US embassy cable - 04YEREVAN1254

UNCLAS YEREVAN 001254 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, AM 
SUBJECT: RIVAL POLITICAL CAMPS UNITE OVER CHESSBOARD 
 
 
1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified.  Please protect 
accordingly. 
 
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SUMMARY 
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2. (U) The current National Assembly (NA) marked its 
first anniversary May 26 with a chess tournament 
featuring international grandmaster Smbat Lputyan who 
played against 14 MPs and NA staffers.  Each party 
faction, including the opposition Justice bloc, 
nominated two players for the tournament.  Coalition 
and opposition MPs proudly posed with Lputyan in front 
of the cameras and seemed more than eager to skip 
debates over the few draft laws that were on May 26 
parliamentary agenda.  Eventually NA Speaker 
Baghdasaryan dragged the players and their numerous 
fans into the session hall for a quick 5-minute 
parliamentary vote.  In the end, the grandmaster won 
eleven and played three games to a draw.  End Summary. 
 
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NA ANNIVERSARY MARKED BY CHESS TOURNAMENT 
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3. (SBU) The third convocation of the Armenian National 
Assembly completed its first legislative year on May 
26.  To mark the anniversary, MP Hranush Hakobian, 
chairwoman of the Standing Committee on Culture, 
Education, Youth and Sport, invited international 
grandmaster Smbat Lputyan for a chess tournament with 
legislators and parliamentary staffers.  Each party 
faction nominated two MPs and/or staffers for the game; 
MPs Aram Sargsyan, chairman of Democratic Party, and 
Viktor Dalakyan represented the opposition Justice 
bloc.  (Note:  Although the opposition Justice bloc 
continues to boycott National Assembly sessions, they 
were out in force for the exhibition chess tournament. 
End Note.)  MP Ashot Aghababian, who owns the lucrative 
Hrazdan retail market, donated 30 chessboards to NA for 
the game.  Supporting teams of MPs, visitors, and the 
media had lots of fun while Lputyan simultaneously 
played against his 14 opponents. 
 
4. (U) Both the coalition and opposition chess players 
fully supported each other at the tournament. 
Throughout the game, numerous chess fans commented 
irreverantly on every move on the board, served 
generous amounts of coffee to compensate for, as they 
put it, the "unusual mental overload" for MPs, and 
vigilantly prevented one of the players from swiping a 
chess piece as a souvenir.  In his turn, head of the 
governing coalition's Republican faction Galust 
Sahakian said in an interview that if the opposition 
won the chess game then they could ask for anything, 
including a vote of confidence. 
 
5. (SBU) Absorbed by the game, coalition MPs were more 
than reluctant to get back to their legislative 
activities and debate a few drafts that were on May 26 
parliamentary agenda.  NA Speaker Baghdasaryan 
literally dragged the coalition MPs into the session 
hall, promising that the vote would take "only five 
minutes."  Meanwhile, opposition MPs Sargsyan and 
Dalakyan used the continuing opposition parliamentary 
boycott to their advantage and kept playing.  In the 
end, however, none of the MPs was able to defeat the 
grandmaster:  out of 14 games, Lputyan won 11 outright 
and played 3 to a draw. 
ORDWAY