The following opinion piece, entitled “Armenia and Turkey: The Truce In Need of a Rescue”, appeared in the February 5, 2010 edition of the Los Angeles Times.

For a while, it looked like the start of a great reconciliation. Armenia and Turkey have lived beneath the vast shadow of the mass murder of Armenians in eastern Turkey during World War I, and to this day they maintain no diplomatic ties.

But in October, the Armenian and Turkish foreign ministers met in Switzerland and signed two protocols to set up relations, open their common border — closed since 1993 — and begin addressing the painful disputes that divide them. Each nation’s governments must still ratify the agreements. The United States, with its large Armenian American community and strategic alliance with Turkey, threw its weight behind the deal. »»»»»

President Serzh Sargsyan today met with Igor Shuvalov, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia and Russian National Coordinator on CIS affairs.

In his remarks, President Sargsyan said that 2009 was very effective in terms of further developing Armenian-Russian relations. “We have registered progress in all spheres. We have started 2010 rather intensively: I have already had two meetings with the President of the Russian Federation and the Russian Foreign Minister visited Armenia in January. We are optimistic and we think we should reinforce our relations through consistent everyday work,” President Sargsyan said. »»»»»

Hayk Sanosyan, President of the “Georgia Armenian Unity” organization, said today that that Armenian churches in Georgia would only recive official legal status with the mediation of the Holy See of Etchmiadzin.

“Our church must explore new avenues and relations so that we can resolve this problem,” he stated at a press conference. When asked if the parliaments of the two nations would have to intervene as well, Mr. Sanosyan answered that each Armenian should raise the issue as well as various government bodies. »»»»»

Vazgen Safaryan, chairman of the Union of Domestic Manufacturers of Armenia, today said that for the past twenty year, the Armenians government hasn’t directed enough attention to the manufacturing sector.

Mr. Safaryan, at a press conference, argued for drastic changes to Armenia’s economic thought process. He also referred to the expected price hikes in gas supplies and said that manufacturers were worried about the impact it would have. »»»»»

RoA Deputy Health Minister Tatul Hakobyan, during a press conference held today regarding developments in the health field, said that the average life expectancy of a male was 70 and 77 for females.

Minister Hakobyan said that mortality rates were still high but that there was a slight downward trend of late. He credited the work of the government and health ministry for the decrease. The major causes of death, according to the minister, are cardio-vascular, cancer-related, respiratory and digestive, in descending order. »»»»»

The following article, written by Matthew Collin, appeared in the February 5 edition of Al Jazeera.net.

In the frontline trenches of Nagorno-Karabakh, the long-running conflict between Armenians and Azerbaijanis over the disputed mountain enclave continues.

In the village of Khramort, children make their way home from school for lunch, some laughing and joking with each other, others holding on tightly to their mothers’ hands. »»»»»