Ministro de la Diáspora

Dear compatriots,

I am pleased to inform you that the Ministry of Diaspora of the Republic of Armenia is collecting information (name, contact details and etc.) about famous Armenian painters from Diaspora for our database. In this context I am kindly ask you to provide relevant information if you have. Also, if you know Stepan Norayr Shahian and Elisa Zagharian from Argentina, please provide us his contact details.

Thank you in advance

Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Best regards

Arsen Nikoyan
Head of Devision of the South American and Australian Armenian Communities

Russian President says he is proud of his Armenian parents and ancestors.

This afternoon during the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) press conference a Russian journalist to RIA Novosti asked Russian President Dmitry Medvedev if he has Jewish ancestry?

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev replied that the rumors about his Jewish ancestry are inaccurate. He added that his ancestors are from Adana (Western Armenia in Turkey now) but he was born in Russia. He added in "I want everyone to be clear that I am Armenian, surname of my mother was Naxshikyan what the word Naxshik comes oudarmeens. The surname of my father was Bagratyan.

This name is also purely Armenian. I was forced to change name to be head of Russian secret service (KGB) in France to work the cold war times.

Since France had large Armenian community should not Arms Irish secret service agent working in France. That I have an Armenian surname changed to Russian. I am 100% Armenian.

Finally the Russian President says he is proud of his Armenian parents and ancestors.




Corresponsal: Kevork Keskiskian