22 YEARS The Noah’s Ark #32 (1072) 8 September 2015 Published Since 1993 Weekly Newspaper HIGHLIGHTS ÜáÛÛ³Ý î³å³Ý ß³μ³Ã³Ã»ñà (³Ý·É. / ýñ³Ýë.) Putin concerned about Russia's falling trade with Armenia Yerevan - (RFL) Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed concern at a sharp fall in Russia's trade with Armenia registered this year as he met with his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sargsyan near Moscow late on Monday. Putin singled out the current state of Russian-Armenian economic ties in his opening remarks at the talks held in his Novo-Ogaryovo residence. Sargsyan's office said that the two men also discussed the Nagorno-Karabakh con- flict but gave no details. The Armenian leader blamed Azerbaijan for recent weeks' upsurge in truce violations in the conflict at the start of the meeting held a week after publicized by the Kremlin, he spoke with you." Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's instead of the economic component of According to official Armenian statis- unexpected visit to Baku. Russia's "special" relationship with tics, Russian-Armenian trade plummeted The visit and Serzh Sargsyan's subse- Armenia. by almost 22 percent to $491 million in the quent departure to Moscow fueled specula- "It's nice that Russia remains first half of 2015. Particularly drastic was a tion in the Armenian press that the Kremlin Armenia's leading trading partner," Putin drop in Armenian exports to Russia, could force Yerevan to make more conces- said. "Last year, our commercial exchange reflecting a sharp depreciation of the sions to Baku as part of its putative efforts rose significantly compared with 2013, but Russian ruble which began in June 2014. to anchor Azerbaijan more closely to unfortunately the first half of this year saw The ruble has lost almost half of its Russia. Russian officials have given no a downward trend." value against the U.S. dollar since then due such indications in their public statements. "We will probably also talk about that to collapsing oil prices and Western eco- Putin did not mention the Karabakh today," he went on. "There are certain nomic sanctions imposed on Moscow. This dispute when he welcomed Sargsyan at nuances there to which I have no answers has slashed the dollar-denominated value Novo-Ogaryovo. In his opening remarks yet. I would like to discuss these issues continued on page 5 In This Issue Artsakh celebrates Noyan Tapan Video Studio 24 years of independence p.2 is offering professional video and photography for indoor Armenia starts and outdoor events such as weddings, birthday parties, 'strategic' war games p.3 official events, seminars and conferences. Tel: 060 27 64 62 Address: Isahakyan 28, 3rd floor, Yerevan 0009 Recent News from the Armenia's Leading Telecom Operator p.p.10-11 A Week with a World Famous Opera Noyan Tapan Printing House Primadonna: Lyubov Kazarnovskaya & is offering coloured and black and white offset and digital Friends in Armenia and NKR p.p.12-13 printing of books, brochures, booklets, journals, etc with high quality and low prices Tel: 060 27 64 62 Minister of Health Prof. Armen Mouradyan Address: Isahakyan 28, 3rd floor, Yerevan 0009 Hosted in the AUA p.14 8 September #32 (1072) 2015 2 www.nt.am The Noyan Tapan Highlights POLITICS Artsakh celebrates President Sargsyan meets 24 years of French lawmakers independence President Serzh Sargsyan received on September 3 the delegation of the French Congratulatory address of President National Assembly headed by President of Bako Sahakyan in connection with the the Socialist faction Bruno Le Roux. Day of the Artsakh Republic The parties attached importance to the frequent reciprocal visits and contacts, Dear compatriots, which further reinforce the Armenian- French friendship and provide an opportu- On behalf of the authorities and per- nity to discuss issues of mutual interest. sonally myself I cordially congratulate The interlocutors agreed that inter-par- you on the Day of the Artsakh Republic, liamentary cooperation comprises a signif- a holiday of special significance in the icant part of inter-state relations, and They assured that France is interested in life of our nation. emphasized the role of Armenian-French the continuation of dialogue towards a With the birth of the Artsakh Friendship Groups established in the peaceful settlement of the conflict. Republic on September 2, 1991 the Parliaments of the two countries in their President Sargsyan briefed the guests Armenian people had two free and inde- development. on the process and goals of constitutional pendent states, the cherished for cen- Bruno Le Roux conveyed the warm reforms. Bruno Le Roux underlined that turies vision, which had faced numerous greetings of French President Francois any constructive change targeted at estab- challenges before reaching the current Hollande. lishing the best government system is wel- time, became reality. The lawmakers also attached impor- come and added that "it's a sign of political It was a common human aspiration to tance to their visit to Nagorno Karabakh. maturity of a state." live on the own land with the right of mastering our own destiny that is intrin- Armenian, Azerbaijani FMs to meet sic to every nation. Consolidating and joining our efforts in September: Warlick we defended our national dignity and future in the battlefield, and have been OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will hold a meeting building a democratic with unshakable of Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers in eagerness to become a full member of the September to discuss organizing a presidential meet- international community. ing this year. "The co-chairs will bring the foreign It is a challenging and honorable path ministers together on the margins of the UN General which we pass hand in hand with our sis- Assembly in September. We will discuss with the min- ters and brothers from Armenia and the isters the possibility of holding the next presidential Diaspora. Together we will implement summit later this year," James Warlick, the U.S. repre- numerous projects and definitely attain sentative to the OSCE Minsk Group, told AzerNews. Commenting on the recent escala- the realization of national goals. tion of tension along the contact line of Armenian and Azerbaijani troops, Warlick said Dear compatriots, the co-chairs continue to propose confidence-building measures for ensuring the cease- I congratulate you once again on this fire regime. "For most of the year, the situation along the Line of Contact and Armenia- significant public holiday and wish peace Azerbaijan border has been relatively stable. We have appealed to the sides to reduce ten- and prosperity to your families and our sions and strictly respect the ceasefire. We also continue to propose confidence-building precious and cherished Artsakh measures that would reinforce the ceasefire, creating a more positive environment for Republic. negotiations that could lead to a settlement," Warlick said. Arpine Hovhannisyan appointed as new justice minister A parliament member, Arpine Law Faculty of Yerevan State University. Hovhannisyan from the ruling Republican She had also a master's and post-graduate Party of Armenia, was appointed on studies at the same faculty. She has a PhD September 4 as justice minister. degree and works also as a lecturer at the A corresponding decree was signed by Department of Civil Law of Yerevan State President Serzh Sargsyan. Ms. University. Hovhannisyan's candidacy was backed on She was elected to parliament in 2012 September 3 by the executive body of the elections on the party list of the Republican party. Party of Armenia. She is replacing former Arpine Hovhannisyan was born in minister Hovhannes Manukyan who was 1983 in Yerevan. She is a graduate of the dismissed on July 14. 8 September #32 (1072) 2015 POLITICS The Noyan Tapan Highlights www.nt.am 3 Armenia starts 'strategic' war games It was not immediately clear how many soldiers and pieces of military hardware will join the exercises later this week. The Armenian Defense Ministry said it will divulge more details on Friday. The ministry first announced preparations for the drills on August 6, saying that they will test the military's coordination with other bodies in case of an "escalation of the military-political situ- ation" around Armenia. Senior Armenian military officials briefed Yerevan-based for- eign military attaches on the upcoming war games at a meeting on Wednesday. A Defense Ministry statement quoted them as saying that the participating Armenian agencies will practice coordination President Serzh Sargsyan met with members of his National of their actions "during a repulsion of aggression." It said they also Security Council on September 3 at the start of "strategic com- stressed that "the imaginary enemy and situation envisaged by the mand-and-staff military exercises" that will simulate Armenia's war game scenario are maximally adapted to the existing reality." response to foreign aggression. It was an apparent reference to Azerbaijan's regular threats of The four-day exercises codenamed "Shant-2015" (Lightning- a military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. 2015) are involving not only the Armenian military but also other The presidential press office said that during the mock emer- state bodies, including those responsible for mass mobilization gency session of the National Security Council Serzh Sargsyan and evacuation of civilian residents from border settlements in issued "instructions stemming from the war game scenario to rel- times of war. evant state bodies." Fighting continues near Karabakh, on Armenia-Azerbaijan border duty. The pro-government news website Reports from Baku said two elderly resi- Haqqin.az insisted, however, that Orujev dents of one of those villages, Alibeyli, was killed by an "Armenian bullet." were wounded as a result. They said that The deadly incidents came amid con- gunfire from Armenian army positions also tinuing skirmishes between Armenian and damaged many village houses.