Author: Arsine Chaltikian

Armenia steps up mental health community services for populations affected by the armed conflict with WHO and EU support

 21:21,

YEREVAN, JUNE 17, ARMENPRESS. The World Health Organization (WHO) in cooperation with the European Commission and Ministry of Health of Armenia (MoH) launched the Mental Health Gap Action Program (mhGAP) in Armenia for populations affected by armed conflict, ARMENPRESS was informed from WHO Armenia Office.

With the slogan – Mental Health for All! – the mhGAP programme in Armenia aims at   strengthening community-based mental health care to reduce mental health and psychosocial suffering and promote the wellbeing of population affected by armed conflict, thus improving their access to mental health and psychosocial support. The mhGAP programme will be implemented in Yerevan and four Marzes- Kotayk, Ararat, Gegharkunik, and Syunik, ensuring that 20% of the primary health care facilities in these regions are enabled to provide quality and evidence-based community mental health and psychosocial support. 

On 16 June, the main aims and objectives of the mhGAP programme were presented during the meeting with head of the EU delegation to Armenia Andrea Wiktorin, representatives of European Commission’s Directorate-General for EU Neighborhood and Enlargement, local government, and civil society. 

Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin emphasized the importance of the mental health and the role of the joint mhGAP programme in addressing this issue. “Putting mental health as one of the priorities in healthcare agenda will improve the well-being of individuals, families and communities” said the Ambassador. 

“Ministry of Health highly appreciates this important partnership with WHO and EU. The mhGAP program has a great potential to improve access to quality mental health services in the communities and to address the mental health conditions and psychosocial suffering of the population affected by the armed conflict” said Kristine Galstyan, mhGAP programme focal point at the MoH. 

The launch was followed by a stakeholder meeting in Kapan city, Syunik, with the presence of MoH and WHO representatives, and Syunik Regional Administration and Managers of the health care facilities. The participants discussed mental health service gaps in the Marze and opportunities of providing quality and timely Mental Health interventions for people in need at the primary health care and community levels.    

WHO representative to Armenia, Dr. Jihane Tawilah, said, “To bring about real change, we need to work towards building more resilient systems in Armenia. We hope that the mhGAP programme will facilitate continuous capacity building of primary healthcare workers and create both momentum and experience for a national policy that scale up the integration of mental health care within primary health services in Armenia” ․ 

The Mental Health Gap Action Program, launched globally by WHO in 2008, is to enable scale-up of services for mental, neurological and substance use conditions in non-specialized health care settings. 

Implementation of the Mental Health Gap Action Program (mhGAP) in Armenia is a joint effort of the European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid department, World Health Organization and Ministry of Health of Armenia. The program will provide evidence-based guidance and tools to integrate mental health into general health care provision in Yerevan and 4 Marzes of Armenia, supporting health workers in their daily practice and ensuring access to quality care for the population affected by the armed conflict.

 11:02,

YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan has expressed hope for increasing the bilateral trade between Armenia and Qatar in an interview to Al Jazeera.

“I should say that in Armenia we have very positive approach towards the Arabic world because we have traditional relations, and now I hope to have the increase of bilateral trade between Qatar and Armenia because we have very good political atmosphere in our bilateral relations with this great country”, the PM said.

Session of CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers launched in Yerevan

 10:13,

YEREVAN, JUNE 10, ARMENPRESS. The session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) chaired by Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan launched in Yerevan on June 10.

Firstly, the session will be held in a narrow format, then in an extended format, followed by the joint press conference of Armenian FM Ararat Mirzoyan and CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas.

The session agenda includes issues relating to international and regional security, strengthening of CSTO crisis response mechanisms.

It is expected to sign the 2022-2024 consultation plan of the representatives of the CSTO member states on foreign policy, defense and security affairs.

UPDATED: Iran supports progress in peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan – President

 11:53, 2 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 2, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and President of Iran Ebrahim Raeisi held a telephone conversation, Mehr news agency reports.

Particularly, Raeisi described Iran-Armenia’s continuous consultations as a sign of the importance and depth of friendly relations between the two countries.

“Protecting the geopolitics of the region, including international borders, respecting the national sovereignty of countries, and strengthening communication infrastructure between the regions is the principle of the Islamic Republic of Iran”, the Iranian president added.

He also called for expanding Iran-Armenia’s bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the fields of energy and transportation, saying that these ties will strengthen peace, stability and economic and trade prosperity in the region.

“Iran supports the progress in the peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan”, he also pointed out, expressing hope that that the remaining issues in this regard will be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the principles of international law and respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the two countries.

The Armenian PM, for his part, presented a report on the implemented agreements and appreciated the principled positions of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the developments in the region, describing Iran’s role in the region as important and effective.

Expressing his country’s interest in expanding economic, trade, political, and cultural cooperation with Iran, Pashinyan said that the continuous holding of a joint commission on economic cooperation between the two countries will definitely facilitate and accelerate the expanding process of relations between Iran and Armenia.

He also welcomed the holding of the 3+3 summit in Tehran as soon as possible.

The article has been updated because of the mistake in the Iranian media outlets where the telephone conversation between the Armenian PM and the Iranian President was mistakenly presented as a phone talk with President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan.

EU’s Michel stresses importance of ensuring stability, security along state border between Armenia and Azerbaijan

 10:22, 1 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 1, ARMENPRESS. In the context of the recent tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, President of the European Council Charles Michel reiterated the European Union’s commitment to deepen its cooperation with both countries to promote a South Caucasus that is secure, stable, peaceful and prosperous for the benefit of all people living in the region, Barend Leyts, the spokesperson of the President of the European Council, said in a statement.

“In the context of the past days’ tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, President Michel reiterated the EU’s commitment to deepen its cooperation with both countries to promote a South Caucasus that is secure, stable, peaceful and prosperous for the benefit of all people living in the region.

He welcomed the first historic meeting of both countries’ Border Commissions on 24 May and stressed the paramount importance of ensuring stability and security along the state border between Armenia and Azerbaijan as delimitation will be pursued.

More broadly, President Michel stressed that for a sustainable normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, it is important to address all outstanding issues at hand, including advancing discussions on the future peace treaty and addressing the root causes of conflict. In President Michel’s opinion, all core issues that had led to the first Nagorno-Karabakh war as well as to the renewed hostilities in 2020 will need to be addressed by all stakeholders to create conditions for lasting and equitable peace.

As with any legacy of conflict – terminology is particularly sensitive in this context. President Michel’s statement on outcomes of the leaders meeting on 22 May should not be interpreted as favouring a pre-determined outcome of discussions either way. What ultimately matters most is that all issues are comprehensively addressed; this includes rights and security of all populations.

Connectivity was specifically discussed in Brussels on 22 May to advance opportunities for unblocking the region. In this context, both parties confirmed there were no extraterritorial claims with regard to future transport infrastructure. Speculation to the contrary is regrettable.

Finally, President Michel stressed the need to prepare populations for peace and the paramount role public rhetoric plays in this regard. He welcomed Yerevan and Baku’s leadership and stated intentions to engage in good faith in ensuring a conducive atmosphere for the continuation of the talks and expressed the EU’s readiness to step up its support to confidence building measures.

EU Special Representative Klaar will be traveling to the region in the next days to follow up on all aspects under discussion”, the statement reads.

 20:10,

YEREVAN, MAY 31, ARMENPRESS. From June 1, Italy will lift all Covid-related entry restrictions for tourists, ARMENPRESS reports the Association of Tour Operators of Russia informs.

Vaccination certificates, negative PCR tests, or a certificate for recovery from a coronavirus infection will not be demanded from travelers. Besides, from June 15, the regime of wearing masks will be abolished in cinemas, theaters and private events.

The statement of the Ministry of Health says that the “Green Certificate” of entry into Italy, which expires on May 31, will not be extended. In this regard, entry into the country will be according to pre-epidemic rules, which means that a Schengen visa will be required.

 12:10,

YEREVAN, MAY 24, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan met with President of Latvia Egils Levits in Davos, Switzerland, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, the Armenian President’s Office said.

The Latvian President said he is happy to welcome Vahagn Khachaturyan as the President of Armenia and congratulated him on assuming office, wishing success and a productive activity.

Both Presidents highly appreciated the Armenian-Latvian political dialogue and the dynamics of the inter-state relations and emphasized the necessity of further enriching and developing these ties.

The prospects of establishing lasting and stable peace in the region and making joint efforts with the European Union in this direction were discussed at the meeting.

The Armenian and Latvian Presidents also exchanged ideas about the relevant issues and challenges of the international security.

 17:23,

YEREVAN, 24 MAY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 24 May, USD exchange rate down by 3.03 drams to 452.70 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 1.87 drams to 484.71 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.13 drams to 8.02 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 7.02 drams to 566.33 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price up by 141.52 drams to 27016.33 drams. Silver price down by 1.34 drams to 321.44 drams. Platinum price stood at 16414.1 drams.

 09:42, 17 May, 2022

YEREVAN, MAY 17, ARMENPRESS. The Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia is expecting an increase in passenger flow ahead of the tourism season.

Mihran Khachatryan, deputy chairman of the Civil Aviation Committee, gave an interview to ARMENPRESS, talking about the new destinations, flights, the Armenia-EU Common Aviation Area agreement and other issues.

-Mr. Khachatryan, significant changes were made in the international aviation market due to the Russia-Ukraine developments. Several airlines revised their activities because of sanctions. To what extent did this situation affect the Armenian market?

-The Russia-Ukraine developments left their impact both on the international and the Armenian aviation market. Particularly, the transit flights in the Armenian airports have greatly increased. Many passengers from Russia arrive in Armenia who then travel to other, mainly European countries by Armenian or other airlines. Currently, several Russian airlines do not operate flights due to the existing restrictions and because of the lack of aircrafts to be operated for international flights some Russian airlines operate their flights by small aircrafts.

-Armenia will finally have a national airline. When is the first flight of Fly Arna scheduled? What will the airline give to Armenia?

-Airlines created according to the Armenian legislation are considered Armenian national airlines. Currently, there are 8 Armenian carriers in the Armenian aviation market. The Armenian National Airlines CJSC (Fly Arna) has already received an aircraft operator certificate by the Civil Aviation Committee and the company is currently taking preparation works for the launch of the flights.

-The tourist season launches soon. In line with this, Armenia also lifted most of the COVID-19 restrictions. What are the expectations over the passenger flow?

-There are already applications to operate charter flights for the summer navigation period at different tourism directions. Given the latest trends in the decrease of new COVID-19 cases in Armenia, as well as the revision of some restrictions, the Committee is forecasting an increase in passenger flow.

-Are there already new directions for this year? What kind of new airlines are expected to enter the Armenian market this year?

-Wizz Air plans to operate Larnaca-Yerevan-Larnaca regular flights starting June 22, as well as it is also expected to operate Rome-Yerevan-Rome flights from September 5. The Committee is regularly receiving applications for the operation of flights in several directions.

-What has been done within the frames of the Common Aviation Area agreement signed between Armenia and the European Union last year? What does the common aviation area suppose?

-The signing of the Common Aviation Area agreement between Armenia, the EU and its member states supposes that Armenia will liberalize the relations with all member states of the EU in civil aviation sector, the EU standards will be installed, as well as the airlines will be provided with predictable and competitive conditions for conducting an aviation activity. I also want to state that currently the process of the agreement’s entry into force is not over yet. The introduction of the EU standards into Armenia’s domestic legislation supposes doing constant works, that is to revise the current regulations and make them in accordance with the EU standards.

-What news to expect in civil aviation sector in the future?

-The Committee is regularly reporting the public on the respective news and developments in the sector both through its website, Facebook account and mass media.

Interview by Ani Danielyan