Author: Andranik Taslakhchian

Miss Universe 2018 Contestants: Meet the 94 Women

Andranik Taslakhchian
Heavy.com
Dec 16 2018
 
 
Miss Universe 2018 Contestants: Meet the 94 Women
 
 
 
Updated Dec 16, 2018 at 1:49pm

Steve Harvey has returned as the host of the Miss Universe Pageant for the 2018 edition of the competition and this year, there are 94 contestants in the running for the title. The show airs live at 7 p.m. ET, on the Fox network, and will follow a slightly different format this year. Instead of kicking off the run of show with the top 16, there will be a top 20. According to Phil Star, the top 20 will then be narrowed down to the top 10. These contestants will then participate in the swimsuit competition and evening gown segment. Many pageants have eliminated the swimsuit competitions from their events, but it remains in the lineup for Miss Universe 2018.

Five out of the top 10 will be narrowed down to the top 5 finalists and they will participate in a question and answer segment. Then, the top 3 will deliver a final word and look before finding out who will be crowned the winner of Miss Universe 2018. To find out more about the candidates participating in this year’s competition, read on below and click through our gallery of all 94 Miss Universe 2018 contestants, starting with the four candidates pictured above (left to right).

Miss Armenia is a 25-year-old woman, who hails originally from Vagharshapat. She is a model as well as a pageant winner. Miss Armenia is also Russian and she actually lives in Moscow, where she studies medical science at the First Moscow State Medical University. Muradyan is the first-ever Armenian entrant in the Miss Universe competition, according to Angelopedia.

[Armenian News note: all info on the other contestants can be read at   ]

Ara Malikian. Il violinista armeno incanta Firenze, foto

Andranik Taslakhchian
OK!Mugello. Notizie cronaca attualità (Comunicati Stampa)– Italia
15 dic 2018
Da Redazione OK!mugello
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sabato 15 Dic 2018                                

                           

Pubblicità

Su OK!Mugello le foto (scattate per noi da Alessandro Morandi) del concerto di Ara Malikian, che si è tenuto nei giorni scorsi all’Obihall di Firenze. Tra i più brillanti ed espressivi violinisti della scena musicale contemporanea, in grado di combinare la tradizione armena con influenze mediorientali ed europee, dalla musica classica al rock, con numerosi premi e riconoscimenti alle spalle – tra cui il prestigioso Premio Niccolò Paganini – torna in Italia per una serie di concerti-performance accompagnato dalla sua band.

Ara Malikian è un violinista armeno/libanese che vive a Madrid. Un musicista crossover che pensa alla musica senza barriere di generi o stili. La sua vita e quella della sua famiglia sono una sintesi della travagliata storia del Medio Oriente, ma i suoi racconti, gli aneddoti, i Witz che punteggiano gli show costringono il pubblico a riderne e sorriderne grazie alla sua travolgente e sottile autoironia ed un talento teatrale che trasforma ogni spettacolo in un vero happening profumato di cardamomo e spezie. D’altra parte il divertimento, l’invito continuo alla danza e alla gioia sono i punti cardine di questa “Increible Gira de Violin” che porta sul palco klezmer, flamenco (Ara scrive le musiche delle nuove star del Flamenco, quali Sara Baras), Medio Oriente, cubano, rock con la disinvoltura, la freschezza, la spontaneità di un grandissimo virtuoso classico che un giorno ha deciso di liberare ogni ritmo atavico scorrente nelle sue vene, ogni influenza, ogni ricordo, ogni emozione per dedicarsi a musica libera da ogni costrizione, a patto che lo emozioni.

Azerbaijani press: Occupation of Azerbaijani lands to never produce political outcome desired by Armenia – FM

Andranik Taslakhchian
20:11 (UTC+04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 14

Trend:

Occupation of the territory of Azerbaijan will never produce a political outcome desired by Armenia, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said, Trend reports.

He was speaking at 39th Meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the BSEC Member States Dec. 14 in Baku, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

Azerbaijan firmly believes in the prosperous future of the Black Sea region and has no doubt that this future can only be built on the basis of the good neighbourhood, mutual respect, humanity and tolerance, the minister said.

“The biggest impediments for the regional cooperation, in particular, in the geography of BSEC are unresolved conflicts,” he said. “For Azerbaijan and Armenia it is Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The military occupation of the territory of Azerbaijan does not represent a solution and will never produce a political outcome desired by Armenia. The principle position of Azerbaijan is running in line with the norms and principles of international law, reaffirmed in the BSEC Charter as well, particularly in respect of states’ territorial integrity, sovereignty within their internationally recognized borders.”

The still ongoing occupation and policies of self-isolation also deprive Armenia of its potential for economic growth and trade in the region, Mammadyarov added.

It also undermines our efforts to build a common regional trade in full respect to each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, he said.

“We hope whenever a new Government will be formed in Armenia upon the mandate of the people of this country we must make a breakthrough next year and build up a good opportunity for bringing peace, stability and prosperity to the region,” he noted.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.


City gone in 30 seconds: How deadly earthquake devastated Soviet Armenia three decades ago

Andranik Taslakhchian
RT- Russia Today
Dec 7 2018
City gone in 30 seconds: How deadly earthquake devastated Soviet Armenia three decades ago (PHOTOS)

Published time: 7 Dec, 2018 12:47 Edited time: 7 Dec, 2018 13:00

The city of Spitak destroyed by a powerful earthquake. December 7, 1988. © Sputnik / Alexandr Graschenkov

The city of Spitak was levelled in just 30 seconds as a powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake unleashed massive destruction across northeast Armenia 30 years ago. The disaster killed at least 25,000 people.

Armenia, a part of the Soviet Union at the time, was hit by a catastrophic quake on December 7, 1988. The tremors struck at 11:41am local time, and the buildings began to collapse almost instantly.

Spitak, which was at the epicenter of the earthquake, was almost entirely levelled in just 30 seconds. It was home to 18,500 residents.

© Sputnik / Alexandr Graschenkov

The violent tremors severely damaged 21 cities and 324 villages. Among them is Armenia’s second-largest city, Leninakan (presently called Gyumri), which, too, got partially demolished by the disaster.

No matter how small or tall, the buildings everywhere folded like a house of cards.

There was a loud bang. Moments later we heard several powerful quakes,” Mariam Karapetyan, who was a daycare center worker during the disaster, recalled.

“My colleague thought that a war had started.”

“We couldn’t see the sky, and felt that everything was covered in smoke,” said Agram Stepanyan. He was 15 at the time, and had to flee for his life.

“Our school turned into chaos. Everyone ran… Two or three people jumped from the second floor windows.”

At least 25,000 people died that day, and around 20,000 more were injured.

Rescuers from all over the Soviet Union came to help clearing the rubble and evacuating the bodies. Several foreign teams also joined in.

One of the rescuers, Andrey Dyachenko recalled how people started to bury the dead in Spitak.

“You could bury three cities with that amount of coffins. That’s how I felt,” he said.

More photos at

It’s been 30 years… The wounds of the devastating earthquake in Spitak have not healed, there are thousands of homeless people

Andranik Taslakhchian
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Today is the 30th anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Spitak. 

On December 7, 1988, at 11:41 local time, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake wreaked havoc in Spitak, Gyumri, Stepanavan, and rural communities on the Spitak-Gyumri road.

Due to the devastating earthquake, 21 cities and districts, 342 villages were affected, 514 thousand people were left homeless, about 20,000 people were injured in various degrees, of which 12,500 people were hospitalized, the number of victims was 25,000 people. 

Despite Cold War tensions, a few days after the earthquake, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev formally requested humanitarian aid from the United States (for the first time since World War II). 113 countries sent significant amounts of humanitarian aid to the Soviet Union in the form of rescue equipment, search teams, and medical supplies, but clandestine donations and donations from non-governmental organizations were also part of international aid. 

Even today, 30 years after the earthquake, the concept of “disaster zone” exists in Armenia. according to various estimates, the number of homeless people exceeds 5-6 thousand, people have been living in dormitories for 30 years.

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Today is the 30th anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Spitak. 

On December 7, 1988, at 11:41 local time, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake wreaked havoc in Spitak, Gyumri, Stepanavan, and rural communities on the Spitak-Gyumri road.

Due to the devastating earthquake, 21 cities and districts, 342 villages were affected, 514 thousand people were left homeless, about 20,000 people were injured in various degrees, of which 12,500 people were hospitalized, the number of victims was 25,000 people. 

Despite Cold War tensions, a few days after the earthquake, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev formally requested humanitarian aid from the United States (for the first time since World War II). 113 countries sent significant amounts of humanitarian aid to the Soviet Union in the form of rescue equipment, search teams, and medical supplies, but clandestine donations and donations from non-governmental organizations were also part of international aid. 

Even today, 30 years after the earthquake, the concept of “disaster zone” exists in Armenia. according to various estimates, the number of homeless people exceeds 5-6 thousand, people have been living in dormitories for 30 years.

Verelq: Acting Prime Minister’s expressions are manifestations of hate speech. RPA headquarters

Andranik Taslakhchian
  • 28.11.2018

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A number of expressions made by the acting Prime Minister yesterday and today are the most obvious manifestations of hate speech, which cross all permissible limits of political struggle, as well as violate a number of human and moral principles, for example, targeting a woman.


This was stated in the message released by the RPA Central pre-election headquarters. “Such behavior is unprecedented in our political culture, especially by a high-ranking official, namely the prime minister responsible for the safety and well-being of all of us.


In our statement, we had the occasion to refer to the abuse of administrative resources by the acting prime minister, one outstanding example of which is that, while officially on vacation, the acting prime minister used to issue threats to elected officials and, in fact, gave the police instructions for mandatory execution.


We invite the attention of the Central Electoral Commission, the Defender of Human Rights and international observation missions to the speeches, behavior and rhetoric of the acting Prime Minister”, – said in the statement of the Central Election Headquarters of the RPA.


Nikol Pashinyan, the leader of the “My Step” alliance in Spitak, addressed the criticisms directed at Sasun Mikayelyan, the candidate of the same alliance, during the campaign, in particular, those criticisms. “Sasun Mikayelyan’s body has an “askolka” equal to your weight. The size of your weight. Who are you defending the Artsakh liberation war from? You, who for many years not only watched and led the looting of the army, but now you want to protect your right to loot the army with your nails. I will not allow you,” Pashinyan declared.


Then he continued his speech, asking: “How, is there still a person in this country who dares to frighten a citizen?” We will make them all lie down on the asphalt, who are these people, what kind of republican, what kind of oligarch, what kind of fat man, what kind of muscle man, we will make you all lie down on the asphalt and you will not get up from those asphalts for years.


And now I say to the police, yes, don’t try to push anyone, don’t try to push a single criminal element, it will become a thief, it will become an authority, we will kill everyone with walls. You will put your heads on the wall, you will scare the citizen, say your names, you should not come out of the holes. Your place is in prisons, you will all end up in prisons. Whether you are a criminal, an authority figure or a thief, don’t mess with these elections, don’t try to coerce the people. Republican village heads, sit in your cabinets and work normally, don’t try to tell the citizen who to vote for. The citizen knows well who to vote for.”

NA President’s appeal to Artsakh citizens. ignore certain announcements

Andranik Taslakhchian
  • 28.11.2018

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Speaker of the National Assembly Ara Babloyan made a statement, with which he appealed to the representatives of Artsakh to leave no response to some of the statements being made during the pre-election days, which are most likely the result of incorrect wording of thoughts. 


“Dear colleagues, dear friends, some events developing during the campaign for the extraordinary parliamentary elections in recent days could not leave me indifferent. These events have compelled me to appeal again to you all as a senior friend.


The 30-year history of the Republic of Armenia has proven that there are values ​​that are not subject to any manipulation, abuse, bargaining, and these values ​​cannot be reduced to the level of personal or political pre-election interests. Artsakh has its own place in those values. Just two years ago, in April, we all confirmed again and made sure that the security of Artsakh and the right to self-determination of our compatriots living in Artsakh are under our care. Each of us showed that we stand behind Artsakh and the people of Artsakh, proved that all our strength is directed to the protection of Artsakh and the people of Artsakh.


Blacks, reds, whites or greens should not exist among us regarding Artsakh. The divisions of political colors, if we cannot give up on them, should be extended exclusively to the political struggle, and Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia have only one unified color, and that is the Armenian tricolor. Moreover, what has been said applies equally to all political forces.


Dear friends, the tricolor is common, just as the security of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia and the future of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia are common. Therefore, I urge all of you to unite around a single position on the issue of Artsakh, by a gentleman’s agreement to remove the subject of Artsakh or the name Artsakh altogether from the everyday vocabulary of pre-election speeches and debates.


I appeal to my brothers and sisters in Artsakh.


Please, in these pre-election days, refrain from inflaming passions and leave no response to some statements that are most likely the result of incorrect wording of thoughts. As I already mentioned, the security and prosperous future of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia is the common goal of all of us,” Ara Babloyan said in the statement.

Armenian acting premier promises full tax exemption to micro businesses

Andranik Taslakhchian
ARKA, Armenia
Nov 28 2018

YEREVAN, November 28. /ARKA/. Amendment of Armenia’s tax code will bring a complete tax exemption to micro businesses, Armenian Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Wednesday at a rally staged in Noyemberyan as part of his party’s election campaign. 

“I can’t say when exactly, since this depends on political things, but as soon as the tax code will be amended, micro businesses will enjoy a full tax exemption,” he said. 

“In other words, those businesses having annual turnover of up to AMD 20-24 million will be exempted from taxes, and such businesses are widespread especially in provinces, including Noyemberyan.” 

Pashinyan said that self-employed taxi drivers will be rid of the necessity of paying for their licenses. 

“We are doing that to promote work and working people in our country,” he said. 

Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan resigned October 16 to clear way for the dissolution of the parliament and holding early parliamentary elections. Under the Armenian Constitution, early elections are held if lawmakers fail twice within 14 days to appoint a prime minister. 

Pashinyan was elected as PM by the country’s National Assembly after former president turned-prime minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned on April 23 under immense public pressure provided by weeks of nationwide protest against Sargsyan and his Republican Party. 

Nine political parties and 2 blocs will be contesting the polls. They  are My Step bloc, the Prosperous Armenia Party, the National Progress Party, the Christian-National Revival, the Sasna Tsrer All-Armenian Party, the Orinats Yerkir Party, the We  bloc, the ARF Dashnaktsutyun Party, the Bright Armenia bloc, the Republican Party of Armenia, the Social Democratic Party and the Decision of Citizen party. -0—

168: Growing interest by third countries in deepening commercial ties is a major success, says EEC Board Chairman

Andranik Taslakhchian
| 13:51 | November 23 2018
Category
BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Tigran Sargsyan delivered remarks during an international conference titled “Eurasian Economic Integration” during which he highlighted the need to pay attention to other global integration projects which will enable to create Eurasian brands and will help the movement of goods of the Eurasian Economic Union to the markets of third countries.

The EEC Board Chairman said the EAEU has proved its effectiveness and stability despite the fact of being a Eurasian structure. He reminded that next year the EAEU member states will mark the 5th anniversary of the contract on the creation of the Union.

The EEC has fixed a growth of mutual trade between the EAEU member states, improvement of the Union’s structure and strengthening of cooperation ties. “This speaks about the fact that the implementation of the main provisions enshrined in the Union’s contract gives positive results for the Union’s economy”, Tigran Sargsyan said.

He highlighted the fact that there is a growing interest by the third countries in the development and deepening of commercial ties with the Union. “This speaks about the fact that the Eurasian Economic Union as an integration union, has been developed”, he said.

Sargsyan also touched upon the current challenges which should be eliminated. He stated that there are some barriers for the implementations of four freedoms. The EEC Board Chairman also emphasized the need to create Eurasian brands.

Investigation ain’t no conviction, tax chief on Gazprom Armenia probe

Andranik Taslakhchian
| 10:12 | October 27 2018
Category
BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Acting Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan attended the conference “Investments and trade”. Parliamentarians, ministers, business representatives, chairmen of trade and industry chambers, representatives of major companies from 20 countries participated in the conference.

Pashinyan saluted the intentions of the businessmen participating in the conference to invest in Armenia. “Unfortunately, not so long ago some people used the words corruption and poverty when referring to our country and emphasized the factor that Armenia is an agrarian country. Following the non-violent, popular velvet revolution of Armenia in April-May we set a task to make Armenia a lawful country and to encourage labor and high technologies. And for reaching this goal we consider businessmen our best allies, who want to make new investments in Armenia. We want to promote labor in the Republic of Armenia and tell each investor to come and do business in Armenia, to become rich and make others rich. We invite every investor to Armenia for recording success and inspiring others by their success”, the acting PM said.

Pashinyan emphasized that today favorable conditions for investments have been created in Armenia, since equality before the law has been established in Armenia. “I think it’s a tragedy when the head of a country is engaged in business and has business interests. I think it’s really a priority factor for promoting business. Therefore, I have good news for all of you. I am out of competition” Pashinyan said.

The participants of the 3-day conference will have the opportunity to get familiarized with the business and investment environment of Armenia, and discuss issues referring to the prospects of investing in Armenia. The delegates will visit various companies, and will get acquainted with the legal and economic specifications of investing in Armenia.