Month: December 2020

 16:43, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan held a meeting with the International Committee of the Red Cross Eurasia Regional Director Martin Schuepp.

Schuepp noted that an effective dialogue has been established between the ICRC and Armenia. He also highlighted the cooperation with the inter-departmental commission on POWs, detainees and missing persons.

Issues related to the ongoing work for exchange of prisoners of war and discovering the missing persons and the bodies of the victims were discussed. Avinyan said that everything should be done to accelerate this process.

The Deputy PM said that Armenia is proposing the “all for all” principle in the exchange of prisoners. In addition, a mechanism is proposed which envisages the unconditional return of any other prisoners who could be discovered afterwards.

The sides also addressed the humanitarian situation in Artsakh and the issues of providing necessary assistance to the affected people.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 16:49, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS.  The government of Armenia is lifting the restrictions of the martial law which banned gatherings and strikes, the special entry and exit regime to/from the territory of Armenia and the restrictions on cetain types of publications, the Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister’s Office Eduard Aghajanyan said in a statement.

It is understood that the martial law will remain in force without the restrictions.

Aghajanyan said they will publish the official decree on lifting the restrictions shortly. 

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 17:13, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, 2 DECEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 2 December, USD exchange rate up by 2.16 drams to 509.14 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 6.36 drams to 613.77 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.07 drams to 6.73 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 2.37 drams to 679.29 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price up by 911.40 drams to 29640.58 drams. Silver price up by 24.21 drams to 385.25 drams. Platinum price up by 248.05 drams to 16205.54 drams.

 17:24, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. Spain has notified the General Secretariat of the European Council and the Council of the EU about the completion of its internal procedures necessary for the ratification of the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA), Armenian foreign ministry spokeswoman Anna Naghdalyan said on Facebook.

“On 30 November 2020, Spain notified the General Secretariat of the European Council and the Council of the EU about the completion of its internal procedures necessary for the ratification of the Armenia-EU CEPA”, the MFA spokeswoman said.

Armenia and the EU signed the CEPA in November 24, 2017 in Brussels.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

First time in decades, Armenia won't install national New Year Tree as nation mourns fallen heroes

 17:34, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. The national New Year tree, traditionally installed at the Republic Square in Yerevan, won’t be installed this year, the Yerevan City Hall spokesperson Hakob Karapetyan told ARMENPRESS. This is the first time in decades that the national New Year Tree isn't installed. 

In addition, there won’t be any other New Year decorations in the city as Armenia is mourning the victims of the war, with the issues of the POW return and search for those missing still unresolved. 

“This year the New Year Tree won’t be installed in the [Republic] Square. The City Hall has also decided that no other New Year decorations will be installed in the city,” Karapetyan said.

Earlier on November 24, the City Hall donated 100,000,000 drams that was originally intended for New Year decorations to Stepanakert City for reconstruction after the Azeri bombings during the war.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 19:01, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. President of the Public Council of Armenia Styopa Safaryan has addressed a letter to the ambassadors of the member states of the OSCE Minsk Group, calling on to pay a special visit to Azerbaijan to prevent the violation of rights of captured Armenian servicemen and civilians, as well as make all efforts to assist the International Committee of Red Cross to accelerate the exchange process of POWs.

“Welcoming the fact that the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries have strongly condemned at the leaders’ level the use of force in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict zone, we at the same time regret that the name of the initiator of the aggressive war against Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh has not been mentioned till now. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan, which is the initiator of the third such aggression since 1990, even after the ceasefire established by Russia’s mediation, continues new military crimes ignoring all international norms and obligations.

Point 8 of the trilateral statement signed on November 10, 2020, concerns the exchange of prisoners of war, detainees and other civilian and killed persons. There is no concrete timetable for conducting the safe exchange of our compatriots in that statement. Azerbaijan continues violating the demands of the ceasefire, delays the process of ensuring the return of the prisoners of war and civilians, applying inhuman treatment against them. We ask you to take immediate steps and put pressure and give an urgent solution to the issue”, reads the letter.

The full text of the letter is available in Armenian.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

 17:50, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. 1168 more residents of Artsakh have returned home in one day with the assistance of the Russian peacekeepers who are on a mission in Nagorno Karabakh, the Russian defense ministry reports.

Since November 14, 2020, more than 27,000 people have returned to Artsakh with the support of the Russian peacekeepers.

“The study process has resumed today at the Stepanakert school no. 8. The classes restored with the help of Russian peacekeepers”, the ministry said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

 19:50, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani forces have inhumanely treated numerous ethnic Armenian military troops captured in the conflict over Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights Watch said today. They subjected these prisoners of war (POWs) to physical abuse and humiliation, in actions that were captured on videos and widely circulated on social media since October.

The videos depict Azerbaijani captors variously slapping, kicking, and prodding Armenian POWs, and compelling them, under obvious duress and with the apparent intent to humiliate, to kiss the Azerbaijani flag, praise Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, swear at Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and declare that Nagorno-Karabakh is Azerbaijan. In most of the videos, the captors’ faces are visible, suggesting that they did not fear being held accountable.

“There can be no justification for the violent and humiliating treatment of prisoners of war,” said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Humanitarian law is absolutely clear on the obligation to protect POWs. Azerbaijan’s authorities should ensure that this treatment ends immediately.”

Although some of the prisoners depicted in videos Human Rights Watch reviewed have, in subsequent communications with their families, said they are being treated well, there are serious grounds for concern about their safety and well-being.

International humanitarian law, or the law of armed conflict, requires parties to an international armed conflict to treat POWs humanely in all circumstances. The third Geneva Convention protects POWs “particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity.”