Author: Bedik Zaminian

Armenian dram keeps on losing its value

Bedik Zaminian
ArmBanks, Armenia
Dec 11 2020

11.12.2020 17:27

YEREVAN, December 11. /ARKA/. The Armenian dram continues to devalue and the economic situation is difficult, Edgar Karapetyan, director for strategy and innovation at Galaxy Group of Companies, wrote on his Facebook page. He said the US dollar is already trading at 520-525 drams.

“Many people ask why the Central Bank does not take action to restrain the devaluation of the dram. To do this, it is necessary to present the whole picture. In particular, over the past 3 months, Armenia’s international reserves have decreased by $381 million to about $2.3 billion as of late November (about 20% of GDP and 45% of imports). There is no doubt that the reserves were used in the domestic market to restrain the dram’s devaluation against the US dollar,” Karapetyan said.

In addition, according to him, in the next three months, the Central Bank will have to pay off loan obligations in the amount of $1.1 billion, as a result of which state reserves will decrease, at best, to $1.1 billion (about 10% of GDP and 22% of import).

“This indicator is already risky enough,” Karapetyan said. He also noted that the ratio of public debt to GDP at the current rate is already 67.4%, which, according to international organizations, is also a risky indicator.

According to him, only 47% of government treasury bonds were placed the day before, with an average yield of 7.6% (2% higher than in the summer).

“Thus, the country is experiencing a significant economic recession, a reduction in state budget revenues, a significant increase in government spending, and inadequate government administration. At the same time, there is no necessary financial inflows such as investments, exports and remittances and there is no trust in the government,” Karapetyan said. -0–

Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 10-12-20

Bedik Zaminian

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 17:21,

YEREVAN, 10 DECEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 10 December, USD exchange rate up by 3.29 drams to 518.77 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 2.95 drams to 627.92 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.03 drams to 7.06 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 2.06 drams to 690.95 drams.

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

Gold price down by 242.71 drams to 30718.26 drams. Silver price down by 3.92 drams to 401.71 drams. Platinum price up by 91.63 drams to 17062.45 drams.

Sports: Euro-2022: Armenia futsal team outscores Bulgarians after second match as well

Bedik Zaminian
News.am, Armenia
Dec 9 2020

The Armenia national futsal team outscored the Bulgarian team during the return match for the Euro-2022 qualifying play-offs as well and made it to the selective group stage.

During the return match in Varna, Armenia beat Bulgaria 3-1. Among the outstanding players were Davit Aslanyan, Saro Galstyan and Vladimir Sanosyan.

During the first match, Ruben Nazaretyan’s team defeated the opponent 4-0.


TURKISH press: EU must distance itself from French aggression, Greek maximalism

Bedik Zaminian
 COLUMNS 
DEC 08, 2020 12:05 AM GMT+3
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (L) and European Council President Charles Michel arrive ahead of talks in Brussels, Belgium, March 9, 2020. (Photo by Getty Images)

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Azerbaijan and the European Union leaders summit will be the top items on Turkey’s foreign policy agenda this week.

The Turkish leader’s trip to Baku, shortly after Azerbaijan’s victory over Armenia, has immense symbolic value. The liberation of that country’s sovereign territory after three decades of occupation was undoubtedly a major accomplishment. It is no secret that Ankara’s unwavering and multidimensional support was instrumental in that victory.

The ease with which Azerbaijani forces managed to get past Armenia’s strongly reinforced line of defense was a historical military accomplishment. In this regard, Erdoğan certainly deserves to join his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, in celebrations.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, however, remains unresolved. The status of Armenian-controlled lands has not been finalized, as France attempts, through the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, to block the Turkish-Russian agreement.

Still, the lesson to draw from the latest war is that Turkey is key to stability in the Caucasus. That the region has been Russia’s backyard since the Soviet era and that Moscow, in fact, is unhappy with Ankara’s level of involvement there are hardly meaningful arguments.

If Moscow desires regional stability, it has no choice but to work with Turkey. That is the only way to create a process that will bring about peace, stability and cooperation among Caucasian nations, including Armenia. Again, stability in the Caucasus will have a positive impact on the Black Sea and Central Asia.

The second item on Turkey’s agenda will be the EU summit on Dec. 10-11. Having resisted the urge to sanction the Turks in October, the EU now threatens to punish Ankara. Greece and Austria, led by France, are calling for sanctions on Turkey over the Eastern Mediterranean and Cyprus.

European leaders have not taken advantage of the last two months to promote dialogue between Turkey and Greece. Germany still seeks to block efforts to derail the EU’s cooperation with Turkey. Again, Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, recently said that Europe was prepared to use all tools at its disposal – which suggests that minor sanctions could be on the table.

For the record, I do not expect that possibility to end what Michel called the cat-and-mouse game.

The trans-Atlantic alliance’s future remains unclear, and the West’s policy on Russia is still in the making. Therefore, there must be peace and calm between Ankara and Brussels. Both sides need to do their homework to make that happen.

Erdoğan made clear his political position by saying that “we belong in Europe.” That does not mean that Turkey intends to make concessions in Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean. EU leaders must distance themselves from French aggression and Greek maximalism.

Instead, they ought to promote Germany’s rational and conciliatory tone. The ball is in Brussels’ court. It’s time to make a strategic decision to end the game of cat and mouse to the advantage of shared interests.

Armenia: Tens of thousands rally to demand PM’s resignation

Bedik Zaminian
Telegraph Herald
Dec 6 2020
Armenia: Tens of thousands rally to demand PM’s resignation

  • BY AVET DEMOURIAN The Associated Press


YEREVAN, Armenia — Tens of thousands of opposition supporters marched across the Armenian capital Saturday to push for the resignation of the ex-Soviet nation’s prime minister over his handling of the conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh.

In six weeks of fierce fighting that ended with a Russia-brokered peace deal on Nov. 10, the Azerbaijani army reclaimed lands that Armenian forces have held for more than a quarter-century.

Armenia’s opposition parties warned Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan there would be civil disobedience across the country if he does not resign by noon on Tuesday. Pashinyan has refused to step down, defending the peace agreement as a painful but necessary move that prevented Azerbaijan from overrunning the entire Nagorno-Karabakh region.

More than 20,000 protesters rallied in Yerevan on Saturday, chanting “Nikol, you traitor!” and “Nikol, go away!” and then marched to the prime minister’s official residence.

“The seat of the prime minister of Armenia is currently being occupied by a political corpse,” Artur Vanetsyan, the leader of the opposition party Homeland and the former head of the National Security Service, said at the protest rally.

Several priests of the Armenian Apostolic Church joined the protest, denouncing Pashinyan for allowing Azerbaijan to take over some holy sites.

Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since a separatist war there ended in 1994. That conflict left not only Nagorno-Karabakh itself but large chunks of surrounding lands in Armenian hands.

In 44 days of fighting that began on Sept. 27, Azerbaijani troops routed the Armenian forces and wedged deep into Nagorno-Karabakh, forcing Armenia to accept the Nov. 10 peace deal that saw the return to Azerbaijan of a significant part of the separatist region. It also obliged Armenia to hand over all of the areas it held outside Nagorno-Karabakh.

Azerbaijan completed reclaiming those territories on Tuesday when it took over the Lachin region located between the Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia. Azerbaijan celebrated the end of fighting as a national triumph, and President Ilham Aliyev established a new Nov. 8 national holiday called Victory Day to commemorate the event.

Armenian opposition leaders hold Pashinyan responsible for failing to negotiate an earlier end to the hostilities at terms that could have been more beneficial for Armenia. They have emphasized, however, that the opposition wasn’t pushing for the annulment of the peace deal.

Veteran politician Vazgen Manukyan, whom 17 opposition parties have nominated as their candidate for prime minister, said at Saturday’s rally that his transition government would seek to renegotiate some vague aspects of the Nov. 10 peace deal.

Manukyan, 71, served as prime minister in 1990-91, when Armenia was part of the Soviet Union and later served as defense minister during the separatist war.

Azerbaijan on Thursday released information on its military casualties from the latest fighting. The Defense Ministry said 2,783 troops were killed and more than 100 were still missing. The government said 94 of its civilians also were killed and more than 400 were wounded.

Armenia’s Health Ministry said Wednesday that at least 2,718 Armenian servicemen were killed in the fighting. At least 55 Armenian civilians also were killed.

Russia deployed nearly 2,000 peacekeepers for at least five years to monitor the peace deal and to facilitate the return of refugees. The Russian troops will also ensure safe transit between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia across the Lachin region.

Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Intellectuals appeal to foreign embassies in Armenia over the return of Armenian PoWs held in Azerbaijan

Bedik Zaminian
Panorama, Armenia
Nov 30 2020

Citizens, the representatives of arts and culture sector have gathered again at Charles Aznavour square in Yerevan on Monday. For the third day in a row they are raising the urgent need to address the issue of the return of Armenian war prisoners held in Azerbaijan and the bodies of those killed in the Karabakh war.

One of the organizers of the initiative, actor Hrant Tokhatyan informed that a group of intellectuals plan to hand over a letter to the French Embassy in Yerevan, requesting assistance in making Azerbaijan implement taken commitments in line of with the trilateral statement signed on November 9.

On Sunday, the intellectuals gathered outside the Russian Embassy on Sunday with the same request.

“We are submitting these letters on behalf of all people who are here or support our initiative in any way. Our appeal to all diplomatic missions accredited to Armenia is the following – exert pressure on Azerbaijan to return the Armenian PoWs and allow to retrieve the bodies of the dead,” Tokhatyan said.

In his words, they have asked the Diaspora Armenians as well to apply to authorities of their states too residence as well as international structures to initiate the return of the captives.


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Armenpress: President of Armenian parliament thanks President of French Senate for resolution on Artsakh

Bedik Zaminian

President of Armenian parliament thanks President of French Senate for resolution on Artsakh

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 21:13,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 26, ARMENPRESS. President of the National Assembly of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan sent a letter to President of French Senate Gérard Larcher, thanking him and the other members of the Senate for the adoption of the resolution on the ”necessity to recognize Nagorno Karabakh Republic”.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the parliament of Armenia, the letter runs as follows,

”I wish to express hope that the continues efforts of France and the other OSCE Minsk Group Co-chair countries, the Russian Federation and the USA, will contribute to the final settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict. The lasting and firm peace can be achieved only by fair settlement of the issue – the recognition of Artsakh and return of Armenian territories of Artsakh”.

Armenian PM visits military-industrial companies, instructs to develop capacities at faster pace

Bedik Zaminian
Public Radio of Armenia
Nov 23 2020

Accompanied by Minister of High-Tech Industry Hakob Arshakyan, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the Garni Ler Scientific-Production Association and the newly established Arsenal Military-Industrial Plant.

During the tour, the Prime Minister got acquainted with the plant’s production and professional potential, the range of its products and development opportunities.

The Prime Minister was shown ordnance, projectiles and warheads produced by the company. He was introduced to new test specimens featuring automatic, remote-controlled, large-caliber firearms systems equipped with day/night sights.

The plant will soon get new investments, expand its output capacity, generate new jobs and expand export opportunities.

PM Pashinyan highlighted the need for military industry’s continued development and instructed the management to develop the plant’s output capacity at a faster pace in terms of expanding the range of weaponry.



Speaker of Parliament Ararat Mirzoyan undergoes second surgery

Bedik Zaminian

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 15:34,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament Ararat Mirzoyan underwent a second surgery today for the injuries he suffered on November 10, when protesters angry over the terms of the Karabakh armistice assaulted him outside the parliament building in Yerevan.

The press service of the parliament told ARMENPRESS that the second surgery was completed successfully Wednesday afternoon.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Armenian President holds phone talk with AGBU chairman

Bedik Zaminian

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 12:14,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 15, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian held a telephone conversation with President of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Perch Sedrakian, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The officials discussed the latest developments around Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) and the current situation in the country within this context.

They emphasized the national meaning and importance of the settlement of the Karabakh conflict.

The Armenian President and the ABGU Chairman agreed that in such situation it’s necessary to maintain stability and national unity in the country.

They also stated that Artsakh is facing major humanitarian problems today, adding that everyone should bring his/her contribution to solving them in order to be able to jointly overcome all the challenges.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan