Armenian, Chinese Deputy Foreign Ministers Discuss Possibilities Of

[Gavur]

Armenia, EU to start delayed talks on joint action plan

The European Union will open negotiations with Armenia within one month on concrete actions stemming from its inclusion in a program envisaging privileged ties with the bloc, a senior EU envoy said on Thursday. The talks on the “action plan” for Armenia within the framework of the EU’s European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) were scheduled to start earlier this month but were put off indefinitely. Heikki Talvitie, the EU’s special representative to the South Caucasus, revealed that the delay was caused by a dispute between Azerbaijan and “one EU country,” presumably Cyprus. The internationally recognized government of Cyprus is angry at Baku’s recent decision to establish direct contacts with the Turkish-occupied north of the island. Official Nicosia is reportedly blocking the start of talks on a similar action plan for Azerbaijan, which was also included in the ENP along with Georgia last year. Talvitie, in Yerevan on yet another tour of the region, explained that the Azerbaijani-Cypriot dispute has affected Armenia and Georgia because the EU wanted to show a “balanced approach” and start the ENP talks with the three South Caucasus states simultaneously. “We have one month settle the problem and start consultations simultaneously with the three countries,” he said. “If we fail to resolve it, we will start consultations with those countries that are ready [for the process].” “Armenia has really done a good job preparing for this process,” the diplomat added. “We are confident that we can implement a good action plan with Armenia.” The plan is expected to be based on a report which was released by the EU’s executive European Commission in March. The 30-page document calls for democratic elections, the rule of law, respect for human rights, anti-corruption measures as well as further economic reforms in Armenia. The issue featured large during Talvitie’s meetings on Thursday with President Robert Kocharian and Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian. The latter said over the weekend that the ENP “brings Armenia back home.” Speaking at a joint news conference with Oskanian, Talvitie reaffirmed EU support for Kocharian’s package of amendments to the Armenian constitution which is due to be put to a referendum in November. “We do not want to take part in your referendum, but we support these changes and think they would be a very serious tool in the hands of both the government and the opposition,” he said. The unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was also on the agenda of the talks. Talvitie arrived in Yerevan from Baku where he discussed the issue with Azerbaijani leaders. The envoy urged the conflicting parties to build on progress in the peace process made over the past year. “The overall evaluation is that there is a momentum for a settlement of the problem,” Oskanian said for his part. “There are positive changes and today our main task is to be able to use this opportunity and achieve more progress in the process after the [November] parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan.”
© Azg

[Gavur]

Russia Hopeful About Renewed Rail Link With Georgia, Armenia

Russia Hopeful About Renewed Rail Link With Georgia, Armenia

By Nane Atshemian

Russia and Georgia are close to reaching a long-awaited agreement on
restoring their direct railway connection which could significantly
benefit the Armenian economy, Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin
said on Thursday.

But he cautioned that the section of the railway passing through
Abkhazia is in need of serious capital repairs that would take as many
as two years.

The Abkhaz section of the Soviet-built railway was seriously damaged
during the 1992-1993 armed conflict which led to the Black Sea region's
de facto independence from Georgia. Until recently Georgian leaders
opposed its restoration before a settlement of the conflict. But the
administration of President Mikhail Saakashvili appears to have softened
Tbilisi's position on the issue.

Levitin said he will again discuss the issue with Georgian officials
during a visit to Tbilisi next week and is optimistic about a positive
outcome of the talks.

`If the Georgian side is prepared for the restoration and confirms that
to us, Russia, Georgia and Armenia will have to set up a consortium,
determine each country's share of investments in the project and start
restoring the railway,' he told reporters in Yerevan. `According to our
calculations, [the repairs] could last for two years.'

Speaking at a joint news conference with Levitin, Armenian Defense
Minister Serzh Sarkisian said Saakashvili reaffirmed Tbilisi's
commitment to a quick resumption of rail communication between Russia
and Georgia and Armenia during his recent informal talks with President
Robert Kocharian. `Armenia will certainly participate in the project,'
he said.

Sarkisian added that Russia is ready to cover most of the repair costs.
`We are not talking about tens of millions of dollars,' he said.

The lack of rail communication with Russia and other countries makes
export-oriented Armenian companies less competitive and hampers foreign
investment in Armenia's struggling economy. It is also a serious
hindrance to Russian-Armenian economic ties. Hence, Yerevan's strong
interest in restoring the vital transport route.

Sarkisian and Levitin spoke at the end of a two-day session of the
Russian-Armenian intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation,
of which they are the co-chairmen. Officials said the commission
discussed a broad range of economic issues, with the Armenian side again
pressing the Russians to make good on their pledge to revive Armenian
enterprises which were given to them in payment for Yerevan's $100
million debt. All of those enterprises except a big power plant used to
be part of the Soviet military-industrial complex and are now largely
standing idle.

`Russia feels its responsibility for those enterprises. That is one of
the obligations which we have not yet fulfilled,' admitted Levitin.

The Russian official said Moscow needs more time to decide what to do
with those industries. `We can't figure out what type of production they
should have: defense or civilian or both,' he explained.

Russia's strong presence in the Armenian energy sector was also high on
the agenda of the commission's session. The two ministers said they
discussed in particular the recent controversial takeover of the
Armenian power grid by Russia's state-run power monopoly, Unified Energy
Systems, but did not give details.

Levitin was also asked to comment on the Armenian government's decision
not to grant Russia's Gazprom giant a contract for the construction of a
pipeline that will pump natural gas from Iran to Armenia. Work on the
Armenian section of the pipeline will be carried out by an Iranian
company and financed with a $35 million loan provided by the Iranian
government.

`We understand the actions of the Armenian side,' Levitin said. `I
consider them logical.'

https://www.rferl.org

[Gavur]

U.S. energy establishment expresses interest in Iran-Armenia pipeline

YEREVAN, October 12 (RIA Novosti, Gamlet Matevosyan) - U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman said Wednesday that the United States would be interested in contributing to the Iran-Armenia natural gas pipeline project.

Bodman met with his counterpart Armen Movsisyan in Armenia's capital to discuss the pipelnine, as well as to consider the possibility of holding a U.S.-Armenian energy forum for private companies and financial institutions in order to boost Armenia's energy sector, the Armenian Foreign Ministry reported.

Movsisyan said Armenia's only nuclear power plant could be shut down only if there were other energy-generating facilities available to replace it. He said Armenia expected the U.S. to help it in ensuring the plant's safety and developing alternative energy sources.

[Gavur]

Iranian engineers to commission 1st wind power plant in Armenia soon

TEHRAN, Oct. 16 (MNA) -– The final stage of Armenia’s wind power plant will be completed and inaugurated within two weeks. The installation of the equipment will be implemented by Iranian engineers within the next 7 days, managing director of SANIR Company Alireza Kadkhodaii stated on Sunday.
This power plant is comprised of 4 units each offering 660 kW of electricity. It is the first wind-generated electricity plant constructed mainly by Iranian engineers and equipment outside the country.
Furthermore, it is the first one ever built in Armenia and SANIR is expecting to hear the officials’ announcement for inaugurating the project soon, the managing director said.

The agreement on construction of the power plant was signed by Iran’s former energy minister and his Armenian counterpart several months ago.

[Gavur]

President Kocharian Meets Chief Belgium, Eu Officials

Armenpress
Oct 20 2005

BRUSSELS, OCTOBER 20, ARMENPRESS: In the first day of his working
visit to Brussels, Belgium, president Robert Kocharian was received
today by prime minister Guy Verhofstad for a face-to-face talks and
later they were joined by their governments top officials. One of the
issues on the talks agenda was bilateral trade, as Belgium is Armenia's
biggest trade partner in the European Union, Last year it amounted
to $216 million. The main item of their trade is diamond cutting. An
increase was also reported in exports and imports of foodstuff.

Kocharian and Verhofstad discussed ways for boosting bilateral trade
and also prospects for Karabakh conflict settlement, normalization
of Armenian and Turkish relations and Armenia-EU cooperation in the
context of Belgium's next year rotating chairmanship in the OSCE. They
also spoke abut Armenia's participation in NATO's Partnership for
Peace program.

During a short briefing with journalists after meeting with the
President of the European Parliament, Jozep Borell-Fontels, Kocharian
said the EU attaches great attention to the South Caucasian region. The
European Parliament President said EU plans to forge closer political
and economic ties with Armenia and finalize bilateral 'action plan'
under European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) should not be held up by
a diplomatic wrangle involving Azerbaijan and Cyprus caused by Baku
allowing direct flights from Azerbaijan to the self-declared Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus.

The European Parliament President also said that Turkey's recognition
of the Armenian genocide and opening of borders with Armenia should
become a topic of discussions in Turkey's EU accession talks. In a
reference to the Karabakh conflict he said maintaining the status
quo is not a valued option.

Speaking about the upcoming constitutional referendum in Armenia, the
European Parliament President said he was refraining from interfering
with Armenia's domestic affairs, but added that the EU welcomes
passage of the amendments as a democratic proces.

[Gavur]

Hope Rides on Rails

: Movement to open Abkhazia railway sparks optimism for Armenian transport
By Aris Ghazinyan
ArmeniaNow reporter

A vital transport link that once connected Armenia with Russia and Europe may open again in 2007, lifting the burden of Armenia’s current overland communication difficulties.



Sections of the Trans-Caucasian Railroad that run through the disputed territory of Abkhazia (Georgia) have been closed since 1994, when Abkhazia was at war for independence.

The closure severely hindered Armenian import/export, especially since borders are closed with Turkey and Azerbaijan, leaving only Georgia (and its ports of Batumi and Poti) as a rail avenue.

Over the past two years Armenian President Robert Kocharyan has often reminded Georgian leadership that the absence of railroad communication via the Abkhazian sector blocks only Armenia.

“Abkhazia is not an enclave and it is linked to Russia both by land and by sea,” Kocharyan has said. “Armenia is the only country that suffers real losses from this.”

Despite the repeated statements of official Yerevan about the importance of the restoration of cargo and passenger communication in this section, Tbilisi always viewed this issue within the context of the resolution of the whole Abkhazian problem. The Armenian side has not had reasonable grounds for optimism.

But on October 11 Armenia’s Defense Minister Serzh Sargsyan issued a sensational statement: “The Georgian side has given its consent to the operation of the Abkhazian section of the Trans-Caucasian Railroad.” Furthermore, he said that in the near future Armenia, Georgia and Russia will set up a consortium to discuss each countries contributions to repairs, and to consider financial benefits for each country.




Russia’s Transport Minister Igor Levitin who arrived in Yerevan on October 12 also made an optimistic statement: “The inspection of the Abkhazian section of the Trans-Caucasian Railroad will be completed in several days. We know in which parts of the road we must carry out construction, where we will need to make restorations.”

The start of the inspection of the Abkhazian section of the railroad in the beginning of October, including participation of Georgian rail specialists gives reason to assume that Tbilisi at least tolerates the restoration of the railroad.

The restored railway “is capable of changing the geopolitical situation in the region and more actively involve Armenia in the international transport-communication projects, in particular in the North-South project,” says political analyst Raffi Zakharyan. “Besides it can somewhat make the issue of the lifting of the blockades of the Turkish-Armenian border and the construction of the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi road bypassing Armenia less urgent.

“However, there is also another aspect of the matter: the possibility of the opening of the Abkhazian sector may also play the role of a political catalyst in the process of demands set on Turkey regarding the subject of lifting blockades of the Armenian border.”

Official Yerevan has expressed to the European Union its concerns about the proposed Kars-Akhalkalaki railroad (which would further isolate Armenia) and the funding of these works by the EU.

During a meeting with Kocharyan in Brussels on October 20, EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana, said: “If the problem of the opening of the Armenian-Turkish border is solved, the construction of a railroad on the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi route bypassing Armenia will cease to be a topical matter.”

[Gavur]

Haghartsin To Be Reconstructed By Sharzha?

Today the RA Regional Governing Minister Hovik Abrahamyan received the head of the Sharzha Bank Varouzhan Nergizyan.

Hovik Abrahamyan found the development of the relations between Armenia and the United Arabian Emirates very important. The sides discussed the establishment of links between separate towns of the countries, and the realization of several projects in the region of Tavoush, in particular the reconstruction of the Haghartsin church complex, and others.

Hovik Abrahamyan and Varouzhan Nergizyan also found the role of the AUE Armenian community extremely important in the enhancing of cooperation between the two countries.
© "A1Plus". Republication and quoting of content is permitted only with due indication of the source.
Contact us: [email protected]

[Gavur]

Ra President To Visit Greece On November 9, 2005

YEREVAN, November 7. /ARKA/. RA President Robert Kocharyan will visit Greece on November 9, 2005 on the invitation of President of Greece Carlos Papulyas, the RA Presidential Pres-Service reported ARKA News Agency. The delegation headed by Kocharyan will include RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan, RA Minister of Transport and Communications Andranik Manukyan, RA Minister of Agriculture David Lokyan, Head of the RA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Armen Rustamyan, RA Ambassador to Greece and other officials. The main goal of the visit is deepening of relations between both countries, definition of priorities and major directions of Armenian-Greek economic cooperation, as well as exchange of opinions about the issues of mutual interest.
During his three-day visit RA president will meet with President of Greece Carlos Papulyas, Prime Minister of Greece Costas Karamanlis, and Speaker of the Greek Parliament Ann Psaruda-Benaki as well as with leaders of factions.
RA president will also meet with Mayor of Athens Dora Bakoyani and lay wreath Memorial of Unknown Soldier. Kocharyan weill also participate in the opening ceremony of the new Embassy of Armenian in Greece, as well as will meet with the Armenian Diaspora of Greece.
On November 11, 2005 the delegation headed by Kocharyan will return to Yerevan. A.A. -0--

[Gavur]

Greece Says Turkey A 'Difficult Neighbor'

(AFP)--Despite warming relations, Greek President Karolos Papoulias on Wednesday referred to Turkey as a "difficult neighbor" following talks with his Armenian counterpart Robert Kocharian.

Armenia "has, as do we, a difficult neighbor, Turkey," Papoulias said as Kocharian started a three-day visit, and "is probably the country that best understands the problems facing Greek-Turkish relations." Kocharian did not comment.

Divided by territorial disputes in the Aegean Sea, Greece and Turkey have improved relations in recent years, and Athens has backed Ankara in its effort to win European Union membership. But they continue to be divided over a number of issues, including Greece's support for Armenia in getting Turkey to recognize its genocide of Armenians in 1915, which Turkey categorically denies.

The Greek parliament in 1996 named April 24 as an "official commemoration day of the Armenian genocide."

Kocharian is in Athens at the head of a delegation which is also discussing economic, tourism, and regional issues. Greece supports Armenia's aim of closer cooperation with the European Union and is among the country's six top investors, Papoulias said, adding that a large number of Armenian army officers are currently attending Greek military academy courses.

"We are particularly grateful for these programs," Kocharian said.

[Gavur]

Greek President Says Greece To Be By Armenia´s Side On Its Way To Eu

ATHENS, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS: Armenian President Robert Kocharian has arrived today in Athens, the capital of Greece on a three-day state visit. The Armenian delegation consists of Armenian Foreign Affairs Minister Vartan Oskanian, Head of the NA Foreign Relations Permanent Commission Armen Rustamian, Minister of Agriculture David Lokian, Transport and Communication Minister Andranik Manukian, other government officials and journalists.
Armenian president had today a face-to-face meeting with his Greek counterpart Karlos Papoulias which was followed by enlarged negotiations. During the meetings the sides discussed a wide range of issues on bilateral relations, international developments and particularly referred to the situation in the Balkans and the South Caucasus.
During the briefing that followed the discussions the Greek president described the meetings as "very important and successful" expressing assurance that both countries will continue their mutually beneficial partnership. Pointing out that the relations between the two countries are very warm, the Greek president at the same time noted that there are opportunities for developing and expanding them in all the spheres. Greece is among the leading countries which are making investments in Armenia and bilateral economic relations, according to K. Papoulias, have great future.
He underscored bilateral ties in military and education spheres reminding that many Armenian young people and officers have received education in Greek universities and military academies. K. Papoulias said impressive results are registered in the sphere of tourism. He assured that Greece has always supported Armenia and will be by its side on its way to EU.
"Armenia as well as Greece has a complicated neighbor such as Turkey and I think that Armenia is a country which clearly understands the issues existing in Greek-Turkish relations," said Karlos Papoulias. "We consider Greece to be our friend and are trying to build our relations on that basis," said the Armenian President Robert Kocharian. According to him, Armenian-Greek contacts are taking place periodically and their level as well as the results of the meetings are pleasing.
Armenian president expressed assurance that during the visit necessary ties will be established. He also thanked the Greek leadership for the assistant programs implemented in Armenia and directed towards reforms in Armenia.