DEPUTY POLICE CHIEF: GRAVE CRIMES ON RISE IN ARMENIA
The number of grave crimes has increased in Armenia in 2014, First
Deputy Chief of the Armenian Police Hunan Poghosyan said at a press
conference today.
According to him, this index grew by 7.5%. The number of murders and
attempted murders is on the rise, while the number of thefts declined.
.
26.01.15, 18:54
TORONTO HOSTS EVENT COMMEMORATING ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CENTENNIAL
19:14, 26 Jan 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
On January 25, an event dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the
Armenian Genocide was organized in Toronto, Canada, with the assistance
of “One Free World International” NGO and the Embassy of the Republic
of Armenia in Canada.
The main speakers of the event were Minister of Employment and
Social Development and Minister for Multiculturalism Jason Kenney
and Ambassador of Armenia to Canada Armen Yeganian.
Ambassador Yeganian presented the consequences of the Armenian
Genocide, stressing the necessity of international recognition of the
Genocide for Armenians around the globe and the international community
alike. The Ambassador of Armenia touched upon the commemoration
scheduled events to be held in Armenia, Canada and elsewhere in 2015.
Over 1,000 participants of the event included the Heads of Toronto’s
Catholic and Protestant Churches, the Rabbi of Toronto, representatives
of Kurdish, Yazidi, Ismail communities and Canadian Armenians.
Turkish clergyman Rev. Hakan TaÃ…~_tan, who arrived from Istanbul,
apologized on the behalf of the Turkish people for the Armenian
Genocide.
AZERBAIJAN THINKS ITS HOUR OF TRIUMPH HAS COME – ARMENIAN PRESIDENT
16:39 * 26.01.15
Armenian President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Armenia’s Armed
Forces Serzh Sargsyan participated in a solemn meeting of the Board of
Armenia’s Ministry of Defense, on the occasion of the 23rd anniversary
of the Armenian army.
The participants in the meeting observed in minute’s silence to
pay tribute to the heroes that sacrificed their lives in defending
Armenia’s border and to all the servicemen and freedom-fighters that
sacrificed their lives in the Nagorno-Karabakh liberation war.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan made an opening address at the
meeting:
“Honorable Generals and officers,
“Before we listen to reports, I would like to say a few words.
“First of all, I would like to say that the beginning of the year
saw tension and we witnessed numerous unprovoked attacks by the
enemy. We suffered heavy losses and we are grieving with the families
and relatives of all the fallen boys. I do not think anyone has any
doubts that Azerbaijanis will pay a heavy price for the life of each
of the boys – they have paid, are paying and will pay a heavy price.
“The aim of the enemy’s unprovoked attacks is obvious. Azerbaijan’s
leadership does not conceal they are seeking to create permanent
tension round us by combining political and military means. This is
a policy of overt blackmail, with its principal addressee being the
international community rather than we. Seeing its absurd ‘me-first’
style failing in the negotiations, official Baku is trying to show
everyone what it can do unless all of its whims are satisfied,
without seriously realizing or analyzing the aftermath for themselves.
Moreover, every time a problem arises inside Armenia or a tragic
event occurs, Azerbaijan thinks its hour of triumph has come and it
shows itself on the frontline.
“In vain; that’s absolutely to no purpose. Twenty-five years ago,
in conditions more complicated and difficult than now, we were the
eyewitness of their nonsensical speeches and appetite. I am sure
that most of those who have gathered in this hall remember them
voicing menacing remarks in the early 1990’s, threatening to wave
the Azerbaijani flag in [Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital] Stepanakert;
one of them had so much gone out of senses that he even was talking
about washing feet in [Lake] Sevan. After the [liberation of] Shoushi,
they were repeating their [desire] to drink tea in Shoushi every week
in a short time to come. We have eye-witnessed all that. We never
menaced, but we did coerce our predominance in the battlefield. We
are stronger today. We are much stronger than ever before.
“We do not have any reason to trigger a war. We never provoke incidents
on our own. You know very well about it. And we are never the first
to provoke an attack. We do not need that at all.
“But any incident incited against us has been and will always be
followed by retribution. The acts of retaliation we have initiated so
far have been symmetric in form and asymmetric in terms of inflicting
greater losses. ”
“Symmetric acts of retribution may be possible from now on. The hot
heads should wait for great many a surprise. Moreover, whenever we
see crowding on our border and along the Line of Contact, we vest
ourselves with the right to launch preventive actions.”
“Let no one think that we will be sitting in idleness, waiting till the
calamity gets into our homes. We are obliged to be fierce to anyone
plotting calamity for us. I repeat, the other side’s adventurousness
will force us to cause irrevocable damage through retribution.
“We do understand that the Azerbaijani authorities are ready to
mercilessly send hundreds and thousands citizens to the brink of death
to secure their own thrones’ protection. But we cannot tolerate that
at the price of our citizens and soldiers’ life. That cannot be done
at our expense.
“We stick to the belief that the right thing is to continue the talks
and to reach agreements under the well-known principles, and that
is possible only in case of maintaining the ceasefire and building
bridges of trust.”
“I once again declare, to the notice of all, that were ready to both
the good and bad. I have all the possible options there on my table.
“With a sober friend, we are can and must negotiate peace.
“On the non-sober adversary, we must and will by all means impose
peace.”
EXPERT: TURKISH EVENTS COINCIDING WITH GENOCIDE REMEMBRANCE DAY ‘NO SURPRISE’
GENOCIDE | 26.01.15 | 14:19
Alina Nikoghosyan
ArmeniaNow intern
According to Turkey expert Artak Shakaryan, it is surprising that
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s invitation for Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan to visit the Centennial commemoration event
dedicated to the Battle of Gallipoli in Turkey in late April, which
coincides with the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, has caused
surprise among Armenians, because Turkey had planned this move
long ago.
“Since March 2013 Turkey planned that on April 24, 2015 they will
be celebrating the victory day of the Canakkale war. This is an
interesting diplomatic step that attempts to create other ‘noises’
parallel to the noise Armenians are making for April 24,” the
turkologist told reporters in Yerevan on Monday.
According to him, Armenians should not pin all hope only on April
24 and need to be consistent in their demands using all possible
opportunities.
“We are those who can make quality changes, those who can get the
lawsuits prepared by our international lawyers and turn to the court.
I do not mean to sue Turkey as a country, because there are very
few international diplomatic ways for that, but we can do that for
individual lawsuits at least,” Shakaryan added.
Earlier this month, Turkish President Erdogan sent out invitations to
the leaders of more than a hundred countries, including the Armenian
president, to come to Turkey for massive ceremonies on April 23-24
celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Gallipoli in the
Canakkeli war. These celebrations coincide with the date when Armenians
around the world will be commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the
Armenian Genocide.
In his reply President Sargsyan reminded Erdogan about his earlier
invitation to him to come to Yerevan “to face up to history” on
April 24.
JEWISH LEADERS CALL FOR EUROPE-WIDE LEGISLATION OUTLAWING ANTISEMITISM
Proposal would criminalise activities such as banning the burqa,
forced marriage, female genital mutilation and Holocaust denial
Ian Traynor, Europe editor The Guardian, Sunday 25 January 2015
16.59 GMT
A man waves an Israeli flag during the Israeli prime minister’s visit
to the kosher supermarket in Paris where four hostages were killed
earlier this month. Photograph: Michel Euler/AP
European Jewish leaders, backed by a host of former EU heads of state
and government, are to call for pan-European legislation outlawing
antisemitism amid a sense of siege and emergency feeding talk of a
mass exodus of Europe’s oldest ethnic minority.
A panel of four prestigious international experts on constitutional
law backed by the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation
(ECTR) have spent three years consulting widely and drafting a 12-page
document on “tolerance”. They are lobbying to have it converted into
law in the 28 countries of the EU.
The proposal would outlaw antisemitism as well as criminalising a
host of other activities deemed to be violating fundamental rights
on specious religious, cultural, ethnic and gender grounds.
These would include banning the burqa, female genital mutilation,
forced marriage, polygamy, denial of the Holocaust and genocide
generally, criminalising xenophobia, and creating a new crime of
“group libel” – public defamation of ethnic, cultural or religious
groups. Women’s and gay rights would also be covered.
The proposed legislation would also curb, in the wake of the Paris
attacks, freedom of expression on grounds of tolerance and in the
interests of security.
“Tolerance is a two-way street. Members of a group who wish to benefit
from tolerance must show it to society at large, as well as to members
of other groups and to dissidents or other members of their own group,”
says the document.
“There is no need to be tolerant to the intolerant. This is especially
important as far as freedom of expression is concerned: that freedom
must not be abused to defame other groups.”
Amid acute European angst over multiculturalism, fundamentalist
violence perpetrated on alleged religious grounds and the response
of the state, the call for uniform rules across Europe is to be
initiated this week in Prague at events commemorating the Holocaust
and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
“There’s a real threat of another Jewish exodus from Europe,” Moshe
Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress and co-chair of the
ECTR, told the Guardian. “The only way to fix these problems is deep
changes in legislation to protect all, not just Jews.”
The panel of experts drafting the proposal includes a retired Italian
supreme court judge, a former King’s College professor, and the former
head of Germany’s prestigious Max Planck Institute. The panel was
chaired by Yoram Dinstein, a war crimes expert, professor and former
president of Tel Aviv university.
“Antisemitism is clearly part of it, but by no means the thrust of the
project,” he said. “It’s about tolerance and if you expect tolerance,
you have to show tolerance. Otherwise it becomes very obnoxious.”
The document, A European Framework National Statute for the Promotion
of Tolerance, according to the drafters, seeks to define, codify,
and balance rights, liberties and security at a time when governments
are scrambling over how to cope.
But it goes much further, calling for the criminalisation of “overt
approval of a totalitarian ideology, xenophobia or antisemitism.”
Education in tolerance should be mandatory from primary school
to university, and for the military and the police, while public
broadcasting must “devote a prescribed percentage of their programmes
to promoting a climate of tolerance”.
The drafters are currently touring the parliaments of Europe trying
to drum up support for a consensus that would get many, if not all, of
the proposals turned into law across 28 countries. Given the national
disparities on gay rights, libel laws, holocaust denial and more,
the proposals represent a legal minefield.
In Hungary, which has a long record of antisemitism and has a
nationalist rightwing government in power, the demands were laughed
away, said Dinstein, adding: “The government wouldn’t touch it with
a long pole.”
At a European parliament committee hearing, he said, Britain’s UK
Independence party (Ukip) was strongly opposed.
The organisers are particularly keen to see Britain enact legislation,
similar to that in Germany or Austria, criminalising Holocaust denial.
“We very much regret this is not done by Britain,” he said.
The yardstick, say the drafters, should be that if an international
tribunal has ruled genocide has taken place, it should be accepted
everywhere in Europe as criminal conduct to contest that in public.
The Holocaust, the Rwanda genocide, and the mass murder of Muslims
by Serbs in Srebrenica, Bosnia, in 1995 would be covered. The Turkish
massacre of Armenians in 1915, for example, would not be covered.
One senior EU policymaker said as far as Europe’s Jewish communities
were concerned there was no need for new laws. The priority was
security and protection.
Kantor complained that when raising the issue of protection, national
and regional Jewish leaders were encouraged to stage fundraising
activities.
“We are challenging today things that haven’t happened in Europe for
70 years,” he said. “The Jewish community in Europe definitely needs
protection. Governments should pay and should invest much more money.
We’ve already paid our taxes and we need much more commitment from
governments.”
THE REASONS BEHIND AZERBAIJAN’S ATTEMPTS TO ESCALATE THE SITUATION AT ARMENIA BORDER
14:35, 26 Jan 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
Azerbaijan’s attempts to escalate the situation at the Armenian
border and to create a new reality in the region were all predictable,
political scientist Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan told a press conference
today. According to him, Azerbaijan has as many as 30 reasons for
it, of which three are of greater importance. The first one is
linked to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the
Turkish-Azerbaijani cooperation within this framework.
“Obviously, there is an agreement between the two countries to work
jointly to divert the attention of the international community from
the Genocide centennial. Indeed, the tension at the border is a
proper occasion to have the attention of the international community
focused on the matter, and thus upstage the Armenian Genocide issue
as a political factor in the South Caucasus,” Melik-Shahnazaryan said.
The second reason is Armenia’s membership in the Eurasian Economic
Union (EEU), which has changed the geopolitical situation in the
region from January 1st. “Azerbaijan is well aware that the EEU
will become a rather serious factor for Armenia after it becomes
fully operational. However, as the EEU is still in the process of
disagreements and is unable to clearly protect its economic interests
and address all challenges, Azerbaijan is trying to demonstrate
that borders of an EEU member state can be under permanent threat
of shelling.”
The third factor, according to the political scientist, is that
for three years now Azerbaijan has been the “seller of peace” in
the region.
“Russia, the US and the EU (in the face of France) are all interested
in seeing a stable and predictable South Caucasus. Azerbaijan, in turn,
is trying to make them pay for peace, i.e. earn certain dividends by
escalating the situation with a view of gaining something instead,”
the political scientist said.
According to him, Azerbaijan has this opportunity as far as there
are no international restraining mechanisms and as long as it is
confident the Armenian side will not launch an assault. “This is
where Azerbaijan is mistaken,” Levon Melik Shahnazaryan said, adding
that he does not exclude an attack by the Armenian side, referring
to earlier statements by Armenian officials.
I WISH THE GROUND WOULD SWALLOW YOU UP – TURKISH ANALYST SLAMS ERDOGAN’S MESSAGE TO ARMENIAN LEADER
12:32 * 26.01.15
A Turkish political analyst has criticized President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan’s move to invite the Armenian president to the country next
year to join the Gallipoli battle’s 100th anniversary events on the
day coinciding with the Armenian Genocide centennial.
“I wish the ground would swallow you up. I see you have turned a blind
eye to those people’s pain, but you could have at least abstained
from mocking at them. Against the background of such a disgrace,
Erdogan is inviting Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan to Canakkale,”
Bakin Oran said in an article published in Radikal.
He noted that Turkey earlier traditionally celebrated the the Canakkale
(Galippoli) battle anniversary on March 18. “The president will this
year head to Canakkale with the Azerbaijani despot Ilham Aliyev,
the Turkish foreign policy’s biggest ‘attraction stone’. And they
will celebrate [the anniversary] on the day symbolizing the heinous
atrocities against the Armenians, committed by butchers of Ittihat
ve Terakki,” he wrote.
In his invitation letter, sent to the Armenian leader on January 16,
Erdogan said that they plan hold massive on April 23 and 24 to mark
the centenary of the battle. In his response message, issued shortly
after, President Sargsyan said that “it is not our rule to be hosted
without receiving an answer to our own invitation”.
LE MINISTRE AUSTRALIEN DES AFFAIRES ETRANGERES JULIE BISHOP CONFIRME LA PRESSION DE LA TURQUIE
GENOCIDE ARMENIEN
Des documents obtenus en vertu d’une demande d’accès a l’information
par le Comite National Armenien d’Australie (ANC Australie) confirment
que le gouvernement australien continue d’etre bâillonne par la
Turquie sur la question du genocide armenien.
Dans une lettre adressee au ministre des Affaires etrangères d’alors
de la Turquie, Ahmet Davutoglu, Julie Bishop ecrit : “Reconnaissant
les interets importants en jeu pour les deux pays, je vous assure
qu’il n’y a pas eu de decision de changer la position de longue date
des gouvernements australiens successifs sur cette question. ”
La lettre du ministre australien des Affaires etrangères souligne
en outre “la règle du bâillon” de la Turquie en qualifiant la
position de l’Australie sur le genocide armenien par ces mots : “en
reconnaissant les interets importants en jeu pour les deux pays”. Il
avait deja ete revele que la Turquie mène actuellement une campagne
internationale pour bâillonner les grandes nations afin qu’elle ne
parle pas franchement et honnetement sur le genocide armenien.
Une grande partie des documents publies par le ministère australien des
Affaires etrangères ont ete expurgee dans son integralite affirmant
que la divulgation des documents pourrait causer des dommages aux ”
relations internationales de la Communaute.”
Le directeur executif de l’ANC Australie Vache Kahramanian, a
commente : “Il est evident que l’Australie a succombe a des menaces
constantes de la Turquie visant a interdire aux deputes d’assister
aux commemorations du centenaire de l’ANZAC, alors qu’avant la fin
du Centenaire, l’Australie devrait reconnaître les evenements de 1915
comme un genocide “.
UNE FEMME SOLDAT ARMENIENNE A TUE UN COMMANDANT DE SNIPERS AZERIS
ARMENIE
une femme soldat des forces armees armeniennes a tue un commandant
de snipers azerbaïdjanais au cours d’un echange de coups de feu a la
frontière qui fait quatre morts parmi les soldats azerbaïdjanais a
rapporte le porte-parole du ministère armenien de la Defense Arzrun
Hovhannisyan, selon l’agence de presse Armenpress.
Le ministère de la Defense a indique que trois militaires
azerbaïdjanais ont ete tues dans la region de Karvachar dans les
premières heures de la matinee de vendredi, tandis que le commandant
de l’unite de snipers azerbaïdjanais a ete tue plus tard a la frontière
sud du Karabagh.
“La partie azerbaïdjanaise continue sa politique rigide envers ses
propres soldats et leurs proches. Aujourd’hui, ils ont perdu seulement
trois militaires pendant la journee au voisinage de Karvachar. Un
commandant du groupement de tireurs d’elite a ete abattu par la balle
d’une femme soldat armenienne “, a declare Hovhannisyan.
Plus tôt, deux soldats armeniens ont ete tues au cours d’attaques
sur plusieurs positions a Berd dans la region de Tavush dans le nord
de l’Armenie.
lundi 26 janvier 2015, Stephane (c)armenews.com
Russia develops heavy drone, promises S500 missile system by 2017
Published time: January 25, 2015 15:59
Anti-aircraft missile system S400 “Triumph” at a site in the Moscow
region. (RIA Novosti/Grigoriy Sisoev)
The Russian military is putting the finishing touches to its very own
heavy military UAV. The drone is part of a wider modernization effort,
with the cutting-edge flagship S500 missile system coming in 2017.
The drone “already exists,” according to Russian Deputy Defense
Minister Yury Borisov.
The heavy UAV, created in cooperation with the Federal Security
Service (FSB), will perform “a variety of tactical, operational and
strategic tasks,” said Borisov, but he didn’t give any further details
such as the name of the vehicle.
The Russian government is expected to release several innovations and
upgrades in the near future, as part of defense modernization. Borisov
mentioned at least four current projects, now “in their final stages
of development.”
The country’s latest state-of-the-art air defense system currently at
the research and development stage – the S500 – will also appear in
2017, the deputy defense minister told RSN radio. It is an advanced
version of its predecessor – the S400 and is designed to lock on to
and intercept multiple ballistic missiles in seconds. It possesses the
ability to operate at an altitude of up to 124 miles.
The S400 Triumf anti-aircraft system. (RIA Novosti/Mihail Mokrushin)
The new S500 is rumored to be able to engage 10 missiles at once and
have a refined radar system, as well as make speeds of up to 4.3 miles
per second. It’s also expected to rival US tech, which currently touts
the RAS3 Patriot missile defense system against the S400.
In 2015, Russia will test its ‘Sarmat’ missile, expected for shipment
before 2020. According to the senior official, “the missile is capable
of delivering a 10-ton payload.” The super heavy liquid-propelled
intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) has also received upgrades.
“It will be able to fly over both the North and South Poles.”
READ MORE: Russian ‘ABM killer’ intercontinental missile to enter
service in 2016
In the meantime, the Russian-French standoff with the delivery of the
Mistral helicopter carriers has led to Russian readiness to accept
almost any way out of the deadlock. The Defense Ministry disclosed on
Saturday the figure it paid upfront for the Mistral delivery that
never came.
The Sevastopol amphibious assault ship of the Mistral class at the STX
Europe shipyard in Saint-Nazaire. (RIA Novosti/Grigoriy Sisoev)
“We paid one billion euro upfront, France has received payment. If it
is unable to deliver Mistral, we intend to raise the issue of the
repayment of debt,” Borisov said.
The Russian side is “open to any civilized solution to this
situation,” whether it includes delivery or a return of the money
spent, he stressed. The deputy minister also pointed out that either
outcome will have no bearing on the ongoing modernization of Russian
defenses.
READ MORE: Russia sanctions ‘must be lifted now’ – Hollande
The Ukrainian crisis has strained relations between Russia and France,
with Paris putting on hold the delivery of the amphibious assault
ships to Moscow. President Francois Hollande is already wary of the
strain foreign sanctions are putting on Russia, which he says are
having an effect on Europe as well.