Armenian News - Azerbaijan Accused Of Rejecting Karabakh Deal

By Anna Saghabalian

Armenia accused Azerbaijan on Monday of seeking to walk away from a
framework peace agreement on Nagorno-Karabakh which international
mediators hope will be finalized in the coming months.

Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian pointed to Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliev's refusal to meet his newly elected Armenian counterpart, Serzh
Sarkisian, on the sidelines of this week's NATO summit in Romania.

Commenting on the snub, Aliev's chief foreign policy aide, Novruz
Mammadov, said at the weekend that the Armenian side needs such a
meeting to shore up Sarkisian's position at home, rather than to achieve
further progress towards the resolution of the Karabakh conflict. `The
Azerbaijani side is always ready for negotiations, but they must have a
subject and a concrete goal,' he told the Turan news agency.

Oskanian dismissed such statements. `Azerbaijan is playing a very dirty
game,' he charged. `What they are doing now is in tune with their recent
steps. First, to try to disband the Minsk Group and thereby abandon a
document created as a result of two-year work by the Armenian and
Azerbaijani parties.'

Oskanian referred to the basic principles of a Karabakh settlement which
were formally submitted to the conflicting parties by the U.S., Russian
and French mediators co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group last November.
`[Azerbaijan] had agreed to all of the principles contained in that
document,' he said.

The proposed peace deal calls for a gradual settlement of the conflict
that would lead to the liberation of virtually all Armenian-controlled
Azerbaijani territories around Karabakh and indefinitely postpone
agreement on the disputed territory's status. In a joint statement
issued in early March, the Minsk Group co-chairs urged the parties to
`redouble their efforts to endorse the Basic Principles ¦ and to begin
as soon as possible the process of drafting a peace agreement on this
basis.'

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TOURISTS IN ARMENIA COMPLAIN FOR HIGH PRICES AND NON-DEVELOPED INFRASTRUCTURE
arminfo
2008-03-31 17:00:00

ArmInfo. Tourists in Armenia complain for high prices and non-developed
infrastructure, the results of International Visitor Survey presented
today are evidence of this, the head of foreign relations department
of National Statistics Service Aleksandr Petrosyan said at the
press-conference, Monday.

He also added that survey was held on the basis of questioning of
those who arrive in Armenia and leave it at all the border points
between September 2006 and August 2007. The survey was held through a
collaborative effort between the National Statistics Service, Ministry
of Trade and Economic Development, Armenian Tourism Development Agency
and USAID-funded Competitive Armenian Private Sector project. According
to the results of survey, tourists visiting Yerevan chiefly live
not in the hotels but at their relatives' apartments or rent an
apartment. They seldom visit the regions. He also added that chiefly
Armenia is visited from Georgia (18,6%), Russia 11,4%, France - 11%
and Germany - 7,8%. The major part of tourists (44,8%) visit Armenia
to meet their relatives, 22,4% on business and only 11,6% to spend
their vacation. On average, tourists stay in Armenia 19.6 days and
spend $36 per day. Canadians and Japanese spend the most during their
stay in Armenia. Armenian residents travelling to overseas mostly
travel to Russia (44,9%) and (24,7%). They Stay an average 49 days
outside Armenia and spend $21 per day.

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District of Columbia Historic Preservation Review Board Approves Armenian Genocide Museum of America Proposal

Planners complimented on imaginative use of historic building

In a public hearing convened on March 27, the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB), which is charged with responsibility for the protection, enhancement and perpetuation of properties of historical, cultural and aesthetic merit in the District of Columbia, in a unanimous vote gave concept approval for the Armenian Genocide Museum of America (AGMA). The plans call for restoring the exterior of the historical bank building, modifying the interior to accommodate the museum exhibits, and building a new glass structure next to the historic bank, which will be surfaced with native Armenian stone to complement the bank building.

HPRB Chairman Tersh Boasberg complimented AGMA and its team for their care in developing a project, "that's what historic preservation is all about," adding that AGMA's plans for the structure to deal with the Armenian Genocide were "exciting."

Van Krikorian, chairman of the museum building and operations committee, opened by thanking HPRB members for the interest they have taken in the project. He stated that AGMA is excited about the project, and is moving forward with special "sensitivity to the history of the building," and stressed that AGMA wanted to preserve the historical building in which it will be housed, especially considering our experience from the Genocide and Armenians' own sensitivity to preserving important historical structures. He thanked the HPRB and those who had contributed for their involvement and assistance.

Upon hearing principal architect Gary Martinez present in detail the proposed museum and the restoration plans for the former bank building located two blocks from the White House, HPRB also commended AGMA for the team assembled to create what it described as a "highly imaginative project." HPRB described the museum plans as "dramatic" use of the historically-designated building. Details of some sensitive interior issues remain to be worked out as the development progresses, and AGMA indicated its flexibility in working with the HPRB in that process. HPRB Commission members and staff had several questions and constructive comments.

Earlier in the week, the AGMA planning team made presentations to the DC Preservation League and the Advisory Neighborhood Committee's Community Development Committee (ANC-CDC). The DC Preservation League, a community-based organization, strongly endorsed the project and its representative Patrick Burkhardt called the proposal to locate a museum in the historic building a "textbook marriage." The ANC-CDC also endorsed the project.

Following the unanimous vote, Krikorian again thanked the HPRB, the AGMA staff, architects, exhibit planners, and project managers, adding "this is a great day for all of us committed to opening a first class Armenian Genocide Museum in Washington." HPRB Chairman Boasberg closed the hearing by saying that the Armenian Genocide Museum project will "add to the kind of vitality that historic preservation can provide" in the heart of downtown Washington, with a benefit for the District of Columbia as well as national and international audiences.

The former National Bank of Washington has interior and exterior designations on the National Register of Historic Places. Only a dozen privately-owned structures in the capital city have such a high level of historic designation. The bank building is slated for complete restoration and renovation, as well as application as the exhibit space for AGMA. HPRB concept approval and enlistment of local community support registered two certified milestones in opening the museum on schedule.

HPRB commissioners are appointed by the mayor of the District of Columbia. The presentation they heard was prepared by the firm of Martinez & Johnson Architecture, whose talents and experience in rehabilitating especially ornate historic buildings was noted. The architectural team was supported by representatives from Gallagher & Associates contracted by AGMA as its exhibit design firm, the Armenian National Institute serving as the research arm of the museum project, and by the project management firm of Regan Associates.

Martinez & Johnson Architecture and Gallagher & Associates have been working on the development of the museum project since mid-2007. Regan Associates joined the planning team in February of this year. Among several museum and other projects led by the firm, most recently Regan Associates completed the Orientation Center, Education Center, and Museum at Mount Vernon Estates, the home of President George Washington.

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GIBRAHAYER
ARMENIAN QUARTER OF VICTORIA STREET, BEING RETURNED, AS CURRENT STATUS OF LEDRA
STREET IS EXTENDED TO PAPHOS GATE

Nicosia April 1, 2008 - Gibrahayer - The opening of Ledra street as agreed by President Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat has brought about prospects for fresh restructuring of the Paphos Gate, that extends a hundred meters from the Ledra street check point.

To that end the Armenian quarter at Paphos Gate - now under Turkish occupation - is being returned to the rightful owners, the Armenian community of Cyprus.

As announced a few years ago the Armenian quarter on Victoria street, comprising of The Sourp Asdvadzadzin Church, The Armenian Prelature, The Armenian Genocide Memorial, the Melikian-Ouzounian elementary school and The Armenian Kindergarten started going through major renovations, funded by the UNOPS which have taken place on quarters on both side of Nicosia.

It is expected that the Armenian quarter on Victoria street will return to our community in a better condition than before the invasion and inter-community troubles.

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