Author: Boris Nahapetian

The fifth round of the negotiations on the EU- Armenia new framework agreement on trade and investment launched in Brussels on December 13, the Armenian Ministry of Economic Development and Investments informs.

The Armenian delegation is headed by Garegin Melkonyan, the First Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Investments.

The following directions are on the agenda of the fifth round of negotiations: “Trade”, Dispute settlement”, “Transparency”, “Technical barriers to trade,” “Sanitary and phytosanitary measures”, “Custom matters (including a protocol on mutual administrative assistance in customs matters)”, “Protection of intellectual property rights” , “Trade in services” and “Investments.”

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

 

The planned evacuation of rebel fighters and civilians from devastated eastern Aleppo has been delayed, the BBC reports.

Government buses have been brought in but none have left yet, reports say.

The Syrian government is said to be demanding the simultaneous evacuation of its own injured fighters and civilians from nearby towns that are encircled by opposition forces.

A ceasefire between government troops and the rebels was declared in Aleppo on Tuesday.

Eastern Aleppo has been held by the rebels since 2012. But the rebels had been squeezed into ever smaller areas of the city in recent months by a major government offensive, backed by Russian air power.

The newly-appointed Interior Minister of France, Bruno Le Roux, is on the blacklist of Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry, ministry spokesman Hikmat Hajiyev told APA.

Le Roux visited Nagorno Karabakh as member of the French National Assembly in September 2015 and was subsequently blacklisted by Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry

Le Roux is a member of the French-Artsakh friendship circle.

Thirteen Aleppo Armenians have arrived in Yerevan under the IDeA Foundation’s “Support to Syrian Armenians” program.

On October 15 the IDeA Foundation announced a $250 000 contribution to Syrian Armenians. The sum will be allocated through the strategic partner AGBU that has been involved in relief efforts from early days of the conflict and other non-governmental organizations who currently implement Syrian Armenian support projects in Armenia – RepatArmenia, Mission Armenia, Aleppo NGO, and the funds will be aimed at planning and implementing the following:

– aid to those who continue to remain in Syria

– aid to those who seek temporary refuge outside Syrian borders

– aid to those who have decided to relocate to Armenia

– aid to those who want to work and live in Armenia

“The IDeA Foundation is committed to improving the lives of Armenia’s citizens. Yet, we do not do this in isolation. We are aware of what is happening in the world around us and we feel an obligation to participate in doing what can be done to alleviate pain and suffering wherever possible,” the IDeA Foundation said in a statement today.

“As we watch the continuing violence in Syria, particularly in Aleppo, we feel compelled to offer financial support to bring Syrian-Armenian refugees to Armenia. We are prepared to join other organizations and individuals around the world in this effort. This is something that must happen now. Even those who stayed and continued to stay throughout the years of fighting are now looking for safe haven elsewhere. We believe it is our duty as Armenians to help them.

We are joined in this by several private foundations and we are working with the Armenian government to ensure that those who come are offered the basic official facilitation necessary to be able to legally seek refuge in Armenia.

In the years following the Genocide, the Armenians of Aleppo were the first-line saviors for Armenian survivors in Anatolia. Today, they are looking for first-line saviors themselves”, the statement reads.

A number of Turkish officers posted to Nato have sought asylum since the country’s failed military coup in July, Nato’s secretary-general has said, the BBC reports.

Jens Stoltenberg said the officers had requested asylum in the countries where they had been posted but gave no names, numbers or reasons for the requests.

The countries involved will consider the cases individually.

Turkey has dismissed, suspended, detained or arrested tens of thousands of people since the July coup attempt.

Many have been in the military, although others are teachers, policemen, judges and journalists.

Mr Stoltenberg said on Friday that “some Turkish officers working in the Nato command structure… have requested asylum in the countries where they are working”.

German media have carried reports that some members of the Turkish military have requested asylum in Germany.

Also on Friday, the UN rapporteur on freedom of expression, David Kaye, warned of a “grim” climate in Turkey since the failed coup.

He said: “The conclusions I would say are fairly grim and reflect what I think is a deep sense of restriction on freedom of opinion and expression throughout the country.”

Photo: AFP

 

A suicide bomber has rammed a truck into a German consulate in Afghanistan, killing at least four civilians and wounding 120, officials said, the BBC reports.

Gunman attacked the building after the blast, in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif, battling with German and Afghan forces.

The Taliban said it carried out the attack in retaliation for air strikes last week in Kunduz province.

Local police said at least one suspect had been arrested in connection with the bombing.

A Nato spokesman said there was “massive damage” to the consulate.

At least one car packed with explosives was rammed into the wall surrounding the compound, the spokesman said. Officials were also investigating whether a second car bomb was involved.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that the fighters had been sent “with a mission to destroy the German consulate general and kill whoever they found there”, Reuters reported.

All German consulate staff were “safe and uninjured”, the German foreign ministry said, adding that troops were on site preparing to evacuate staff.

Germany leads the Nato diplomatic mission in northern Afghanistan and has nearly 1,000 troops stationed in the country.

Photo: AP

 

Two people have been killed and two injured in a shooting near a California polling station, the BBC reports.

However police say the incident in Azusa, about 25 miles (40km) east of Los Angeles, “had nothing to do with the ballot or voting”.

Officers were called to the scene following reports of a shooting and exchanged gunfire with the suspect.

After securing the area, police discovered a body, who they believe was the gunman, inside a house.

The man has not been identified. Police say another person was killed and two other wounded during the shooting incident but gave no details.

The Armenian National Committee of America Eastern Region (ANCA-ER) announced today the launch of its new GoHye fundraising and social media challenge campaign. The aim of the campaign is to ensure the sustainability and expansion of the range of organization’s programs and activities throughout the region.

In 2016 alone, the ANCA Eastern Region has registered many successes, including:

·         Expansion of its strong local ANC network into Minnesota, Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Northern Ohio, and Central Florida;

·         Halt of an anti-Armenian resolution in Kentucky State Senate;

·         Passage of an Artsakh independence recognition resolution in the state of Georgia;

·         West Virginia becoming the 44th state to officially affirm the Armenian Genocide;

·         Protest and coordinated campaign against the genocide denial ads and billboards, which resulted in formal policy changes and apologies issued to our community;

·         Commemoration of the atrocities committed against Armenians during Sumgait and Baku Pogroms;

·         Dozens of meetings with elected officials in Washington, DC and in the districts to advocate for the issues our community cares most about – deeper U.S.-Armenia partnership; safety for the Syrian-Armenians; independence of Artsakh; truth and justice for the Armenian Genocide;

·         And so much more.

“These are challenging times everywhere. The Armenian Nation especially is faced with many challenges in the Diaspora as well as in the Homeland,” said ANCA Eastern Region Chairman Stephen Mesrobian. “ANCA-ER has been on the front-lines advocating on behalf of our nation in all corners of the Eastern United States. We are asking our friends and supporters to join our GoHye campaign for us to be able to go higher and achieve even more together.”

While there have already been many achievements, there is a lot more work ahead, and today – more than ever – there is a need for greater community involvement and engagement to rise up to the challenges facing us. By joining the GoHye campaign and making a symbolic donation of $19.15 per month, community members can help ensure that the ANCA Eastern Region has the necessary resources to continue to get the job done.

In an effort to raise awareness about the campaign, ANCA-ER has also launched a GoHye challenge encouraging Armenians to share their cultural pride on social media. The GoHye Challenge is very simple:

1.    Record video on what makes you proud as an Armenian (what makes you GoHye?)

2.    Tag and challenge three of your friends, giving them 48 hours to complete the challenge

3.    Share the video on social media and use the #GoHye hashtag

Participants have 48 hours to respond to the challenge or they have to donate to ANCA Eastern Region Endowment Fund to support its activities.

 

 

 

The activities of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) are aimed at ensuring the security of the member states, CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha said at the opening of the ArmHiTec-2016 international exhibition of Arms and Defense Technologies in Yerevan.

“The main efforts are targeted at ensuring security through political means, utilizing the whole political potential that exists in our countries. However, the logic and trends of the developments prove the need to reinforce the organization’s military potential,” Bordyuzha said.

“This is the reason behind the close cooperation between CSTO member states,” the Secretary General said. He added that bases have been created around the CSTO to ensure the sovereignty and integrity of the member states.

Nikolay Bordyuzha said the forces should be equipped with advances armaments to be able to resist any challenge. He added that the CSTO Council is doing its best to ensure military-political and military-economic cooperation between the member states.

The CSTO Secretary General said “the exhibition is a testament to the close cooperation between the member states and shows the potential for the creation of new military technologies,  establishemnt of joint ventures and renovation of the existing armaments.”

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the BBC reports.

Judges in Norway praised him for his peace deal with Farc rebels, signed last month after four years of negotiations.

But the agreement was narrowly rejected by Colombians in a referendum last weekend.

The 52-year conflict has led to the deaths of an estimated 260,000 people with more than six million people internally displaced.