by the Russian government makes clear that the troops will have not only "functions stemming from the interests of the Russian Federation," but also "protect Armenia's security together with Armenian Army units." It also commits Russia to supplying its regional ally with "modern and compatible weaponry and special military hardware."

Russia Offers Arms

Less than two weeks later, an Armenian government commission on defense approved plans to modernize the country's armed forces and expand the domestic defense industry. Speaking to journalists after the commission meeting on August 10, Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian said Armenia would specifically seek to acquire and even manufacture long-range precision-guided weapons that would "allow us to thwart free enemy movements deep inside the entire theater of hostilities."

Although Ohanian gave no further details, it is obvious that Russia is the only plausible source of such weapons (presumably surface-to-surface missiles), as well as technology for their production. Their acquisition by the Armenian military could be facilitated by separate plans to forge close cooperation between the Armenian and Russian defense industries. Senior security officials from both countries announced unpublicized agreements to that effect after two-day talks in Yerevan in late July. According to Armenian National Security Council Secretary Artur Baghdasarian, those agreements include the establishment of joint defense ventures.

The military alliance with Russia has always been a crucial element of Armenia's national security strategy, allowing the landlocked country to receive Russian weaponry at knockdown prices or free of charge and precluding Turkey's direct military intervention in the Karabakh conflict. It is taking on greater significance now that oil-rich Azerbaijan is increasingly threatening the Armenians with another war. Fresh (and more sophisticated) arms supplies from Russia would put Armenia and its ethnic kin in Karabakh in a better position to offset Azerbaijan's ongoing military build-up fuelled by massive oil revenues. Some observers speculate that Moscow would use the new mandate of the Gyumri base to intervene militarily on the Armenian side in the event of a resumption of hostilities.

Nonetheless, not all politicians and pundits in Yerevan are happy with the planned changes in the 1995 treaty. Some of them say that the Kremlin could exploit its security guarantees to exert undue influence on Armenian government decisions and even limit Armenia's sovereignty. Baghdasarian on August 11 dismissed such claims as "absurd."

...But Also To Azerbaijan

Moscow is facing a stronger Armenian uproar over the possible sale of S-300 antiaircraft systems to Azerbaijan. The Russian daily "Vedomosti" reported on July 30 that the Azerbaijani military signed a deal in 2009 with the Rosoboroneksport state arms exporter to purchase two batteries of the surface-to-air missiles worth $300 million. Although the report was denied by Rosoboroneksport and not confirmed by the Russian Defense Ministry, it is considered credible by many in Armenia.

Opposition leaders and independent analysts there warn that the deal would change the balance of forces in the Karabakh conflict in Azerbaijan's favor. Some have accused the Russians of betrayal.

The S-300 systems may be purely defensive weapons, but the danger for the Armenian side is that they would enable Baku to secure its vital oil and gas infrastructure in the event of renewed war. Those facilities, which form the backbone of the Azerbaijani economy, are widely seen as a likely target of Armenian missile strikes. Ohanian may well have had them in mind when he noted Armenia's desire to obtain "super-modern weapons" that would enhance "our long-range strike capacity."

The reported sale of S-300s to Azerbaijan seems at odds with Russia's stated readiness to boost military support for Armenia, and is raising questions about its true intentions. Ashot Manucharian, a veteran politician who held security posts in the Armenian government in the early 1990s and has long been known for his pro-Russian political orientation, believes that all this is part of a cynical plan to keep Armenia anchored to Russia and discourage it from forging closer security links with the West. By strengthening Azerbaijan militarily, Moscow leaves Yerevan even more dependent on Russian military aid, Manucharian claimed in an August 4 interview with the daily "Hraparak."

Whatever the truth, Russia is clearly consolidating its presence in the South Caucasus, two years after effectively thwarting Georgia's accession to NATO with the 2008 wars in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. It is now digging in for the long haul in Armenia and should continue to have more influence on the Karabakh conflict than any other foreign power.

-- Emil Danielyan

http://www.rferl.org/content/Closer_Military_Ties_With_Armenia_To_Boost_Russias_Regional_Clout/2126126.html?page=1&x=1#relatedInfoContainer

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

President Of Russia To Arrive In Armenia On State Visit On August 19

ARKA
August 17, 2010
YEREVAN

At the invitation of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan Russian
President Dmitry Medvedev and his wife, Svetlana Medvedev will arrive
in Yerevan on August 19 for a state visit, the press office of the
Armenian state reported.

President of Russia will visit the Yerevan memorial complex of the
Armenian Genocide.

"Then, on behalf of the President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan a state
dinner will be given in the honour of President Dmitry Medvedev at
the residence of the Armenian State", the press service stated.

On August 20, the presidents of Armenia and Russia will meet
face-to-face, followed by talks in expanded format with participation
of delegations of the two states.

To be signed is a number of treaties and agreements aimed at developing
and strengthening the Armenian-Russian strategic cooperation.

Then, at the residence of the President of Armenia a joint press
conference between Serzh Sargsyan and Dmitry Medvedev will be held.

As part of the visit of the presidents of Armenia and the Russian
Federation will visit the city of Gyumri to attend the opening ceremony
of the memorial complex called, "Kholm Chesti".

Upon completion of his state visit, the president of Russia will also
take part in the informal summit of heads of states of the Collective
Security Treaty, which will be held in Armenia, August 20-22.

[IvanLuna497]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

как вы думаете, эти стеллажи в казани достаточно качесвенные?

[Haykakan]

Re: The Rise of the Russian Empire: Russo-Armenian Relations

President of Armenia: Dwell on the past and you may lose an eye,
forget the past and you may lose both eyes

2010-08-20 17:42:00


ArmInfo. The renovation of the Hill of Honor military cemetery cast
adrift in Soviet years for ideological reasons ha become a matter of
honor at the level of Armenian-Russian relations, Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan said at today's ceremonial opening of the Hill of Honor
Memorial Complex. To recall, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was
also present at the ceremony.

The Armenian president welcomed his Russian counterpart at the
Memorial dedicated to the Russian soldiers killed during the
Russian-Turkish wars. It was here that the most furious fighting took
place in the Caucasus front, and 155 years ago the Hill of Honor
military cemetery was created, where hundreds of soldiers and
officers, who gave their lives for the feat of arms, were buried.

The president recalled that the peoples who lived under the yoke of
Ottoman Empire expected to be liberated and saved with Russia's
support. The Russian army's deployment on their lands meant freedom,
possible self-determination and independence. " And it was not
accidental that Armenian people, whose historic motherland was divided
by the borders of Ottoman and Russian Empires expected the Russian
army's support in liberation from sultans' tyranny. It was in those
times that one of the most complicated problems in the history of
diplomacy - the Eastern Cause arose, the echoes of which are still
obvious on the Balkans and in the Caucasus",- said Sargsyan.

"Armenian people were dreaming of liberation of their historic
motherland, while the Ottoman government was waiting for the right
moment to solve the Armenian Cause finally. During World War I this
government unleashed terror against its Armenian strategic stockpiles
not only in the regions where military actions were launched. The
civil Armenian population, women, children and elders were cruelly
expelled from all the towns and populated areas of the Ottoman Empire
and were exterminated. A Russian proverb says: "Dwell on the past and
you may lose an eye". In the introduction to "The Gulag Archipelago"
the prominent Russian writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn continues the
proverb: "And forget the past and you may lose both eyes!",- he said.

"Today I want to express my gratitude to you, Dmitry Anatolyevich, for
your participation in the opening of this memorial. Especially I want
to thank Russian Ambassador to Armenia Vyacheslav Kovalenko, who
initiated this project and has made the implementation of this project
his everyday task; as well as the administration of Shirak region of
Armenia and Ulyanovsk region of Russia, as the agreement on renovation
of this memorial was signed within the frames of their inter-regional
cooperation. I want to thank the Matter of Honor benevolent fund, the
architects, sculptors, builders, and everybody who participated in
implementation of this noble work. Indeed, those forgetting the past
have no future. The memorial dedicated to the officers, which was
exploded in 1919 in Kars, the town that has found itself across the
border due to the deplorable historic developments, has been restored
here, on the Hill of Honor. We honor our history, we honor the memory
of the soldiers buried in the Armenian land",- stressed Sargsyan.

According to him, the history of Armenian-Russian friendship that can
be characterized as permanent rapprochement of the two peoples is rich
in examples of heroism and self-sacrifice for the sake of the common
goal and common victory. "We remember and honor the feat of Generals
Nikolay Muravyov and Mikhail Loris-Melikov, Arshak Ter-Gukasov and
Mikhail Skobelev, Yakov Alkhazov and Konstantin Komarov. These pages
of our history have created a special spirit of confidence and mutual
support, which is still determining the relations of Armenia and
Russia",- he said.

The president said that it is this spirit and the friendship relations
were the basis of the unexhausted strength, courage and heroism
displayed by our fathers and grandfathers when defending the Kursk
Bulge, running the blockade of Leningrad, liberating countries and
peoples of Europe. "We are proud of the fact that the freedom loving
sons of Armenia and Artsakh were among these soldiers and displayed
their valor in the battlefield. I am proud of the fact that during the
two world wars Armenian people were fighting on the right side of the
history",- he said and added that today's event is the sight of
sincere gratitude to all the soldiers who shoulder to shoulder fought
for the freedom and triumph of justice.