Author: Chmshkian Vicken

Armenpress News Agency , Armenia
 Tuesday
ARMENPRESS named Best Media Of The Year by Armenian PR Association
YEREVAN, JULY 18, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian PR Awards named ARMENPRESS
state news agency the best media of the year on July 18.
Naghash Martirosyan, the dean of YSU’s Faculty of Journalism bestowed
the award to Aram Ananyan, director of ARMENPRESS.
“This award is the result of our entire team's work. I am grateful to
our team, the organizers, and members of the jury for the high
assessment”, Aram Ananyan said.
The awarding event was organized by the “Armenian PR Association”
scientific-informational NGO, with the support of Beeline.
In addition to ARMENPRESS, Sputnik Armenia and Traveler weekly were
also nominated for the Best Media of The Year award.
Astghik Avetisyan, director of the Armenian PR Association said
they’ve scrutinized all ministries, the private sector, banking system
and generally nearly all sectors that deal with the public and use
communication as a method of management.
“We’ve delivered 2025 questionnaires to experts, we’ve monitored the
work of the media outlets, analyzed the issues and made proposals,
Avetisyan said.
Two new nominations were introduced this year, Innovative PR and PR
Technologies.
Beeline’s CEO Andrei Pyatakhin also received a special award for
valuing public relations and using literate communications
technologies.
The guests of the event included Diaspora minister Hranush Hakobyan,
Culture minister Armen Amiryan, politicians, diplomats and others.
Germany’s Ambassador H.E. Matthias Kiesler won the “Friend of Armenia” award.
Artak Beglaryan, the press secretary of Artsakh’s Prime Minister was
also among the laureates.
Armenian foreign ministry spokesman Tigran Balayan was named Press
Secretary of the Year.
Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia was named the Event of the Year.
Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan was named Public Figure Of the Year,
while Opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan won in the Politician of The Year
category.
The Aurora Humanitarian Award was named Initiative Of The Year, State
Agency Of The Year – the ministry of emergency situations, Innovative
PR of The Year – Tumo Center for creative technologies, Cultural PR of
The Year – Yerevan Prospects International Music Festival, PR
Technology Of the Year – Love Armenia – RPA.

ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
July 14, 2017 Friday
The National Security Service of Armenia completed the preliminary
investigation into the case of the ex- commander of the NKR Defense
Army
Yerevan July 14
Alexander Avanesov. In the Investigation Department of the National
Security Service of the Republic of Armenia, a preliminary
investigation was completed with respect to 7 defendants in the
criminal case under investigation on the facts of money laundering, as
well as illegal acquisition, storage and transportation of ammunition.
This was reported by the press center of the National Security Service
of Armenia.
According to the source, the investigation found that in July 2016
citizen Samvel Babayan reliably learned that people living in the
Russian Federation have a large batch of money withdrawn from cash
circulation and euro banknotes filled with special paint. He
undertookMeasures for their acquisition, distortion through chemical
cleaning and processing of their criminal origin and further
introduction into circulation in the territory of Armenia. In these
operations Babayan was assisted by a resident of Yerevan Karen
Kocharyan, Andranik Kocharyan, a resident of the village of Buzhakan,
who has knowledge of chemistry Zhor Zakaryan. In August-September 2016
Samvel Babayan, as the first party, purchased 100 banknotes in nominal
value of 50 euros, paying for them 2900 dollars. Then Karen Kocharyan
organized the transportation of these banknotes from Russia to Armenia
by bus with the help of Yerevan resident David Harutyunyan. However,
on September 20, 2016, banknotes were discovered and seized by NSS
officers in Yerevan.
As noted in the investigation of another criminal case, it became
known that Samvel Babayan, planning to acquire MANPADS "Igla",
promised in summer2016 Vaharshapat resident Sanasar Gabrielyan $ 50
thousand for his illegal acquisition, transportation and storage.
Gabrielyan illegally acquired the complex through residents of
Vagharshapat Armen Pogosyan and Hrachya Mailyana who traveled to
Georgia and agreed to purchase the complex for $ 38,000 through a
resident of the village of Vagharshapat RA living there. After the
delivery to Armenia, Poghosyan and Gabrielyan photographed it to show
Babayan. Samvel Babayan promised to pay 50 thousand dollars. On March
22, 2017, Mailyan voluntarily presented weapons to the National
Security Service. On the same day after Gabrielyan's detention, Samvel
Babayan tried to destroy photographs of weapons and eliminate all
traces, but he was also detained. To implement a comprehensive, full
and objective investigation, the above criminal cases were combined
into one proceeding. Samvel Babayan charged with Part 1 of Art. 190
and Part 2 of Art. 38-235 of the RA Criminal Code. The charge of
smuggling weapons was lifted. The criminal case against the indictment
is sent to the prosecutor who oversees. It should be reminded that the
court of general jurisdiction of Yerevan's administrative districts
Kentron and Nork-Marash granted an application for a 2-month detention
in respect of the former commander of the Defense Army Artsakh Samvel
Babayan within the framework of the criminal case on the smuggling of
MANPADS "Igla" . The former commander of the Artsakh Defense Army
Samvel Babayan was then charged on the grounds of Part 2 of Art. 235
and part 2 of article 235.1 of the RA Criminal Code.
The press service of the Prosecutor General's Office of Armenia
reported on March 25 that Samvel Babayan, the former commander of the
Artsakh Defense Army (NKR), although he does not recognize the
accusations brought against him in the case of the smuggling of the
Igla to the Armenia, during interrogation in the status of the
suspect, together with other Held in this case by suspects,
acknowledged his involvement in the illegal trafficking in ammunition
and reported on the incident.

ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
 Monday
Minsk mediators and Armenian leadership discussed situation around
Karabakh settlement
Yerevan June 12
Mariana Mkrtchyan. On June 10, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan
received the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group Igor Popov (Russia),
Richard Hoagland (USA), Stefan Visconti (France) and Personal
Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk.
As the presidential pres service told ArmInfo, the interlocutors
discussed issues related to the process of peaceful settlement of the
Karabakh problem. The situation was on the line of contact between the
Karabakh-Azerbaijani troops and the Armenian-Azerbaijani state border,
including incidents that took place recently on the front line were
discussed. Participants of the meeting noted the importance of loyalty
to obligations towards a peaceful settlement of the conflict in the
negotiation process, as well as the implementation of the reached
agreements at the highest level.
On the same day, Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met with
the mediators, who drew the attention of the co-chairs to the fact
that Azerbaijan not only failed to fulfill the agreements reached in
Moscow between the foreign ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia
in April with the participation of the mediators regarding the agreed
identical text that media published from both Armenian and Russian
sides, but also issued another absurd comment that allegedly during a
meeting in Moscow, the ministers noted not the importance of
implementation of agreements but discussed the agenda of the summit
talks.
According to the Armenian Minister, despite the fact that the
mediators' statement of May 18 - is not the first address, Azerbaijan
continues to ignore calls of intermediaries. According to Nalbandian,
the situation is coming when the countries co-chairs, as mediators,
must not only make statements, but also resort to appropriate concrete
actions in order to curb the destructive and provocative policy of
Azerbaijan.