RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan received the ambassador Boris Frlec, leader of Election Observers Mission of OSCE/Democratic institutions and Human Rights office.

YEREVAN, 19 March 2007 - The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission for the 12 May parliamentary elections in Armenia.

Aram Manoukyan, member of the Armenian National Movement (ANM), claims that the party will enjoy 10-20% votes of the electorate despite the current pressures. He thinks that RA citizens are ill-disposed to ANM today. ANM will run for the elections with the following motto, “Open Frontiers, Peace and Integration”. “The main objective of ANM is to restore people’s right to vote”, says Mr. Manoukyan.

The press service of the “Heritage” Party has spread the following announcement today; "Two RA TV Channels (Kentron and H2) invited “Raffi Hovannisian to participate in the political programs “Urvagits” and “The Fourth Studio”. The most striking is the fact that we got invitations after 1, 5 years’ informative blockade and just the moment Raffi Hovannisian was out of the country. To note, the press secretary of the party informed...

“Every month the RA Customs Department accumulates 6million USD which is distributed among a few high-ranking officials”, Aram Karapetyan, leader of New Times announced today. He is convinced that the money will be spent to fabricate the election results.

The Iran-Armenia gas pipeline was inaugurated in the settlement of Agarak at the Armenian-Iranian border March 19. Armenian President Robert Kocharian and Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took part in the solemn opening ceremony.

Diaspora charities are helping in the reconstruction of the education system. Nagorny Karabakh has always been proud of its education system, with many Karabakhis from humble backgrounds going on to achieve intellectual excellence in other places.

De-mining experts build playgrounds to encourage families to move back to border areas. Seven-year-old Saida Gulieva was born in a tent camp for refugees in the Azerbaijan town of Barda, not far from the Armenian-Azerbaijani ceasefire line that has separated the two warring sides since 1994.

“We haven’t held a rally like this for a long time,” Nikol Pashinyan, member of “Alternative” Public-Political Initiative announced during today’s rally. The organizers were not discouraged by the heavy rain and voiced hope that more people would join them during the next meeting adjacent Liberty Square.

Today “Tesaket” Club hosted poet Razmik Davoyan and renowned actor Ervand Manaryan who dwelt on the May 12 parliamentary elections. Ervand Manaryan has decided neither to participate in the election campaigns nor to back up any force. “I don’t want to participate as I know for sure that most of the NA deputies are already decided. What can I change with my participation?”

Today the Writers’ House hosted the representatives of NGOs and parties who claim that the “treaty signed between Russia and Turkey in 1921 laid the Armenia-Turkey borderline via genocide implementation. “The Republic of Armenia must condemn the Russian-Turkish treaty signed in Moscow on March 16, 1921,” they claim.

“I don’t think that Zhirayr Sefilyan was as dangerous as to be isolated from the society and kept in the National Security Service”, Albert Bazeyan, leader of the “National Revival” Party says.

On March 16, the relatives of the murdered Hovsep Mkrtoumyan and the justified servicemen Razmik Sargsyan, Susa Serobyan and Arayik Zalyan held a piquet opposite the RA General Prosecutor's Office. To note, Razmik Sargsyan, Susa Serobyan and Arayik Zalyan were accused of murdering Hovsep Mkrtoumyan. Under the verdict of Cassation Court they were justified and set free after three years' detention.

On March 16, RA President Robert Kocharyan received Ms. Donna Douset-Koirolo, the World Bank (WB) Regional Director for South Caucasus and the newly-appointed head of the WB Yerevan office Aristomene Varoudakisi.

“I shall insist on involving my report on the missing people and war prisoners in the South Caucasus into the PACE April sitting”, Leo Platvoet informed APA agency.

> To assume that the votes of PA ( Prosperous Armenia)350 thousand members as well as those of their family members will go for the benefit of the party, other parties should close then. NA chairman Tigran Torosyan started with this statement in “Urbat ” club.

The draft law of Armenian genocide has already been introduced to the US Senate. Democrat-senator Richard Durbin and republican-senator John Asignan are the initiators. Senator John Kerry, Edward Cannedy and Joe Lieberman have signed the draft.

Armenia’s Foreign Minister, Vartan Oskanian, concluded a regular meeting of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, together with the Azerbaijani FM, in Geneva. This meeting followed a recent visit to the region by French co-chair Bernard Fassier, who, on behalf of the other two co-chairs Yuri Merzlyakov of Russia, and Matthew Bryza of the US, attempted to ascertain the positions of the two presidents,...

Will dual citizens participate in the parliamentary elections or not? This question has become urgent since the RA government endorsed the packet on “Dual Citizenship”. Today, Garegin Azaryan, president of CEC, commented on the current situation. According to the recent amendments to the law, dual citizens are RA citizens and all issues must be driven from this fact”, Mr. Azaryan says.

Albert Bazeyan, leader of the “National Revival” Party, will not quit the proportional ticket of the Armenian Democratic Party; the sitting of “National Revival” Party reaffirmed the party’s decision to run for the parliamentary elections.

U.S. State secretary Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates sent a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, namely to Nancy Pelos, Chairman of the representatives and Tom Lantos, leader of the Republican Party. Condoleezza Rice and Robert M. Gate urged House of Representatives to turn down the draft law on the recognition of the Armenian genocide.

On March 14, “Friday” Club hosted Samvel Mkrtchyan, Ambassador of Armenia to NATO. He dwelt on the Armenia-NATO relations, implementation of the Individual Partnership Action Plan signed between Armenia-NATO, as well as the report of the NATO commission on Armenia. “This is the best way to represent the stance of Armenia to the leading members of the military-political alliance”, Mr. Mkrtchyan says.

“Fredrick Ebert” Foundation initiated polling among 1000 residents of 15 regions and 12 cities of Azerbaijan.The polling results testify to the fact that more than 59% Azeris don't accept the variant of compensations in view of the Karabakh conflict settlement.

Elmar Mammadyarov, Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, met with the OSCE Minsk group Co-Chairs yesterday evening.