Month: February 2020

Newspaper: Armenia authorities trying to influence Constitutional Court judges’ decisions

Arbi Tashjian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 1 2020

09:34, 01.02.2020
                  

YEREVAN. – Past daily of Armenia writes: Referring to the situation surrounding the Constitutional Court [(CC)] the other day, [PM] Nikol Pashinyan said that “it will be resolved soon.” And Vice Speaker of the NA [National Assembly], Alen Simonyan, even mentioned [respective] timeframes yesterday, saying that the topic of the Constitutional Court will be permanently closed within the next 1-2 months.

Other representatives of the ruling party have also touched upon this topic. Some have even mentioned that some CC judges will make use of the possibility of early retirement. Add to that the talk of dissolving the CC with constitutional amendments.

The sources in Past newspaper claim that such statements actually contain elements of manipulation, or, as some analysts already call them, “a political-information bluff” that aim, on the one hand, to form public opinion and, on the other, to influence on the decision of the CC judges.

However, according to our information, the authorities will not go the way of dissolving the CC because they are concerned about the expected sharp response from the international structures. As for the judges, the same sources claim that they are not going to make use of early retirement, which experts have called “bribery by law.”

Armenia Minister of Justice: Mr. Acemoglu’s ideas are fully consistent with our policy

Emil Lazarian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 1 2020
Armenia Minister of Justice: Mr. Acemoglu’s ideas are fully consistent with our policy Armenia Minister of Justice: Mr. Acemoglu’s ideas are fully consistent with our policy

11:54, 01.02.2020

YEREVAN. – I believe that [renowned Armenian economist] Mr. [Daron] Acemoglu’s ideas and his vision for institution-building are fully in line with our policy. Armenia’s Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan told this to reporters today ahead of a public debate entitled, “An Anticorruption Committee is being created in Armenia: the problems of formation of the structure.”

“There was also talk about an anticorruption court, about deep reforms in the judiciary, both with constitutional amendments and other measures envisaged by the judicial strategy,” he added. “And again you see the latest reactions from all the international structures that are referring to our reform agenda – judicial, anticorruption, penitentiary, and so on. So we’re completely on the same line.”

To a journalist’s observation that the opposition says that what they are saying and doing do not correspond, the Minister noted: “That’s why I cited the assessment of international organizations; you can see how the latter reacts to the anticorruption and judicial strategies.”

Armenpress: Armenia’s economic activity index highest since 2011

Toneyan Mark

Armenia’s economic activity index highest since 2011

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 10:51, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The economic activity index of Armenia amounted to 7.8% in 2019. This is the highest record since the index started to be calculated in Armenia, year 2011, Minister of Economy Tigran Khachatryan told ARMENPRESS.

“It’s good news that the growth of industry effected economic activity. The growth of industrial output amounted to 9%”, the Minister said.

According to Tigran Khachatryan, this growth is mainly conditioned by exports. Increase of export of cognac surpassed 26% in 2019. The export growth of wines is also impressive – 75% for fruit wines and 26% for grape wines. Chocolate is one of the most rapidly developing directions, the export of which rose by 14.2%.

The Minister of Economy also presented other economic indexes, particularly, he noted that construction has grown by 4.6%, services have grown by 15%, tourism gas grown by 15% based on preliminary examinations.

Speaking about the GDP for 2019, the Minister noted that they have not summed it up yet, but according to their assessments, it will exceed the recent forecasts, which means that economic growth of 2019 will be around 8%.

To the question what forecasts he can make for 2020, Minister Khachatryan said, ”I will refrain from making forecasts now, but I will reassure that our Government is committed to do its best in the framework of its economic policy in order we record economic results in 2020 that will be in line with the results of 2019, continuing to secure predictable, stable and equal environment for all participants in economic life”, he said.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Armenpress: 2020 will be fertile year and not only in agricultural sense – PM Pashinyan

Markos Nalchajian

2020 will be fertile year and not only in agricultural sense – PM Pashinyan

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 11:07, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. Heavy snow increases our expectations for favorable economic year, ARMENPRESS reports Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page.

”2020 will be fertile year and not only in agricultural sense”, he wrote.

Armenpress: Armenian people shapes its future – PM Pashinyan refers to Forbes’s article about Armenia

Karakhanian Suren

Armenian people shapes its future – PM Pashinyan refers to Forbes’s article about Armenia

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 11:31, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The world believes in the future of Armenia and the Armenian people, because it’s the Armenian people, who shapes its future, ARMENPRESS reports PM Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page, referring to the article of the Forbes published on January 31 on Armenia headlined “Welcome To The World’s Next Tech Hub: Armenia”.

”While Armenia has been making strides towards developing its high-tech sector for many years, it wasn’t until the Armenian Revolution of 2018 that momentum really started to build. Suddenly, the little, insignificant country hidden deep in the centerfold of the world map was full of hope and looking forward to a future that seemed unusually bright’’, Forbes writes.

” The world believes in the future of Armenia and the Armenian people, because it’s the Armenian people, who shapes its future”, PM Pashinyan wrote.

The author notes in the article that Armenia, a country with partially closed borders, has rich human capital and has started to make use of its technological potential at a large pace. “We have small resources and high technology is one of the main directions of the Armenian economy to overcome the blockade and to import and export our educational brands outside,” said Arayik Harutyunyan, Armenia’s Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports.

The author notes that tech is now the largest foreign investment sphere in Armenia and many of the world’s most powerful technology firms—including Intel, Microsoft, Google, IBM, Synopsys and Cisco—all have a physical presence there, as the country’s tech sector grew 33% in 2018 to become a $250 million a year industry.

The article also refers to Armenia’s start-ups, state policy towards technologies in education, focusing particularly on Armath Engineering Laboratories. ” One man that has made improving the technological studies of Armenia’s students his life’s mission is Karen Vardanyan. In 2014, he started a program called Armath, which sought to put robotics laboratories in rural schools across Armenia’’, reads the article, adding that it is a growing movement across Armenia, where, as of the end of last year, there were robotics labs in 25% of the country’s schools—something which the government is hoping to up to 50% in the coming year.

Sweden ratifies Armenia-EU CEPA

Hovik Karapetian

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 13:45, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. Sweden informed the General Secretariat of the European Council and the Council of the EU on January 31 about finishing the domestic procedures for the ratification of the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement between Armenia and the EU, ARMENPRESS reports press secretary of the Armenian foreign ministry Anna Naghdalyan wrote on her Facebook page.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Share of leading sugar importing companies declines, prices also decline

Hambardsumian Paul

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 16:03, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition (SCPEC) has published the results of the sugar market study.

In the period of January-October 2019, 8 million kg of sugar was imported to Armenia by 47 companies. The imported sugar was mainly of Ukrainian origin. In the same period Armenia produced 59.8 million kg of sugar.

The SCPEC informed ARMENPRESS that the shares of the imports by companies have changed. The share of the leading sugar importing companies has declined. The share of imports by ”Alex Holding” and ”Alex & Holding” has declined from 67% to 49%, while sales have declined from 95% to 88%.

The study also shows that in 2017-2019, the retail and wholesale prices of sugar decreased as well, from an average of 387 drams to 292 drams.

The SCPEC recorded that sugar market in terms of both imports and sales has been highly centralized.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Azerbaijan violates ceasefire regime 200 times in a period of one week

Garo Vardanian

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 11:44, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani troops violated the ceasefire regime nearly 200 times on Artsakh-Azerbaijan contact line in the period of January 26-February 1, during which over 1150 bullets were fired in the direction of Armenian border guards from different caliber weapons.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Defense Ministry of Artsakh, the front line units of the Defense Army of Artsakh keep full control of the situation and continue to make necessary measures for protecting their military positions.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of Armenia is in Georgia on working visit

Talar Tumanian

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 14:15, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of Armenia Zareh Sinanyan is in Georgia on a working visit.

ARMENPRESS reports during his 5-day visit Sinanyan will meet with the Armenian MPs of the Georgian parliament, State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality of Georgia Ketevan Tsikhelashvili and Governor of Samtskhe-Javakheti region Besik Amirkhanashvili.

The High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of Armenia will visit Armenian scientific, educational, cultural centers, schools and churches in Tbilisi, Akhaltska and Akhalkalaki and will meet the representatives of the Armenian community.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Armenian delegation at PACE issues written statement on Baku massacres

Mary Lazarian

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 16:34, 1 February, 2020

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 1, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian delegation at PACE has issued a written statement on Baku massacres, which has been signed by a number of PACE parliamentarians representing different countries and political groups.

The statement recalls the atrocities against Armenians in Azerbaijani capital, Baku, 30 years ago and urges to condemn xenophobia and racisim in the area of the Council of Europe.

ARMENPRESS reports the National Assembly of Armenia has published the text of the statment, which runs as follows,

“We, the undersigned, declare the following:

On 13-19 January 1990, hundreds of thousands of Armenians living in Baku, Azerbaijani SSR, faced a large scale series of pogroms, the manifestations of Azerbaijani policy of systematic attacks against the ethnic Armenian population. Hundreds of Armenians were murdered, mutilated, persecuted, displaced. Under the threat of extermination, around 250 000 Armenians were forced to flee Azerbaijan.

The Baku massacres became the culmination of the State policy of racism and xenophobia against Armenians (armenophobia). Contrary to the facts recorded by the international community, human rights organisations and the European Parliament (Resolutions of 1988, 1990, 1991), the Azerbaijani authorities deny those crimes and evade responsibility. 30 years after those outrages, there is no respect and compassion for the victims of Armenian massacres in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijanis who tried to speak about the pogroms are officially considered betrayers.

Regarding this, we:

– commemorate the memory of the Baku pogroms victims;

– condemn any manifestation of racism and xenophobia;

– reaffirm that crimes against humanity have no statute of limitations and emphasise that condemnation of past crimes is the most important guarantee for preventing new ones;

– deplore that the organisers and perpetrators of the pogroms have not yet been brought to justice’’.