Month: February 2021

Armenia's Foreign Minister Ara Aivazian on Monday held a phone call with Philip Reeker, the US Acting Assistant Secretary of European and Eurasian Affairs.

The interlocutors exchanged views on issues of bilateral agenda, emphasizing the role of the Armenia-US Strategic Dialogue in advancing and deepening the cooperation agenda. During the conversation, Ara Aivazian and Philip Reeker reiterated their mutual readiness to continue the practical efforts towards the further strengthening of the Armenian-American relations, including through regular contacts and consultations at different levels, expansion of multifaceted cooperation, the Foreign Ministry of Armenia said in a press release. 

During the phone call, the top officials discussed in detail issues of regional security and stability.  In the context of the steps being undertaken to address consequences of the Turkish-Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh, Aivazian drew his interlocutor's attention to the inadmissibility of Azerbaijan’s efforts to create impediments in addressing humanitarian issues, in particular the repatriation of prisoners of war and captured citizens of Armenia.

The sides stressed the need to address the core issues of the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship, as clearly indicated in the December 3 statement of the high representatives of the co-chair countries. FM Aivazian emphasized the importance of multiplying the efforts in fighting against xenophobia to ensure lasting peace and security in the region, including through excluding the recurrence of massive human rights violations.

Dozens of peaceful protesters, including Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF, Dashnaktsutyun) Nikol Aghbalyan Student Union Chairman Taron Ghazaryan and Hayk Manukyan, were detained near the Ministry of Economy in Yerevan on Tuesday morning, the union said in a Facebook post, adding no proper justifications were offered for their detention.

"Sadly, to the detriment of the state, the Armenian Police continue to serve as a puppet in the hands of the current authorities and a guarantor of their criminal activities," the student union added. 

https://www.panorama.am/en/news/2021/02/09/ARF-student-union/2448683

The Azerbaijani military have banned Armenian pilgrims and priests from entering medieval Armenian monastery of Dadivank in Artsakh’s Karvachar region handed over to Azerbaijan as part of the Russian-brokered deal that ended the 44-day war in 2020.

According to the agreement reached through the mediation of Russian peacekeeping troops deployed in the region, Armenian pilgrims were allowed to visit Dadivank starting from the end of November last year. Every Sunday, Russian peacekeepers accompany groups of pilgrims to the monastery, where the faithful participate in the Holy Mass. The monastery is currently controlled by Russian peacekeepers, although Azerbaijani troops have been deployed in the area.

Another group of pilgrims, as well as priests who were to replace those serving in the monastery, set off from the Renaissance Square in Stepanakert, Artsakh in the early morning of February 7. Although the group was accompanied by Russian peacekeepers, they were not allowed to enter the monastery by the Azeri soldiers, who said that they had not been informed about the visit, Artsakhtert.com reported.

They forced the pilgrims to wait in the nearby village of Getavan before they made clarifications. However, when the Russian peacekeepers escorted the group back to Dadivank after three hours, they were again barred from entering it, with the Azerbaijanis stating they had been ordered to ban the entry of not only the pilgrims, but also clergymen into the building.

After lengthy talks, the group had to return to Stepanakert in the evening. The pilgrims asked the Russian peacekeepers to at least transfer the icon by artist Zhanna Khlghatyan they were carrying with them to Dadivank. The Artsakh religious leaders are going to ask the relevant agencies to deal with the issue, the report said.

Father Vahram Melikyan, the spokesman of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, shared the report on his Facebook page, writing: “Let's hope the issues will be settled and all the agreements reached will be respected."

Armenia’s opposition Homeland Salvation Movement continues to release videos telling about the political activity of the coalition’s candidate for interim prime minster, statesman Vazgen Manukyan.

In 1974, Vazgen Manukyan and his supporters launched an initiative called "Feasts of the Translators", which united the entire Armenian intelligentsia. The gatherings of the initiative were attended by the most influential people of the time, the video report said.

Their goal was to create a national club that would allow intellectuals to get to know each other better, communicate with each other, discuss issues in an informal atmosphere and unite around national ideas. When the Karabakh Liberation Movement started in 1988, they realized how important those gatherings were. The intelligentsia immediately united and took action, it noted.

The opposition Homeland Party acts in line with Armenia’s interests and its actions are aimed at removing the country’s “traitor” leader from power, its member Babken Harutyunyan told a news conference on Tuesday.

He said the party’s further moves depends on a specific situation.

The spokesman of the party, Sos Hakobyan, said, in turn, they see the settlement of the issues in the country exclusively through political means.

"The constitutional ways have not been exhausted. In case of generating a certain mass of people we will achieve a change of government,” Hakobyan said.

Referring to the ruling My Step faction’s decision to abandon the plan of holding snap parliamentary elections in the country, he suggested that they had come to realize they would hardly manage to secure a parliamentary majority after the elections.

"In fact, the authorities have painted themselves into a corner. Thousands of people who hoped to see changes after the elections now realize that the only way is to take to the streets," the spokesman said.

Babken Harutyunyan called on all to gather at the Freedom Square in Yerevan in a new rally on February 20.

“We either chose to stay at home and watch a part of our homeland being handed over to the enemy every day, the country finding itself in a worse social and economic situation, or on February 20 we take to the streets to remove the traitorous authorities. We must not give up, we must fight consistently and patiently,” he said, urging people not to fall into despair.

Five more servicemen of the Azerbaijani army were hit by a landmine in Nagorno-Karabakh, the local sources reported. The incident took place in the direction of Talish village. The servicemen have been seriously injured and taken to a military hospital. An investigation regarding the incident is underway, according to reports.