Month: April 2016

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry agreed to take efforts to promote normalization of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday after their telephone conversation, TASS reports.

“The two top diplomats hailed the agreement on cessation of hostilities in the zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and agreed to take efforts to promote normalization of the situation in the regions,” the Ministry said, adding that the two top diplomats also discussed other issues on the common agenda.

The State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic issued the following statement today:

On April 10, in accordance with the arrangement reached earlier, the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, through the mediation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman in Office, carried out the exchange of bodies of the deceased between the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan near the Bash Karvend settlement. The bodies of 18 servicemen of the NKR Defense Army, fallen as a result of the large scale military aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan in April 2-5, were transferred to the NKR side during the exchange.

At the presence of the representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the NKR State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons registered that all bodies of the deceased transferred by the Azerbaijani side had signs of torture and mutilation.

Those acts, being a flagrant manifestation of inhumanity, run counter to the laws and customs of war and are in grave violation of the international humanitarian law, in particular, the Convention (I) for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field (1949), Geneva Convention (III) relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War (1949) and the Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I).

The Karabakh side will seek to ensure that such behavior of the Azerbaijani side is condemned in strongest terms by the international community and the specialized agencies, and those responsible are brought into account.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will hold a debate on Nagorno Karabakh, according to the session posted on PACE’s official website.

The current affairs debate on “The recent and tragic escalation of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict” is scheduled for April 18, the first day of the spring session.

Russia calls on all parties in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to observe agreements on cessation of hostilities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a press conference on Monday after talks with his Swiss counterpart Didier Burkhalter, reports.

“We call on the sides to observe the agreements reached on cessation of hostilities,” Lavrov said. “We are interested in positive shifts on the political track toward reaching agreements on settling this uneasy conflict,” he added.

Seven criminal cases have been launched at the NKR Prosecutor General’s Office in connection with the cross violations of the international humanitarian law by the Azerbaijani armed forces between April 2 and 4.

The cases are related to the violations of international humanitarian law, using prohibited means and methods of warfare, targeting of civilians, particularly in the village in Talish, shelling of populated areas motivated by national, racial or religious hatred or religious fanatism, etc.

 

 

 

One should not expect a breakthrough from the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, Republican MP Artak Davtyan says. According to political scientist Alexander Iskandaryan, the Minsk Group did all it could.

“The task of the OSCE Minsk Group at this point is to stop the bloodshed rather than resume the negotiation process,” Iskandaryan told reporters today.

As for the perspectives of Artsakh’s involvement in the negotiations, the political scientist said “it’s hardly possible in this difficult stage, when the main objective is to stop the conflict.”

According to Artak Davtyan, one should not expect a breakthrough, a ‘miraculous’ document from the Minsk Group.  He believes the mediators should now work to have the parties return to the negotiating table.

In a statement released today the Armenian Ministry of Defense reconfirmed that Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan exchanged bodies of the soldiers killed between April 2 and 5 as a result of the aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan. Eighteen bodies of the soldiers of the NKR Defense Army were handed over to the Armenian side.

Taking into consideration that there were signs of torture and mutilation on the bodies, a fact registered by the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Ministry declares that the actions of teh Azerbaijani armed forces amount to a gross violation of the international humanitarian law.

The authorities in Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh, in cooperation with international organizations, are collecting proofs of the crimes and launching criminal cases.

The Armenian Ministry of Defense pledges to be consistent in raising the facts of violation of the international humanitarian law (of armed conflict) and various conventions in different international structures with a view of holding Azerbaijan accountable for the crimes.

Five Nobel Prize winners will lecture at the Yerevan State Medical University from April 11 to 15.

“The “Nobel Days in Yerevan” initiative will provide an opportunity to communicate with Nobel Prize winners, to learn how they present scientific issues. The lectures are meant not only for students, but also the faculty,” Rector of the Medical University Mikael Narimanyan told reporters today.

“The event is unprecedented not only for Armenia, but also on the global level. We’ll try to make this an annual event,” said Konstantin Yenkoryan, head of the coordinating group of the initiative. He said the event aims to draw attention to the fact of Armenia being a country with a huge scientific potential.

The Nobel laureates visiting Armenia are:

• Aaron Ciechanover, Israel. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2004 was awarded jointly to Aaron Ciechanover, Avram Hershko and Irwin Rose”for the discovery of ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation.”

• Ada E. Yonath, Israel: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2009 was awarded jointly to Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Thomas A. Steitz and Ada E. Yonath “for studies of the structure and function of the ribosome.”

• Dan Shechtman, Israel: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2011 was awarded to Dan Shechtman”for the discovery of quasicrystals.”

• John Robin Warren, Australia: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2005 was awarded jointly to Barry J. Marshall and J. Robin Warren “for their discovery of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease.”

• Ei-ichi Negishi, Japan: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2010 was awarded jointly to Richard F. Heck, Ei-ichi Negishi and Akira Suzuki”for palladium-catalyzed cross couplings in organic synthesis.”

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to develop an agreement on mutual military assistance with Nagorno Karabakh, immediately after Azerbaijan launched an offensive against Artsakh.

President Sargsyan also declared that “should military actions continue and escalate into larger scales, the Republic of Armenia will recognize the independence of Nagorno Karabakh.”

The document has not been brought to the National Assembly, and it’s still unclear when it will be considered.

“The text of the document is being developed. Several versions are being worked out. We’ll make conclusions depending on the situation,” says Vahram Baghdasaryan, head of the Republican faction.

In general, all parliamentary forces agree on the opinion that the adoption of the document is a must. They believe it is the real step that Armenia can take in response to the current situation.

Head of the ARF faction Armen Rustamyan says the document will seek to solve two main issues. “First, it should be clearly mentioned that Armenia is the guarantor of NKR independence and security.”

Although the Armenian Revolutionary Federation favors the creation of a military-political union, it doesn’t mind reinforcing the two principles through an agreement on mutual military assistance.

According to Rustamyan, the second important provision that should be incorporated in the document is that “any assault against Karabakh will mean an assault against Armenian borders, with all consequences deriving from this.”

Some say the agreement on mutual military assistance could serve a basis for the recognition of Artsakh’s independence. “It’s not recognition, but a legal-political basis for standing next to Nagorno Karabakh,” MP Alexander Arzumanyan says. According to him, it’s more effective at this point than the recognition of independence

What is the main issue the agreement is meant to solve? What will Nagorno Karabakh gain from it? “Under this agreement we’ll assume political and military responsibility for NKR. We’ll say that Armenia will not stay apart in case of any assault against Karabakh,” Arzumanyan says.

Second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan is not planning a meeting with incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan.

“I do not plan to initiate such a meeting,”Robert Kocharyan told

“In light of the events and taking into consideration the experience acquired at a heavy price it is more important now to resolve the issue of providing the army with modern weapons without delay,  to adapt the combat and tactical training of personnel to the new conditionsas as soon as possible, ” he said.

According to Robert Kocharyan, the meetings of the incumbent president with the ex-presidents are unlikely to contribute to the resolution of urgent practical issues.

“It is gratifying that the Armenian society  proved once again that in case of a serious external threat it can unite to confront the aggression. It is also clear that the patriotic capacity doubles when backed by modern efficient army and effectively functioning institutions,” said the ex-President of Armenia.

Incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan and first President Levon Ter-Petroyan to discuss the situation established as a result of the recent Azerbaijani aggression against Karabakh.