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Author: Antonian Lara

UK supports OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship format on NK conflict settlement – Ambassador

Antonian Lara

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 16:25,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan received today Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Armenia John Gallagher, the foreign ministry said.

FM Mirzoyan expressed gratitude for the UK’s constant support to the democratic reforms, the strengthening of the rule of law and the fight against corruption in Armenia.

The minister and the Ambassador exchanged views on the Armenian-British bilateral agenda, highlighting trade, science, IT and tourism as prospective areas for cooperation.

They also discussed the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) which will be held in Glasgow, UK, this year in November, as well as the participation of the Armenian side to the summit.

Coming to issues relating to regional security and stability, the Armenian FM emphasized the importance of the lasting and comprehensive settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict under the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship. The Ambassador stated that the United Kingdom supports the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship format.

The Armenian FM also highlighted the necessity of an unrestricted entry for international organizations to Artsakh aimed at conducting humanitarian mission.

 

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Russia plans to invest $1 bln in the Armenian economy in the near future

Antonian Lara
TASS, Russia
Oct 19 2021
Business & EconomyOctober 19, 13:57

YEREVAN, October 19. /TASS/. Russia plans to invest $1 billion in the Armenian economy in the near future, Deputy Economic Development Minister Dmitry Volvach said at a briefing on Tuesday on the sidelines of the 8th Armenian-Russian Interregional Forum.

“Our mutual trade is recovering quite well — a 17% growth in 2021. This is despite the fact that it fell by almost 4% in the pandemic year. Our investment cooperation is growing: there are more than $2.2 billion of jointly accumulated investments from Russia to Armenia. We know that there are specific projects to the tune of more than $1 bln, which will soon go to the Armenian economy,” he said.

According to Volvach, the investments will become a significant contribution to the development of economic, social, and cultural relations between Russia and Armenia. In particular, they will contribute to the creation of new high-tech jobs and facilitate exchange in various areas of the economy, culture, and infrastructure development.

“According to statistics, currently, Russian investments account for 40% of foreign investments in the Republic of Armenia. It seems to me that it is quite logical at least to maintain this share. It is clear that there are investments from other countries, from other partners, but I hope that Russia and Russian business will retain their role and significance in the Armenian economy,” he added.

In turn, Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov confirmed that in the coming years, Russian companies are ready to invest about $1 billion in the Armenian economy. “Our trade turnover has already exceeded the pre-covid indicators, and Russian companies are among the largest taxpayers in Armenia,” he added.

The forum is sponsored by Russia’s Economic Development Ministry and Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of Armenia. Russian-Armenian interregional forums have been held since 2011 to expand cooperation between the regions of the two states.

RFE/RL – Thousands Rally In Tbilisi In Support For Jailed Ex-President Saakashvili

Antonian Lara
October 14, 2021 16:06 GMT
  • By RFE/RL’s Georgian Service

WATCH: Drone Shots Show Tbilisi Filled With Saakashvili Supporters

TBILISI — Thousands of people have gathered in the center of the Georgian capital demanding the release of jailed former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, whose detention earlier this month deepened a protracted political crisis in the South Caucasus country.

Shouting slogans such as “Free Misha” and waving national flags, the protesters filled Tbilisi’s Freedom Square and the city’s main thoroughfare, Rustaveli Avenue, in the evening of October 14.

Busloads of riot police were deployed outside the parliament building ahead of the demonstration, according to footage aired on television.

The 53-year-old Saakashvili declared a hunger strike following his arrest on October 1 and incarceration in the city of Rustavi, hours after he announced he had returned to Georgia following an eight-year absence.

Saakashvili was convicted in absentia in 2018 and had lived in Ukraine in recent years.

In an address read out by his lawyer Nika Gvaramia to the protesters, Saakashvili said he had come back to Georgia to “contribute to the struggle of the Georgian people against poverty, corruption, injustice, destruction.”

He also called for the government linked to billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, to be “defeated” and for Georgia to return to its pro-Western path.

Ahead of the demonstration, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told journalists that “inmate Saakashvili’s sole goal is to stir up destabilisation and upheaval in the country.”

The rally ended without reported incident after the participants sang the Georgian national anthem on Freedom Square.

Last month, Saakashvili announced plans to fly home for the October 2 nationwide local elections despite facing prison, claiming he wanted to help “save the country,” amid political turmoil triggered last year after opposition parties said elections won by Georgian Dream were rigged.

In this month’s vote, Georgia’s main opposition force — the United National Movement (ENM) that Saakashvili founded — was outpolled decisively by Georgian Dream.

However, the party’s mayoral candidates failed to surpass the required 50 percent threshold in the key cities of Tbilisi, Batumi, Kutaisi, Poti, and Rustavi and runoffs are scheduled for October 30.

Georgia’s president from 2004 to 2013, Saakashvili was sentenced in 2018 to a total of nine years in prison in absentia after being convicted of abuse of power in two separate cases. The ex-president has rejected all charges as politically motivated.

Saakashvili’s doctor, Nikoloz Kipshidze, said on October 10 he needed to be transferred to hospital as his condition was worsening.

The Justice Ministry later said that Saakashvili’s “health condition is satisfactory.”

With reporting by AFP and Civil.ge

RFE/RL’s Georgian Service is a trusted source of politically and financially independent journalism in a country where much of the media is aligned with the government or the opposition.

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 10/06/2021

Antonian Lara 
                                        Wednesday, October 6, 2021
Armenian FM Expects More Talks With Azeri Counterpart
October 06, 2021
        • Karlen Aslanian
Armenia - Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan speaks in the parliament, Yerevan, 
October 6, 2021
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said on Wednesday that he and his Azerbaijani 
counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov will meet again soon for peace talks mediated by the 
U.S., Russian and French co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group.
Mirzoyan gave no dates for the meeting. He said only that he and Bayramov agreed 
to continue their direct contacts during talks held in New York on September 24 
in the presence of the three mediators.
It was the first face-to-face meeting of Armenia’s and Azerbaijan’s top 
diplomats since a Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement that stopped the 
Armenian-Azerbaijani war in Nagorno-Karabakh last November.
In a joint statement on the New York talks, the co-chairs said they “proposed 
specific focused measures to deescalate the situation and possible next steps.” 
They did not disclose those proposals.
“The resumption of discussions, the negotiating process in this format is 
definitely in the interests of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh,” Mirzoyan said 
during the Armenian government’s question-and-answer session in the parliament.
He said the very fact of such negotiations disproves Azerbaijani claims that 
that Azerbaijan ended the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with its victory in the 
six-week war.
It is also expected that the three mediators will visit Armenia, Azerbaijan and 
Karabakh soon.
Deputy Prime Minister Suren Papikian announced, meanwhile, that Azerbaijan has 
set free an Armenian army officer who went missing on Armenia’s border with 
Azerbaijan in August.
The Armenian Defense Ministry suggested at the time that the 32-year-old 
Lieutenant Artur Davidian lost his way and strayed into Azerbaijani-controlled 
territory in thick fog.
Azerbaijan continues to hold dozens of other Armenian soldiers and civilians 
captured during or shortly after the war stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire 
last November. Yerevan regularly demands their unconditional release and 
repatriation.
Iran Warns Against Redrawing Of South Caucasus Borders
October 06, 2021
        • Aza Babayan
        • Karlen Aslanian
Russia - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (right) and his Iranian 
counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian hold a joint news conference, Moscow, 
October 6, 2021.
Iran strongly opposes any redrawing of borders in the South Caucasus, Iranian 
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said after meeting with his Russian 
counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Wednesday.
Amir-Abdollahian visited Russia amid Iran’s mounting tensions with Azerbaijan 
that followed Baku’s decision last month to levy hefty fees from Iranian trucks 
transporting goods to and from Armenia.
He said on his arrival in the Russian capital late on Tuesday that Tehran 
expects Moscow to “react to possible changes in regional countries’ borders.” He 
also echoed Iranian allegations that Baku is harboring Middle Eastern 
“terrorists” as well as Israeli security personnel near Iran’s borders.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev angrily denied the accusations on Monday. He 
earlier criticized large-scale Iranian military exercises that began along the 
Azerbaijani border last week.
Earlier on Monday, a senior Iranian parliamentarian reportedly accused Aliyev of 
trying to “cut Iran’s access to Armenia” with the help of Turkey and Israel.
The Azerbaijani leader has repeatedly threatened in recent months to forcibly 
open a land “corridor” that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave 
via Armenia’s Syunik province bordering Iran. All Armenian roads leading to Iran 
also pass through Syunik.
Speaking at a joint news conference with Lavrov held after their talks, 
Amir-Abdollahian reiterated that any “changes in the region’s map” are 
unacceptable to Iran. He indicated that the issue was on the meeting’s agenda.
Armenia/Iran - The Arax river separating Armenia and Iran.
The Russian foreign minister said they discussed “the situation in the South 
Caucasus” but did not comment on the unprecedented Azerbaijani-Iranian row. He 
said only that Moscow, which has deployed Russian troops in Syunik over the past 
year, is against any “provocative” war games in the region.
“Azerbaijan is expressing concern over recent military exercises held by our 
Iranian friends near its borders,” Lavrov told journalists.
Amir-Abdollahian countered that Azerbaijani and Turkish troops have held six 
joint drills in Azerbaijan so far this year.
Lavrov also stressed the importance of “unblocking all transport and economic 
links in that region” after last year’s Armenian-Azerbaijani war.
“That will benefit not only Armenia and Azerbaijan but also Georgia … as well as 
Iran, Russia and Turkey, the nearest neighbors of the three South Caucasus 
republics,” he said. “In this context, we discussed today the [Turkish] 
initiative to create a ‘three plus three’ format: the three South Caucasus 
countries and their three big neighbors: Russia, Iran and Turkey. Our Iranian 
friends have a positive attitude to this initiative.”
Amir-Abdollahian flew to Moscow on Tuesday one day after meeting with Armenian 
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Tehran. The latter accused Baku of 
misrepresenting Russian-brokered agreements that call for the opening of 
transport links between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“In this regard, we highly appreciate Iran’s position on Armenia’s territorial 
integrity and the inviolability of its borders,” Mirzoyan said after talks with 
his Iranian counterpart.
Armen Grigorian, the secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, likewise insisted 
on Wednesday that any road and/or railway connecting Nakhichevan to the rest of 
Azerbaijan would be under full Armenian control.
“There will be no sovereign corridor in Armenia,” Grigorian told RFE/RL’s 
Armenian Service. “That is, Armenia will control its entire territory.”
Azerbaijan Resumes Armenia Overflights
October 06, 2021
        • Lilit Harutiunian
        • Artak Khulian
RUSSIA -- A Boeing 787 Dreamliner of the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) flies in 
Moscow, April 8, 2015
An Azerbaijani passenger plane flew over Armenia on Wednesday for the first time 
in seven years.
Azerbaijan’s national airline AZAL said it has started again using Armenian 
airspace for its flights from Baku to Nakhichevan, an Azerbaijani exclave 
separated from the rest of the country by Armenia and Iran. It said this will 
shorten travel time between the two cities and thereby cut the cost of those 
flights.
“This step demonstrates Azerbaijan’s resolute readiness to unblock regional 
transport links, which corresponds to the interests of all neighboring 
countries,” the state-run carrier said in a statement.
The statement came the day after Iran banned, according to Azerbaijani media 
reports, Azerbaijani military planes from flying over the Islamic Republic en 
route to Nakhichevan. Tensions between Tehran and Baku have risen dramatically 
since Azerbaijani authorities began on September 12 demanding hefty fees from 
Iranian vehicles using the main Armenia-Iran highway.
Armenia’s Civil Aviation Committee confirmed the AZAL announcement. It said that 
despite the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Armenia and Azerbaijan had never formally 
closed their airspaces for each other’s civilian flights.
A statement by the government agency said the Azerbaijani side stopped using 
Armenia’s airspace for Baku-Nakhichevan flights in November 2014 “at its own 
initiative.” By contrast, airlines have since continued to carry out flights to 
and from Yerevan over Azerbaijan, added the statement.
An Armenian pro-government lawmaker, Hayk Sargsian, claimed, however, that 
Armenia had similarly “refused to carry out flights through Azerbaijan’s 
airspace.” “By the same token, we can now start using their airspace,” he said.
A Russian-brokered agreement that stopped last year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh 
commits Armenia and Azerbaijan to opening transport links between the two South 
Caucasus states. The Russian, Armenian and Azerbaijani governments set up a 
joint task force for that purpose in January.
It emerged recently that Azerbaijan’s ally Turkey banned Armenian aircraft from 
its airspace on September 9, 2020, less than three weeks before the outbreak of 
the Karabakh war. The Civil Aviation Committee confirmed that Yerevan never 
retaliated by imposing a similar ban on Turkish carriers.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

Sports: Armenia’s Malkhas Amoyan named World Wrestling Champion

Antonian Lara
PanArmenian, Armenia
Oct 9 2021
October 9, 2021 – 12:39 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenia’s Malkhas Amoyan clinched gold in the 72 kilogram division on the first day of Greco-Roman finals at the United World Wrestling (UWW) World Championships in Oslo.

Amoyan earned the under-72kg title as he won 3-1 in the gold medal bout against Sergei Kutuzov of Russia, the Armenian National Olympic Committee reports.

Lithuania’s Kristupas Šleiva notched a 10-1 victory by superiority over Iran’s Mohammad Reza Hojatollah Mokhtari to take bronze, with Poland’s Gevorg Sahakyan – who is of Armenian descent – defeating Cengiz Arslan to finish joint third.

Saturday, October 9 features three Greco-Roman finals in the under-60kg, under-97kg and over-130kg, with two Armenian athletes left to fight for medals.

Pashinyan speaks about negotiations on building new nuclear power plant in Armenia

Antonian Lara

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 20:09, 6 October, 2021

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia NIkol Pashinyan informed about the negotiations on building a new nuclear power plant in Armenia, ARMENPRESS reports Pashinyan said during the parliament-Cabinet Q&A session, answering the question of MP Sergey Bagratyan representing Civil Contract Party.

Bagratyan reminded that recently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of GeoProMining Company announced about investing 2 billion USD in mining, he also spoke about 1.5 billion investment to build a new copper smelter.

“Let’s note that for the first time since the 2000s, Armenia and the people of Armenia are co-owners of the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine. I hope that this share will increase, but to such an extent that it will not distort the market nature of our economy,” Pashinyan said.

The Prime Minister noted that when it was announced that the Government was becoming the co-owner of the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine, there were opinions that there was a dark and suspicious deal. “If the owner of that 15 percent was not the Government, but an offshore company, and the owner of that offshore company was another offshore company, and the offshore owner was a member of the Prime Minister’s or any minister’s family, then it would be a dark deal,” he said.

Pashinyan noted that there are people sitting in the part of the hall representing the opposition who have made such deals during their activities, and believes that law enforcement agencies should seriously investigate into those deals to find out their cause and effect, including potentially treacherous deals.

An offer was made to Armenia by one of the owners of “Geopromining” company, a member of the Board of Directors, we discussed the offer, we saw that the offer corresponds to the economic and state interests of Armenia. “This includes two very important components: the first is the construction of a copper smelter, which means that Armenia will no longer export concentrate and import ready-made copper from somewhere else to be used in other products, but copper will be produced in Armenia. Second, the construction of a new nuclear power plant is part of this program, and this large company has undertaken investment commitments for the establishment of a copper smelter, which has been duly recorded, and negotiations on the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia have already started”, PM Pashinyan said, adding that the participation of the Government in that process is important for that the nuclear power plant cannot be a fully private company, the Government should have active participation in it.

Pashinyan noted that now the Government’s task is that the construction of a new copper smelter kicks off by June 2025. “And we must try to make the construction of the nuclear power plant happen in parallel. It would be good if the operation of the copper smelter and the nuclear power plant coincide,” he said.

Together we can implement small but significant projects – President Sarkissian receives OIF Secretary General

Antonian Lara

 

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 19:47, 4 October, 2021

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 4, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian received on October 4 Secretary General of the Organization of La Francophonie Louise Mushikiwabo and the delegation led by her.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the President’s Office, Louise Mushikiwabo noted that following being elected head of the Organization duirng the 17th summit of the Organization of La Francophonie in Yerevan in 2018, she is glad to return to Armenia and to discuss the cooperation directions with the President of the country, as well as listen to his approaches over the development of partnership in the sidelines of the Organization of La Francophonie.

Presenting the main directions and programs of the Organization, the Secretary General emphasized that the Organization pays great attention to young people-oriented programs, trying to create different platforms and opportunities for them, as well as the development of economic cooperation between the member states in different directions and dimensions.

Welcoming Louise Mushikiwabo’s visit to Armenia, President Sarkissian touched upon the directions where it is possible to establish effective cooperation with the member states of the Organization. In particular, he noted that the 6th STARMUS International Science and Art Festival to be held in Armenia next year is a good opportunity to involve young people from the member states, to create connections between them, to promote cooperation in science and art.

According to President Sarkissian, another opportunity for cooperation may be formed around the idea of establishing a club of Little and Smart Countries. “Together we can implement small but significant projects’’, President Sarkissian said.

Taking into account the existence of Armenia’s preferential economic regimes with both the Eurasian Economic Union and the European Union, the President said that Armenia can be interesting for business and investments of Francophone countries. The sides also spoke about the cooperation opportunities within the framework of the presidential ATOM initiative aimed at technological and scientific-technical development.

President Sarkissian also invited the representatives of the member states of the Organization to take part in the “Armenian Summit of Thought” to be held in Armenia, the main topics of which will be dedicated to global, regional geopolitics and new technologies.

Louise Mushikiwabo said that the presented directions really have a great potential for the development of cooperation.

Azerbaijani press: US trying to find opportunities to create co-op between Azerbaijan and Armenia – ambassador

Antonian Lara
4 October 2021 17:45 (UTC+04:00)
478

By Trend

The US is trying to find opportunities to create cooperation between Azerbaijan and Armenia, US Ambassador to Azerbaijan Earle Lee Litzenberger said answering questions of journalists, Trend reports.

Litzenberger called it obvious that a number of unresolved issues remain between the two countries after the end of the 2020 second Karabakh war.

Following over a month of military action to liberate its territories from Armenian occupation from late Sept. to early Nov. 2020, Azerbaijan has pushed Armenia to sign the surrender document. A joint statement on the matter was made by the Azerbaijani president, Armenia’s PM, and the president of Russia.

A complete ceasefire and a cessation of all hostilities in the zone of the Karabakh conflict were introduced on Nov. 10, 2020.

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, the Armenian Armed Forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Armenian President congratulates China’s Xi on PRC 72nd anniversary

Antonian Lara

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 13:02, 1 October, 2021

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 1, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian has sent a congratulatory letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping on the 72nd anniversary of the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China, the Armenian President’s Office said.

“I warmly congratulate you and the people of China on the 72nd anniversary of the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China. With your skilled leadership and vision to the future, China has decisively determined its place and role in the international arena and is confidently moving on a progressive path.

Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Armenian-Chinese diplomatic relations. Armenia attaches great importance to the consistent and stable development of the partnership with China, in particular the promotion of cooperation within the Belt and Road important initiative.

Despite the challenges caused by the pandemic, I believe that we will demonstrate a decisive will for the implementation of joint programs and initiatives. I hope that our relations, which are based on the rich experience of the past and the ancient civilizational values, will continue to develop and expand for the benefit of our states and for the welfare of our nations”, reads the President’s letter.

 

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Palestinian-Armenian dispute over Jerusalem land deal intensifies

Antonian Lara
Arab News, Saudi Arabia
Sept 24 2021




Palestinians in Bethlehem protest against the selling of land to Israelis. (AP/File)

DAOUD KUTTAB

  • Israeli municipality and Armenians agreed to turn a piece of sensitive land in the old city into a parking lot, but ‘one could smell a rat’

AMMAN: A land row between Palestinians and an Armenian church in Jerusalem has intensified with the head of the Higher Presidential Committee of Church Affairs in Palestine appealing for peace to the religious and political leadership in Armenia.
An agreement between the Armenians and Israeli Jerusalem municipality to turn a piece of sensitive land in the old city of Jerusalem into a parking lot took effect on Jan. 1. Jewish residents of the Old City have had exclusive use of the parking lot, which has caused concern among the Palestinian leadership and members of the tiny Armenian community. 


Officials of the Armenian Patriarchate insisted that the contract with the Israeli Jerusalem municipality and the Jewish-centric Jerusalem Development Authority does not constitute selling or leasing land but is simply a financial operation.
The Higher Presidential Committee of Church Affairs in Palestine wrote to Armenian Patriarch Nourhan Manoogian reminding him that the Armenian quarter is part of occupied Palestinian territories where UN resolutions, including the 2017 UNSC Resolution 2334, apply.
Letters by senior Palestinian officials were also sent to the Catholicos of All Armenians Patriarch Karekin II, calling land transactions in the Armenian Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem a violation of international law since the area inside the Old City of Jerusalem is an “integral part of the Palestinian occupied territories” governed by relevant international resolutions.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry has also been “urged to intervene,” a statement by the Higher Presidential Committee stated.
The dispute follows the secrecy over land deals in the Old City of Jerusalem organized by the Armenian patriarchate in Jerusalem in cooperation with the Israeli institution.
Ramzi Khoury, the president of the Higher Presidential Committee of Churches in Palestine, told Arab News that the aim of the letters sent to Armenian officials is to force the church in Jerusalem to open up and coordinate with us: “Our main goal is to uncover what is hidden.”
The letters were sent twice, but there was no response.
While Khoury focused on a 10-year lease to the Israeli municipality of an empty plot to be turned into a parking lot, he did not specify a much more serious deal with a Jewish Austrian investor to lease the same land for 99 years to build a large hotel in a sensitive area between the Armenian and Jewish quarters.
Sources in the Armenian Patriarchate say that the hotel deal is opposed by the majority of the Armenian St. James Synod which has not met in more than three years.
A senior Armenian leader from Jerusalem told Arab News on condition of anonymity that he has always suspected a much bigger deal than the parking lot one: “From when the patriarch and his director of real estate began their effort, one could smell a rat.”
The Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem Archbishop Sevan Gharibian and the head of the real estate department Rev. Baret Yeretsian are accused of going against the wishes of their own synod and that of the nearly 1,000 Armenian Christians who live in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
In a statement issued on Sept. 22 by the chair of the Armenian Patriarchate Synod, the church said that they had ratified the agreement and noted that the lease provides “a steady income of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to support the Armenian patriarchate.”
The statement signed by Father Samuel Aghazian admitted that a “luxurious hotel structure” would be built based on a long-term lease without imposing any risk to the full and exclusive ownership of this land.
An Armenian website Keghart called what is happening in Jerusalem a scandal. In an editorial on Aug. 31, the publication reminded the Armenian patriarch that the Armenian Quarter and other “Patriarchate-owned” real estate does not even belong to the Armenian Church or to the St. James Brotherhood.
“They are the possessions of the Armenian nation. Every last inch of holy land Armenian property was purchased through the donations of Armenian pilgrims, nobility, kings, and charitable organizations over a millennium. Twice in recent centuries, the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem was bankrupt and was close to losing all its real estate. It was rescued by Armenian merchants and regular Armenian patriots.”
The Keghart editorial supported Palestinian and international law by concluding that “every inch of the holy land falls under strict local and international laws hence no one has the right to split up that one entity into different trading parts.”