11:02,
YEREVAN, JULY 21, ARMENPRESS. The Military Insurance Fund of Armenia has released a report on the number of its beneficiaries as of July 21, the Fund told Armenpress.
The Fund said that the number of its beneficiaries has changed, and accordingly families of 153 other fallen servicemen have received compensations.
The total number of the beneficiaries of the Fund has reached 4177, 416 of whom became beneficiaries before the 2020 Artsakh war.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
After scores with members of the opposition ‘Armenia’ bloc (who are heads of communities) are settled, members of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun political party will be next. This is what human rights activist Avetik Ishkhanyan wrote on his Facebook page, touching upon the decision of the Constitutional Court of Armenia on the snap parliamentary elections. Ishkhanyan wrote the following:
“Alas, the Constitutional Court left the results of the “elections” unchanged. What are we going to do? Now a little more serious…Dear members of the opposition, did you really have faith in the Constitutional Court? During all these years, didn’t you become convinced that there is no constitution, law and rights in Armenia? There is only the will of one person — the dictator.
No matter what argument you bring up, there was already political terrorism in Armenia — laying down on asphalts, making up criminal cases and arresting heads of communities with oppositional view. Were you expecting the members of the Constitutional Court to commit a heroic act in these conditions? Even if there was some doubt about the decision of the Constitutional Court, the little dictator would at least refrain from taking such steps, at least now. The whole world “congratulated” the little dictator without waiting for the Constitutional Court to announce its decision, and with that, the whole world ignored the Armenian people and you, dear members of the opposition. After scores with members of the opposition ‘Armenia’ bloc (who are heads of communities) are settled, members of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun political party will be next. Continue the struggle constitutionally, ladies and gentlemen, and get ready for the next “elections”.”
18:45,
YEREVAN, JULY 13, ARMENPRESS. Defense Minister of Armenia Vagharshak Harutyunyan received the delegation led by Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia, Colonel-General Sergei Istrakov on July 13, who have arrived in Armenia to participate in regular negotiations in the sidelines of the Armenian-Russian bilateral military cooperation.
As ARMENPRESS was informed from the MoD Armenia, Sergei Istrakov informed Vagharshak Harutyunyan about the directions and scale of the upcoming works, as well as outlines the issues to be discussed. During the meeting the Defense Minister of Armenia indicated the issues of utmost importance for the Armenian side.
07/12/2021 Turkey (International Christian Concern) – YouTube removed a video of Erdogan’s Communications Director, Fahrettin Altun, for “hate speech” against Armenians. The video in question was a recording of Altun’s speech given at an event to remember the assassinations of Turkish diplomats from the 1970s and 1980s by the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia. The event, the Martyr Diplomats Exhibition, was held on April 24 in Istanbul and in Los Angeles, the same day as the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day.
Altun responded to YouTube’s removal of the video by accusing the company of hypocrisy. He said in a tweet that YouTube, “ignores hate speeches against Islam and Muslims and easily opens up space for the terrorist organizations’ smear campaign.” He continued on saying, “we have seen once again that we need indigenous and national platforms in the field of media and communication, as we need in every field.”
Armenian GM Levon Aronian won the preliminaries of the Goldmoney Asian Rapid tournament after scoring two wins and three draws on Monday to get a 10½/15 score, ChessBase reports.
Eight out of the sixteen participants made it into the knockout stage, with 17-year-old Arjun Erigaisi surprisingly qualifying, while Alireza Firouzja, Peter Svidler and Daniil Dubov were left out of contention.
The top scorers were Levon Aronian, Vladislav Artemiev and Ding Liren.
In the remaining matches of the quarterfinals, Aronian will play Arjun, Ding will face Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Artemiev will play against Anish Giri.
Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Recep Tayyip Erdogan discuss Armenian POWs en route to Shushi on June 15
The European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) sent a letter to EU leaders Thursday drawing their attention to the leaked video of a conversation between the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his wife proving Azerbaijan’s instrumentalization of Armenian captives.
The Letter was sent to Charles Michel, President of Council of the European Union, Ursula Von der Leyen, President of European Commission and Josep Borrell, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the Commission.
The video attests that Aliyev’s and his government’s previous public statements on the non-existence of Armenian prisoners of war in Azerbaijan were false, and explicitly proves Aliyev’s intention of using these captives as mere objects of trade and political bargaining.
Below is the full text of the letter:
A recently leaked video of an informal conversation between the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his wife not only attests that Aliyev’s and his government’s previous public statements on the non-existence of Armenian prisoners of war (PoWs), captives in Azerbaijan were false, but also explicitly proves Aliyev’s intention of using these captives as mere objects of trade and political bargaining.
In the video (dating to 15 June 2021) one can clearly hear Erdoğan’s wife asking Ilham Aliyev whether they still have more [Armenian] captives. Aliyev responds to this by “yes, of course, it is in the process”. Erdogan’s wife then comments, saying “then return them in portion by portion”, meaning in stages. The whole conversation implies that the Armenian captives and PoWs should be traded for something else.
Despite this irrefutable evidence of the Armenian captives being held as bargaining chips, we remind you of the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev’s answer to media representatives at press conference on 26 February 2021 and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeyhun Bayramov’s statement at press conference on 15 March 2021 where they both emphazised that there were no Armenian captives held in Azerbaijan.
This video and the developments on the ground prove that Azerbaijani authorities:
Additionally, we recall the fact that since 11 May 2021, the Azerbaijani forces have encroached onto the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia where they still remain illegally, endangering the security of the population in border settlements and generating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation. The US department of State, the French President Emmanuel Macron have urged to pull back all the forces from the sovereign territory of Armenian and cease the provocation. In its resolution adopted by overwhelming majority on 20. May 2021, the European Parliament declared that “the temporary entry of troops from Azerbaijan into the territory of Armenia amount to a violation of the territorial integrity of Armenia and of international law.”
Taking into account all the above-mentioned facts, the resolutions adopted by the European Parliament, as well as by several national parliaments of the EU member states, we a panEuropean grassroots organization, call on you to:
– use all the leverage at your disposal and put pressure on Azerbaijan to ensure an immediate and unconditional release of all the Armenian captives and prisoners of war, as stipulated by the ceasefire statement of 10 November 2020;
– to stand up against the Azerbaijani encroachment on the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia;
– support the creation of a security zone on the border of Armenia with Azerbaijan as an essential prerequisite for a demarcation process which must take place within the framework a comprehensive peaceful settlement, under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk group;
The lives and dignity of human beings should never be an object of trade. The release of the Armenian prisoners of war is a mandatory international requirement, and not an act of goodwill or grace. There is no lasting peace without justice. In order for peace to be sustainable, it has to be viable. As EU citizens we thus call on you to use all the instruments at your disposal to defend the inalienable rights of the indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh and to ensure the realization of the above-mentioned objectives which are a minimal prerequisite for starting any viable peace-process.
FAON thanks Dutch Parliament for the motion regarding Baku
18:36,
YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. The Federation of Armenian Organisations in the Netherlands (FAON) expresses its gratitude to the Dutch Parliament and in particular to MPs Gert Jan Segers (Christian Union) and Tom van der Lee (Left Greens) who presented a motion requesting from the government not to send representatives to Azerbaijan in case the Dutch national football team qualifies to play the quarterfinals, scheduled to be held in Baku on 3 July 2021. This motion was adopted on , ARMENPRESS was informed from the website of FAON.
The Netherlands will play against the Czech Republic in the Euro-2020 UEFA European Football Championship on 27 June, and if the Dutch team wins, it will be qualified to play the quarterfinals in Baku against either Denmark or Wales.
The FAON is relieved that in this way the Dutch King or a Minister will not end up in a situation, where – with their presence – they would help the authoritarian president Aliyev with “sportswashing”.
The motion is based on the fact that since the end of Karabakh war seven months ago, more than 200 Armenian prisoners of war are still illegally held captive, among others in the prisons of Baku, in total violation of international law and the cease-fire statement that was signed on 9 November 2020. The motion also condemns the “Trophy Park” that was inaugurated by Aliyev in Baku, where among others the helmets of fallen Armenian soldiers are exposed.
The human rights situation, the lack of freedom of press and of the _expression_ would have been enough to avoid Azerbaijan to be qualified as a host country, not to speak about the many corruption scandals of Azerbaijan in European institutions and countries.
The manner in which and the means used in the second Karabakh war make it hard to understand that UEFA has maintained Baku as a host city. The violation of UEFA principles such as non-discrimination and anti-racism, with so many examples, such as banning of journalists with an Armenian surname or the way a transgender person was treated, who after being badly beaten up in the streets of Baku, was refused medical treatment in a hospital, should have led UEFA to quickly find an alternative location as host city for the games.
The many protest letters that have been sent internationally to UEFA, and to the national football associations, have so far had no result. A letter by FAON to the Dutch Football Association KNVB still remains without reaction.
That is why preventing government leaders from being present in Baku to the glory of President Aliyev is a way to make visible the global protest against the illegal detention of the prisoners of war.
It must be noted that just days ago the Dutch parliament also passed a motion calling for the immediate release of the Armenian prisoners of war. The motion that was adopted unanimously also requests the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs to call upon the European Council to put more pressure on Azerbaijan regarding the release of all Armenian prisoners of war.
The FAON calls on the parliaments of the Czech Republic, Wales and Denmark to ensure in their own way that if their national team goes to Baku, no government representative from their country will attend the match in Baku.
Expert in security issues, the Head of “Henaket” analytical service Tigran Abrahamyan commented on Facebook the changes Azerbaijan is implementing in the armed forces.
“Azerbaijani media source report about the formation of a new military unit within the structure of the armed forces which will be tasked with carrying out actions in the back of the adversary. Azerbaijan now has the respective unit we learnt about also during the recent war through some videos. It is not yet clear what is the aim of creating the new unit. Azerbaijan, which is voicing readiness to sign a peace agreement, is in active processes both in terms of purchasing new armament and implementing changes in the armed forces,” Abrahamyan wrote, adding “What are the actions of the Armenian leadership in ensuring the security except giving indefinite promises or making silent concessions?”
By Vafa Ismayilova
Azerbaijan’s political parties have described a declaration of alliance signed by the Azerbaijani and Turkish leaders in Shusha on June 15 as a deal of great historical and strategic importance.
In a joint statement made on the signing of the deal, the country’s 48 parties said: “The Shusha Declaration on Allied Relations, signed between the two friendly and fraternal countries on June 15, 2021, 100 years after the historic Treaty of Kars, is of great historical and strategic importance.”
The statement added that the two countries’ joint initiatives to strengthen stability and security in the Caucasus region, restore all economic and transport ties, as well as normalize relations and ensure long-term peace, are the best example for the countries.
“We, the political parties operating in Azerbaijan, consider the Shusha Declaration, signed by Azerbaijan and Turkey in the ancient cradle of the culture of Azerbaijan and the whole Turkic world – Shusha city an important basis for the development of qualitatively new ties between our countries and the future interaction of both countries and state that we support the country in this alliance,” the statement said.
The statement underlined that the declaration brings all strategic relations between the two fraternal countries to the highest level.
“This development of the Azerbaijani-Turkish relations pleases our friends and disappoints those who do not want strengthening, prosperity and security of our country. We, the political parties of Azerbaijan, emphasize the exceptional strategic and historical significance of the Shusha Declaration,” the statement said.
The parties stressed that the document defines the political and legal mechanisms for establishing allied ties between the two countries, which are guided by the principles of independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, inviolability of internationally recognized borders, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, pursue an independent policy aimed at protecting and ensuring national interests.
“The declaration pays special attention to the mutual coordination of the activity of the two fraternal countries to protect common interests, to unite opportunities, including those in regional and international strategic issues of mutual interest,” the statement said.
The parties expressed support for joint consultations and assistance in the context of international law in case of a threat or aggression from a third state or states against the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, inviolability or security of the internationally recognized borders of any of the parties.
“We highly appreciate the provisions enshrined in the declaration in connection with joint efforts to restructure and modernize the armed forces in accordance with modern requirements, implementation of measures aimed at strengthening defence capability and military security, improvement of the skills of joint activity of the armed forces of the two countries, holding regular joint meetings of the Security Councils of both countries on national security issues,” the statement said.
The parties welcomed the intensification of efforts to diversify national economies and export, the opening of the Zangazur corridor, which will significantly contribute to Azerbaijani-Turkish economic ties and connect the two countries in restoring regional transport and communication ties, promoting the development of international transport corridors, developing further cooperation between the Azerbaijani and Turkish diasporas and initiatives to coordinate the activity of the diaspora in bringing the historical truth about the protection of national interests to the world community.
“The Azerbaijan-Turkey relations are currently at their highest peak. The fact that our peoples have the same origin, language, religion, culture, many other common values and close ties have always brought our countries closer together, our peoples have always supported each other in happy and hard days,” it noted.
The parties said that every Azerbaijani and political party member highly valued Turkey’s moral and political support in ending Armenia’s 30-year aggression, liberating Azerbaijan’s lands from the Armenian occupation and restoring the country’s territorial integrity.
BAKU, June 10. /TASS/. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry accused the Armenian military of shelling its positions in Azerbaijan’s Kalbajar District, the ministry reported in a statement published on Thursday.
“The Armenian Defense Ministry made a statement on gunshots aimed at units of the Azerbaijani army in the Kalbajar area of the border. This fact has been confirmed. There are no casualties or injuries among the Azerbaijani troops as a result of the attack,” the message says.
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry deemed the incident “a planned pre-election provocation.”
Renewed clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia erupted on September 27, 2020, with intense battles in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. On November 9, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a joint statement on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the document, the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides remain at their positions, and a number of districts, including the Kalbajar District, come under the control of Baku. Russian peacekeepers were deployed along the engagement line and the Lachin corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh.