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Armenian President Armen Sarkissian has signed an order appointing Gabriel Ghazaryan minister of sports and youth affairs.
The appointment was made upon the recommendation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Author: Chmshkian Vicken
Armenian prime minister and president pay tribute to Charles Aznavour
ARKA, Armenia
Oct 5 2018
YEREVAN, October 5. /ARKA/. Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President Armen Sarkissian joined today France’s President Emmanuel Macron, ex-presidents Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande, French celebrities and thousands of Parisians to bid farewell to Charles Aznavour in a tribute that reflected the late singer’s status as a national hero of Armenia as well as his roots.
In his speech Pashinyan emphasized the contribution Aznavour made not only to world culture, but also to the strengthening of Armenia.
“We have gathered here today to honor the memory of and pay tribute to the great French singer Charles Aznavour. For eight decades his name lit smiles on the faces of hundreds of millions of people, made hundreds of millions of eyes shine, “said Pashinyan.
Pashinyan recalled that Aznavour’s parents fled from the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire, and like hundreds of thousands of Armenians, found refuge in France, where Vaghinak Aznaurian became Charles Aznavour.
‘Charles Aznavour is the man who pitched the flag of Armenia on the roof of the world,” Pashinyan said.
“At this grand farewell ceremony, I cannot fail to express the special respect and gratitude that our people have for France. I want to express the gratitude of the Armenian people to the French state, to all the French who gave asylum to those who escaped from the genocide and created favorable conditions for the development of Armenian talent here,” said Pashinyan.
In his speech French President Emmanuel Macron said in France poets never die. Macron will be visiting Armenia October 11, 12 for a Francophonie summit to be hosted by Armenia’s capital city Yerevan.-0-
Bloomberg includes Armenia in Fastest-Growing Destinations in Europe Top 10
Category
Society
Bloomberg has presented a top 10 list of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in Europe, which also includes Armenia.
Bloomberg talked to Warren Chang, chief operating officer for bespoke travel outfitter Cox & Kings’ Americas division, who presented the new destinations.
“When you’re talking about these fast-growing destinations in Europe, there’s often a lack of name recognition, compared to more popular countries,” he said.
Chang used the annual tourism growth data of each country while making the top 10.
“Among the destinations Chang expects to surge in 2019 is Armenia; in fact, Cox & Kings is slated to debut a new itinerary pairing the country with Georgia in the next few weeks. Among the outfitters already serving the destination are Abercrombie & Kent, Ker & Downey, and TCS World Travel, who collectively tout historical riches such as Mt. Ararat (where Noah’s Ark is said to have made landfall), the charming capital of Yerevan, and—yes—its most famous cultural descendants, the Kardashians. On trips with Abercrombie & Kent, guests also get in deep with local traditions: visiting brandy distilleries, meeting carpet makers, hearing spiritual chants in ancient monasteries, and learning to make lavash (a type of local flatbread) with an Armenian family,” Bloomberg wrote.
Armenia is listed 10th on the top 10 list.
First is San Marino, followed by Georgia and Israel.
Turkey, Iceland, Macedonia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Bosnia and Herzegovina are also included.
Armenia and USA have quite an expanded agenda of relations – FM Mnatsakanyan
ArmenPress, Armenia
Sept 22 2018
Armenia and USA have quite an expanded agenda of relations – FM Mnatsakanyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 22, ARMENPRESS. The USA is one of Armenia’s partners with home we have developed quite a rich agenda during the 27 years of independence, Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said in an interview with Public TV of Armenia.
“The USA saluted the developments that took place in Armenia aimed at the strengthening of democracy and rule of law. All that was for reaffirming and strengthening the values. The USA, being our partner in that sense, saluted us and congratulated. Of course, that warmth is very inspiring”, ARMENPRESS reports the Minister as saying.
To the question if we can record that a new, more dynamic stage of relations starts, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan answered that the relations of the two countries are continuous.
“We have an expanding agenda. The USA has worked with us for quite a long period on this agenda and we will definitely continue to do that. We only salute and say that we will manage to further deepen and strengthen our cooperation”, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said.
Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
President Trump to nominate Lynne M. Tracy as Ambassador to Armenia
ARKA, Armenia
Sept 22 2018
Police Chief was unaware fugitive ex-minister is Russian citizen
Category
Politics
Police Chief of Armenia Valeriy Osipyan says he was unaware that former defense minister Michael Harutyunyan, currently wanted by Armenia, is a Russian citizen.
“Police received the information from Russia,” he said today.
Asked by a reporter whether Russia’s cancellation of the arrest warrant for Harutyunyan on its territory was a non-collegial approach from Russia, the police chief refused to answer, saying : “Police is an apolitical structure, I won’t answer this question.”
Harutyunyan is wanted by Armenian law enforcement agencies under charges of breaching constitutional order during the deadly March 1 events.
‘A matter of personal relationship’ – Pashinyan on Putin’s birthday greetings to Kocharyan
Category
Politics
Russian President Vladimir Putin very much appreciates and maintains ties with both current and former leaders of various countries of the world, PM Nikol Pashinyan said when asked whether or not there was a political context in Putin’s birthday congratulations to ex-President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan.
Nikol Pashinyan says that the congratulations are a matter of personal relations.
“Having already managed to get to know the Russian President, I can say that he appreciates human relationships very much and maintains ties with current and former leaders of various countries of the world. Look, despite having rather problematic relations with the European Union, he participated in the wedding ceremony of the Austrian high-ranking official [Karin Kneissl], which means that human relationships are of unique importance for him,” Pashinyan said.
Vendettas In Armenia
Tsarizm
Aug 27 2018
Image by Yerevantsi
Komitas Avenue, Yerevan
As the ancient Confucius saying goes, “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, first dig two graves.” Nikol Pashinyan and his zealous prosecutors should remember this truism.
The newly minted prime minister of Armenia, who campaigned on removing corruption from the country’s politics, seems to be taking pages from the time-honored playbook of Third World, tin-pot dictators – the prosecution and jailing of the political opposition. This does not bode well for the judicial future of Armenia, a strategically placed nation in the Caucasus.
New Armenian PM Pays Tribute To Moscow
Former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan was arrested July 26 (and released two weeks later) in a move organized by Mr. Pashinyan and executed by the Armenian security service (“Special Investigative Service”). The charges of constitutional violations from 2008 cover up a deep-set conflict between Mr. Pashinyan and Mr. Kocharyan. I am not vouching personally for Mr. Kocharyan or his past behavior, but from a judicial perspective, these actions seem to be leading Armenia again down a very dangerous road of illegality.
On March 1, 2008, disturbances and clashes over the election eventually led to situations that threatened the life of the nation and led Mr. Kocharyan to proclaim a state of emergency. Ten people were killed and more than 200 were injured during the crisis, including police. The state of emergency was lifted 20 days later.
The simple fact is the Constitutional Court of Armenia has the exclusive jurisdiction to establish the constitutionality of the president’s decree. Mr. Pashinyan’s investigator has breached the principal of lawfulness, meaning he is only entitled to perform actions which are legally authorized. The Armenian Parliament unanimously declared the decree met the requirements of legality, necessity and proportionality. The emergency measures were consistent with Armenia’s obligations under international law, specifically Article 14 of the European Conveniton of Human Rights, the U.N. Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the U.N. basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, and the Paris Minimum Standards of Human Rights Norms in a State of Emergency.
Anahit Chilingaryan, a Human Rights Watch analyst based in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, said: “As a new government sets the agenda in Yerevan, it is high time to consider the excessive use of pretrial detention in politically sensitive trials. One step prosecutors and judges can take right away is to stop the blanket use of pretrial custody. They will also need to ensure that charges are based on sound evidence and are not excessive, intended to silence others, or to settle scores with people whose messages the authorities don’t agree with. Resolving the issue of politically motivated prosecutions will be challenging, but very important to restore faith in Armenia’s criminal justice.”
Laurence Broers, an associate fellow at London-based Chatham House, also opined about the situation, saying that it is questionable whether Armenia’s judiciary will be able to offer Mr. Kocharyan a “credible legal process.”
Azerbaijan Warns Armenia It’s Ready For ‘Large-Scale Military Operations’
“The problem is that Armenia’s justice sector has hardly had time to reform, and the danger is that any failure to uphold the highest standards could make the process look more like ‘victor’s justice’ than a society coming to terms with its past … Pashinyan would do well to look at the lessons from neighboring Georgia, where successive United National Movement and Georgian Dream administrations tainted their wider agendas for political reform with dubious justice meted out to opponents and rivals…and could come back to haunt Pashinyan in the long-term.”
The arrest and prosecution of the former president is only the tip of the iceberg. The new rulers of Armenia are trying to abuse they tried and true bugaboo of fighting corruption to settle old political scores and to go after their political opponents.
Mr. Pashinyan promised to be a temporary leadership figure, but “conveniently” there is no election law and no date for the elections. In the meantime Mr. Pashinyan and his people are engaged in a massive power grab in which their remnants of democracy in Armenia may be destroyed.
If Armenia is serious about pursuing its Western-oriented policy, including more European integration, it needs to abide by international legal and human rights norms, including respecting Council of Europe decisions from 2008, which approved the outcome of the 2008 elections.
America is very much interested in stability for the Caucasus region, the soft underbelly of Europe which has been a hotbed of Islamic terror. Upholding the rule of law in Armenia is paramount to enabling this stability. Violations of human rights and legal norms can be systemically destructive for a country, which is the case of Mr. Kocharyan.
While it is understandable that Mr. Pashinyan is a political novice, he should not cross some red lines, including engaging in a vendetta and destroying the brittle and weak rule of law in Armenia.
Everyone knows that Mr. Kocharyan brought similar charges against Mr. Pashinyan during his reign. Committing the same illegalities will only damage Mr. Pashinyan in the long run.
Originally posted at The Washington Times
A1+: Who will make advance payment for “The Armenian Velvet Revolution” comic book? (video)
A group of young people tell stories about peace through comics.
“This is a story about peace and people, it’s not a story of a Civil Defense or a government change. There are some primary characters, but we are the main hero,” says Kristine Aslanyan.
“Comics is a story created by images. The basis of our history is the revolution,” adds Ruzanna Hoghrapetian, another member of the team.
The comic book, entitled The Armenian Velvet Revolution will present the episodes of the Velvet Revolution. The authors of the idea are members of the MAYRO team adjunct to the American University of Armenia’s “Epic” Center.
“We got acquainted with the participants and started recruiting staff. There are episodes that have been excluded from live broadcasting and people’s attention,” says Kristine Aslanyan.
The book will consist of 5 parts. Only the first part of a 16-page book is ready yet. $ 10,000 is required for bringing the book to the reader’s table. Team members decided to use the Crowdfunding method.
The price of the book varies from $ 25 to $35, depending on paper quality. But, they are not happy with the selling rate.
Co-founder of the studio “MAYRO” Robert Davoyan mentions: “It is surprising that most of my friends are the ones who have gotten it. We think we have a problem: we cannot explain people what we do.”
The Armenian Velvet Revolution will be trilingual; after English, the Armenian and Russian versions of the book will also be available.
Meeting of Director of National Security Service of Armenia and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Iran to Armenia
Director of the National Security Service of Armenia Artur Vanetsyan on August 20 received Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Iran to Armenia Seyed Kazem Sadjadi.
Welcoming the Ambassador, the NSS chief said Iran is a friendly country for Armenia with which the firm cooperation and working relations are very important.
Ambassador Sadjadi congratulated Artur Vanetsyan on appointment and touched upon the cooperation of the two countries. The Ambassador also affirmed that Armenia and Iran have been and will remain friendly countries, expressing confidence that the previous firm partnership will continue and will further deepen for the interests of the two countries. He said Iran has no restriction for Armenia and currently works are underway to find new cooperation directions.
Touching upon the already existing cooperation areas, the NSS Director said Armenia has a specific approach to tourism issues, attaches importance to the great interest and active flow of Iranian tourists to Armenia. He assured that everything is being done to ensure the security of tourists.
In his turn the Iranian Ambassador thanked the NSS chief for the warm reception and productive meeting.