Parliament has today started activity with 74 MPs. Speaker Arthur Baghdasaryan put the bills discussed this week to voting. 10 of them were approved, 3 were ignored. {BR} Parliament discussed ratification of 2 conventions regarding the sport sphere, Conventions on “Against Dopes” approved in Strasburg in 1989 and “About Disorder of the Audience during Sport Measures, Football Games...

Justice parliamentary fraction member Shavarsh Kocharyan said Tuesday the opposition MPs, who recently announced boycott, can return to the parliament only if parliamentary majority decides to discuss confidence referendum issue and votes for referendum bill.

Russian Federation Embassy in Armenia responded with a statement to the information published in Russian Nezavisimaya Gazeta, according to which during his visit to Russia Armenian defense minister Serge Sargssyan was seeking support from Russian troops deployed in Armenia in case of escalation of interior political tension in Armenia.{BR} The information doesn’t correspond to reality, the...

“Armenia is accomplished a great deal in its advancing toward democracy. Our country has an advantage over Azerbaijan in that aspect”, said National Assembly Vice-Speaker Tigran Torossyan at today’s parliamentary session.{BR} Presenting European Integration Commission’s report, Torossyan said serious works focused on CE commitments fulfilment had been done since last year...

Deputy Police Chief Ararat Magtesyan presented the Traffic Security Bill to National Assembly members. The bill is full of senseless and obscurely-worded clauses.{BR} Serious discussion broke out over privileged registration numbers. The police official said he knows nothing about that. After Magtesyan’s speech one can imagine that there are no problems in law enforcement system. The speech...

The 29th World Congress of the ARF Dashnaktsutyun has concluded. According to an announcement made public earlier today by the chair of the World Congress, following detailed deliberations pertaining to issues of concern for the future of Armenia and the Armenian People, the Congress has adopted resolutions charting the way for the Party's direction and activities for the coming four years. After...

After hearing Deputy Police Chief Ararat Magtesyan’s shallow speech, National Assembly Speaker Arthur Baghdasaryan presented the situation in law enforcement system not so optimistically.(BR) He said tremendous numbers of police officers don’t mean that everything goes in due way in the system. “As a rule, traffic wardens line roads at a distance of 100 meters from each other....

Dashnaktsutyun Party’s caucus is still under way. Hrayr Karapetyan, a member of the party, said, refuting media outlets’ reports, there are no wrangles in the course of the caucus.{BR} The party has taken a democratic stance in discussing the party’s internal issues. That’s why some collision between different views is inevitable. “We have seen unanimous opinion throughout...

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan received Tuesday Afghanistan’s Ambassador to Armenia Ahmad Zia Masudi and handed him credentials.{BR} Both sides expressed hope for development of Armenian-Afghan relations especially in economic sphere.

As it became clear, the leader of Armenian Union for National Self-determination Paruyr Hayrikyan attended European People Party’s 16th conference though he is neither a member of Armenian People Party nor the republic authorities’ representative.{BR} Despite that, Paruyr Hayrikyan was the only person who received an invitation to the event, because he is considered a representative of...

Discussion over amendments to the law on police continues Tuesday in Armenian National Assembly.{BR} The key idea of the bill is that investigators but not the police as a whole constitute the preliminary inquire body.

Armenian lawmakers discussed amendments to the law on social benefits to servicemen and their families on Tuesday.{BR} Under the amendments, those servicemen committed a state crime and convicted by the court will be deprived of the benefit. In the event that the case is reconsidered and acquitting verdict is delivered the right for the benefit will be restored. The amendments specify that financial...

-Mr Gasparyan, Opposition boycotts Parliament sittings. Why don’t you being a MP in Opposition do that, too? I participate in the boycott Opposition carries out. When Opposition starts fighting through meetings, I will be with it all the time. I will be in the center of any protest action in Yerevan. I will make people vote for me even if they don’t want to. I have something to say....

Parliament has today discussed the bill on making amendments and additions to the Law on “Public Service”. {BR} According to this amendment, the list for conceptual posts is enlarged. Henceforth Ambassadors, Armenia’s representatives to foreign states and heads for control services of President and PM of Armenia are considered conceptual officials, i.e, only the people winning in...

Khosrov Harutyunyan, Chair of Christian and Democratic Party of Armenia, is sure that only parliamentary elections will extraordinarily be held in Armenia this year. {BR} He thinks that only the Parliament and not the president is the one blocking solution to the problems of the society. As to the speeches of Ilham Aliev about Nagorno Karabakh, Mr Harutyunyan says that Azerbaijani president calls...

Parliament has started this week activity without Opposition. 89 MPs secured quorum. A part of them left after voting. {BR} During discussion over the bill on making amendments to the “Regulations for Parliament Control Chamber” Arthur Baghdasaryan didn’t miss the chance to criticize the coalition partners: ”The state bodies are mainly corrupted and the Parliament control...

”If Armenia really wants to become a democratic state, special presidential and parliamentary elections must take place here this year. As to development of foreign policy, Armenia must become a NATO member”, Hovhanness Hovhannissyan, Chair of Liberation Advanced Party, announced at the first conference of the party. {BR} According to him, “the dominant of their party is that Armenia...

Beginning form today till March 5 176 civil agents will be retrained. {BR} 5 educational institutions – Yerevan State University, Armenian State Management Academy, Yerevan State Economical Institution, Armenian Agriculture Academy and Armenian-Russian State University will implement retraining. The first retraining of the civil agents is carried out in correspondence with the programs worked...

Opposition absence in Parliament Hall was obvious. Parliament agenda for the 3 days was approved without any difficulty and stormy discussion. Then the sitting started. {BR} ”Dirge without music”, MP Manuk Gasparyan described the atmosphere in Parliament this way. We will represent the whole conversation of our correspondent with him a bit later.

Hearings of the reports by 3 temporary committees of Parliament start. Committee for Issues on Integration of Armenia into the European Structures will introduce its report. {BR} Opposition doesn’t take part in this week’ activity of Parliament.

Azeri Foreign Minister Vilayat Guliev told Interfax news agency Azerbaijan has a right to start Karabakhi negotiations from zero taking into consideration that there is not a single principle adopted by both sides.{BR} Armenian Foreign Ministry Press Secretary Hamlet Gasparyan commenting on the statement said if Baku wants to start from zero, it has to speak with Stepanakert, if the latter is agreed.

National Assembly Speaker Arthur Baghdasaryan convened a meeting to outline issues to be included in coming sessions’ agenda.{BR} The agenda is to get final approval on Monday.

NATO delegation headed by Frank Boland is now in Yerevan. His visit is aimed at discussing a wide range of issues related to Armenia’s participation in Planning and Review Process.{BR} Today, the NATO officials discussed them during their meeting with Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Tatul Margaryan.

Curd Community in Armenia released a statement on Friday. In a clear violation of international law and human rights and as a result of international conspiracy Curd people’s leader Abdullah Ojalan has been captured and handed over to Turkish authorities, the statement says.{BR} Today, the Curd Community representatives held a news conference in support of their national leader who remains...