Press Review

“Hayots Ashkhar” is surprised that none of Armenia’s major political forces has so far displayed “serious intentions to prepare for the forthcoming electoral struggle.” The pro-establishment paper attributes this to “powerful inertia” within the radical opposition, “unfounded and unhealthy expectations from foreign policy processes,” a personalization of political relationships in the country, and the absence of politicians adhering to “a new political culture and work style.”

Sabine Freizer, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group (ICG), tells “Zhamanak” that the international community does not want to get involved in the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh as deeply as it did in the wars in former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. “Until Armenia and Azerbaijan agree on European and American military presence [in the conflict zone] the international community can not impose anything on them,” she is quoted as saying.

Interviewed by “Iravunk,” Artak Davtian, a parliament deputy from the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), says that the upcoming summit in Kazakhstan of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will not prove decisive for the resolution of the Karabakh conflict. “I don’t think that there may be a breakthrough after the Astana meeting,” says Davtian.

Citing another HHK lawmaker, Karen Avagian, “Aravot” reports that a draft resolution on the Karabakh conflict opposed by Armenia has been removed from the agenda of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Gevorgian is quoted as telling Panorama.am that Yerevan believes the assembly will not be the right place to discuss the issue as long as the Karabakh negotiating process is led by the OSCE Minsk Group. According to the paper, the NATO assembly’s secretary general, David Hobbs, has told assembly members in a letter that the draft resolution has been withdrawn at Azerbaijan’s request.

“Irates de facto” says Culture Minister Hasmik Poghosian skirted questions about the ongoing recruitment of prominent artists by the Prosperous Armenia Party (HHK) of Gagik Tsarukian. “That information doesn’t interest me much,” she said. Poghosian dismissed suggestions that the new BHK recruits were unhappy with the way she has been running the Ministry of Culture. “I think that partisanship must not be the norm in the cultural sphere because there is only one standard here: creative quality,” adds the minister.

(Aghasi Yenokian)