  Armenia in 2006 - the top listIn 2006 Armenia celebrated the 15th Anniversary of its Independence. For some reason, throughout the whole year there are believed to be about 10 significant events maximum, which have had some direct or indirect impact on the country's political life. Meanwhile, if making the top-list for Armenia out of these events, it will become clear that besides domestic events, many changes have been recorded in the world in 2006, which have indirectly told on Armenia as well.  January 15, 2007PanARMENIAN.Net - One of the most important events in 2006 was the celebration of the 15th Anniversary of the Armenian Independence, Ramil Safarov; the murderer of the Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan, who was by the way recognized "The Man of the Year" in Azerbaijan in 2005, has been sentenced to life imprisonment in Budapest in 2006. Among the most noticeable events were the bill passed in the French Parliament about the criminal charge against the denial of the Armenian Genocide, the Referendum on the Constitution of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, the victory of the Democrats at the off-year elections in the USA and the suspension of the talks about Turkey's integration into EU, as well as the final decision of US Government about the ban on financial support for Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railroad construction. As for Armenia itself - unfortunately one of the most important events of 2006 became the terrible tragedy of the airplane A-320, where 113 people were killed. The President of France Jacques Chirac paid his first official visit to Armenia in 2006. It should be mentioned that this was the first visit of this kind in the history of the Independent Armenia. Three meetings of the President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan and President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict regulation have been held, not to mention the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs' visits to the region. It's worth mentioning that "the window of opportunities" which was so much spoken about in January, 2006 is still open. The year of 2006 became significant for the country due to three important documents too; Individual Partnership Action Plan with NATO, EU - Armenia Cooperation within the frames of the European Neighborhood Policy and participation in the US Government program "Millennium Challenges". And probably the historical visit of the Pope Benedict XVI to Turkey, where he reminded the Turks about the Armenian Genocide, should also be mentioned as one of the most significant events of the year.  Most popular in the section Who is who in the web of so many Sargsyans Controversy in quotations There will be no ideal solution Split of opposition votes    At focus More articles in this section6 simple facts about Armenia–Karabakh–Azerbaijan triangle  Everything you need to knowMain arguments of Armenia’s first President Next Karabakh proposals will be even worseBizarre election promises Church taxation and restoration of monasteries in Western Armenia |  Other articles Latest news Family of Ilham Aliyev’s security chief owns vast property in UK As head of security for Azerbaijan’s president, Eyyubov is closely trusted by one of the world’s most authoritarian leaders.OSCE vows support for Armenia “in all three directions of security” Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg.151 detained as civil disobedience campaigns continue in Yerevan Citizens have been blocking streets in the Armenian capital, demanding Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation.France welcomes Armenia-Azerbaijan meeting in Almaty France has welcomed the new round of negotiations between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. |
