Month: June 2022

Yerevan to host session of CSTO Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils

 09:57, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. Yerevan will host the session of the Committee of Secretaries of the Security Councils of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) on June 17, led by Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, Chairman of the CSTO Committee of Security Council Secretaries Armen Grigoryan, his office said.

During the narrow and extended-format sessions the situation in the CSTO responsibility zone, the measures aimed at eliminating the security challenges and threats facing the CSTO member states, as well as other issues will be discussed.

At the end of the session the Chairman of the CSTO Committee of Security Council Secretaries and the CSTO Secretary General will make a statement.

 10:08, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. 1,008,404 full vaccinations against COVID-19 were registered in Armenia so far, the Ministry of Healthcare said.

Another 27,040 people received the first dose and 55,855 people received the booster shot.

 10:34, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. Team Armenia ended its performances with 7 medals at the European Weightlifting Championships, held in Tirana, Albania.

Bulgaria tops the medals table – 8 medals, followed by Ukraine – 7 medals. Ukraine is the second as its team captured more gold medals.

Armenia was represented at the Championships by 10 athletes.

Armenian weightlifters won 2 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze medals.

 11:32, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. TUMO Boxes opened in Artsakh’s Martuni and Askeran towns on June 5.

These two boxes will comprise the base of the TUMO’s entire educational network in Artsakh, together with the Martakert box and the TUMO Center in Stepanakert.

The TUMO boxes will provide the Artsakh youth with innovative education.

During the opening ceremony of the boxes, the President of Artsakh and the Head of TUMO agreed on expanding the educational network in Artsakh, which will start with the establishment of the TUMO box in Karmir Shuka.

The TUMO Center in Artsakh’s capital of Stepanakert is operating since 2015 with the support of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU).

 12:23, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. 43 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Armenia in the past one week, the ministry of health said.

The total number of confirmed cases has reached 423,006.

10,329 tests were conducted within a week.

No death case has been registered. The death toll stands at 8625.

The number of recoveries rose by 15, bringing the total to 412,621.

The number of active cases is 76.

Armenian Speaker of Parliament receives Kazakhstan's delegation led by Chair of Mazhilis

 13:11, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Alen Simonyan received today the delegation led by Chair of the Mazhilis (lower house) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Erlan Qoşanov who arrived in Armenia on the sidelines of the session of the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliament’s press service said.

Welcoming the counterpart, Alen Simonyan thanked him for being in Armenia at decisive days for Kazakhstan.

“Yesterday your country held a referendum on constitutional amendments, and departing for Yerevan after that important event is appreciated”, the Armenian Speaker of Parliament said.

Touching upon the regional security issues, Simonyan said Armenia is committed to the peace and stability agenda. He said that the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict remains vital for Armenia, adding that it’s not a territorial dispute as presented by the leadership of Baku, but a matter of rights of the local Armenian population. Alen Simonyan asked his Kazakh colleague to contribute to solving the humanitarian issues relating to Nagorno Karabakh.

The sides positively assessed the level of the Armenian-Kazakh multilateral relations based on traditional friendship and mutual understanding. They highlighted the special role of the legislative bodies of Armenia and Kazakhstan, given that the Armenian-Kazakh political relations continue developing at rapid rates. Both sides emphasized the mutual cooperation in international field and the active participation in international organizations.

In turn the Kazakh Mazhilis Speaker said he has conducted his military service in Armenia in the Soviet years, adding that he returned to familiar places, everything here is familiar to him and he will never forget Mount Ararat. He presented the referendum on constitutional amendments, stating that it was a step ahead on the path to democracy. He thanked for the observer mission sent by Armenia for the referendum. Erlan Qoşanov praised the fact that this is his first inter-state visit to Armenia after being elected.

Erlan Qoşanov said that the participation of Armenia and Kazakhstan to the Eurasian integration process opens new opportunities for commercial cooperation, stating that today’s figures do not reflect the real opportunities, especially when there are prospective acceptable projects both in Armenia and Kazakhstan which could be implemented based on mutual benefit.

Erlan Qoşanov invited Alen Simonyan to pay an official visit to Kazakhstan.

At the end of the meeting the Kazakh delegates toured the Armenian Parliament’s buildings.

 13:25, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. A positive progress has been registered in the field of food safety in Armenia in the recent years, Head of the Department of Food Safety at the Food Safety Inspectorate Vahe Danielyan said, calling this a result of not only the good job of the Inspectorate, but also the increase in the level of demand of the society.

“Back in 2007 when the State Food Safety and Veterinary Inspectorate was founded, I was working an inspector in Yerevan that time. During the inspection there was not a single store where we didn’t find a large number of expired products. This was connected not only with the bad control, but also with the lack of awareness among the citizens. The culture of paying attention to the expiry date while buying a good didn’t exist among the citizens. But today the picture is completely different. Today we can find unique cases when expired food is sold”, he said.

However, according to him, looking at only the expiry date of the product is not enough as he says attention should be paid also on the whole information existing on the good, which relates to the consumer. The Inspectorate’s aim is to make citizens pay attention to the full text of the mark through respective awareness-raising campaigns.

There is also positive progress in the approaches of economic entities. Vahe Danielyan says this is seen in the reduction of the number of business suspensions. In 2021 the Inspectorate made decisions on suspending the operation of more than 60 economic entities.

“When we detect non-compliance in any economic entity and apply a restriction, we are consistent that they eliminate the shortcomings after which only we allow them to resume their operation”, he said.

By keeping the problems of the field in focus, the Inspectorate will toughen the control and will carry out large-scale awareness-raising campaigns within the public.

 14:08, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan says that there is a common perception in the context of unblocking of regional communications according to which all transportation infrastructure and roads to be unblocked must operate under the sovereignty and legislation of those countries through which they pass.

While presenting the Foreign Ministry’s 2021 activity at the joint session of parliamentary standing committees, the FM assured that one of the key foreign policy directions has been the unblocking of transportation communications and economic ties in the region.

He reminded that the trilateral working group dealing with the unblocking of regional communications is chaired by the deputy prime ministers of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan. This group held 8 meetings in 2021.

“As an outcome of the meetings of leaders of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan held in Sochi on November 26, 2021 and the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and the President of the European Council held in Brussels on December 15, an agreement over re-launching the railway communication has been reached. Works on this direction continue. There is a common perception that all transportation infrastructure, roads and railways to be unblocked should operate under the sovereignty and legislation of the countries through which they pass”, the FM said.

 15:08, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Zareh Sinanyan is on a working visit to the United States of America, his Office said in a news release.

For the first time, the High Commissioner visited the state of Michigan and held meetings with organizations and representatives of the Armenian community of Detroit.

On his first day visit, Zareh Sinanyan attended the St. John Armenian Church Women's Guild annual membership dinner, where he met with 70 women leaders of the community and was acquainted with their work. The High Commissioner noted the importance of the inspiring activities of women in the community and their contribution to the preservation of the Armenian identity.

Afterwards, High Commissioner Sinanyan visited the Manoogian Manor, an assisted living facility for elderly Armenians and other nationalities, which was opened in 1949 as the first Michigan Home for the Armenian Aged by thirteen dedicated Armenian Women and the entire Armenian Community, and the generous support of Mr. and Mrs. Manoogian. Mr. Sinanyan had the honor of meeting one of the Manor’s oldest residents, 100-year-old Margret who told Mr. Sinanyan stories of her travels to Armenia.

Later on, the High Commissioner sat down with Edmond Y. Azadian and Harry Kezelian from the Armenian Mirror-Spectator at the Edward and Helen Mardigian Library for an in-depth conversation about the work of our Office and the future of Armenia-Diaspora Relations.

Then, Mr. Sinanyan visited the St. John’s Armenian Apostolic Church and complex in Southfield, Michigan which has been the pillar of the Armenian community in Greater Detroit. Very Reverend Father Aren Jebejian and Reverend Father Armash Bagdasarian introduced the High Commissioner to the church’s history and activities. Known for its large golden dome, the expansive church complex is home to the Parish Council, the Women’s Guild, the Komitas Choir, the Church Sunday School, The Armenian Church Youth Organization of America (ACYOA), Detroit Junior and Senior Chapters, the Men’s Society, and the Armenian Heritage & Culture Lyceum. On the church grounds are the complex houses, the Armenian-American Veterans Building, dedicated to veterans of World War II and the Korean War, as well as the Alex & Marie Manoogian Museum, the Edward & Helen Mardigian Library, and Perish Bookstore.

Zareh Sinanyan also visited the Alex & Marie Manoogian Museum which is North America’s largest museum of Armenian art, artifacts, and culture. The museum’s eight galleries offer a unique glimpse of Armenia’s past and present, paintings, sacred vessels and vestments, rugs and carpets, household and personal objects, early printed books, manuscripts, textiles, and ancient objects.

High Commissioner Sinanyan's next visit was at the AGBU Alex & Marie Manoogian School, a tuition-free, multi-cultural school located in Southfield, Michigan that serves students in preschool through 12th grade, with a robust Armenian language program for all grades. The AGBU Alex & Marie Manoogian School’s Middle and High School programs have both been ranked by U.S. World & News Report as high-performing charter STEAM-focused and college-prep schools.

During the tour, High School Principal Dr. Hosep Torossian showed the recent expansion of the school for the STEAM program, which will soon have a fully functioning robotics workshop. Mr. Sinanyan also had the opportunity to speak with the 12th-grade students in their Armenian class and introduce them to the work of our Office and opportunities for youth in Armenia.

High Commissioner Zareh Sinan‎yan's visit to Michigan was concluded with a meeting attended by community leaders from various Armenian churches, educational and cultural organizations in the Greater Detroit area. During the meeting, Mr. Sinanyan presented our Office's programs, emphasizing the importance of professional repatriation and the need for highly skilled employees in the public sector. The meeting was attended by the leadership of multiple key Armenian-American active organizations. Zareh Sinanyan also touched upon the current challenges of Armenia-Diaspora cooperation and our Office's work to create and deepen healthy relations with the Diaspora. The meeting continued in the format of questions and answers. Very Reverend Father Aren Jebejian thanked the High Commissioner for his visit and meetings, stressing the importance of working locally with the community.

 15:15, 6 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 6, ARMENPRESS. The issue of the return of Armenian captives, who are illegally held in Azerbaijan, has been raised last year at different international platforms, various international organizations made statements calling for the release of the captives, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan said during the joint session of parliamentary standing committees, while presenting the ministry’s 2021 activities.

“The works on the release of Armenian prisoners of war and civilians illegally held in Azerbaijan, presenting the issue to high-ranking international officials, heads of state, advisors, human rights organizations and experts continued, with the use of respective procedures of the UN, the CoE, and the OSCE. The issue of the return of captives has been raised during the meetings held within the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship, it was touched upon in the statements of the Co-Chairs, including in the December 7 statement made on behalf of the co-chair countries”, FM Mirzoyan said.

Documents over the issue of captives have been circulated in international organizations in New York, Geneva, Strasbourg, Vienna and Brussels. The FM assures that Armenia’s permanent representatives abroad are always raising this issue during all meetings and events. As a result the UN Special Rapporteur on torture, the Special Rapporteurs on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and the UN Working Group on Enforced Disappearance made a statement titled “Nagorno-Karabakh: captives must be released”.

The issue of Armenian captives was also raised by a number of foreign officials, including the President of the European Commission, the Speaker of the EU External Action Service and over 100 MEPs. The PACE Monitoring Committee released a statement, urging Azerbaijan to return them to homeland.

FM Mirzoyan said that Human Rights Watch has published a report on the result of the visit to Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh which also makes a reference to the torture of Armenian captives, calling it a war crime.

Freedom House also touched upon the issue of the return of Armenian captives.

On May 20 the European Parliament adopted a resolution with 607 of the votes calling for the immediate release and return of Armenian captives.