Author: David Nargizian

Armenpress: Azerbaijan opens fire in the direction of Armenian military positions. Ministry of Defense

David Nargizian

Azerbaijan opens fire in the direction of Armenian military positions. Ministry of Defense

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 09:58,

YEREVAN, JULY 15, ARMENPRESS. The statement spread by the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan that allegedly on the night of July 15-16 the units of the Armenian Armed Forces opened fire in the direction of the Azerbaijani military positions located in the eastern part of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border is misinformation, ARMENPRESS was informed from MoD Armenia.

At the same time, the units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces opened fire from various, including large-caliber firearms, in the direction of the Armenian military positions located in the mentioned section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. The fire of the Azerbaijani units was silenced by the retaliatory actions of the Armenian side.

Azerbaijanis abduct Armenia villager

David Nargizian
NEWS.am
Armenia –
Newspaper:
10:04, 14.07.2022

YEREVAN. – Hraparak daily of writes Armenia writes: A few weeks ago, the Azerbaijanis abducted a resident of Khachik village of Vayots Dzor [Province], 60-year-old Ashot Khachatryan, from the territory of the village while carrying out agricultural work. After holding him hostage for about a week, they returned him back. We were told that violence was also used against him.

It is noteworthy that the official [Armenian] agencies are silent about the incident, there is no [respective] statement because this fact shows that, contrary to [PM Nikol] Pashinyan’s assurances that the Armenian-Azerbaijani borders are equipped and proper monitoring is in place, soon it will be so peaceful that not soldiers but a few border guards will stand at the border, in fact there are great dangers.

We were alerted by the residents of Khachik that there is simply powerlessness there. Khachik is part of the enlarged community of Areni, whose leader Husik Sahakyan told us that he does not know much about [this] incident.

“We found out that one day he [i.e., Ashot Khachatryan] was lost, and the next day he came back. I don’t know anything more,” he said.

Creative Armenia Launches Artbox Incubator

David Nargizian
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Creative Armenia Artbox Incubator graphic

The Creative Incubator Artbox Will Provide Strategic Support and Access to Funding to Creative Projects and Businesses Across All Art Fields

Creative Armenia officially launched and opened applications on July 12 for the creative incubator Artbox, which is funded by the European Union in Armenia and launched in partnership with AGBU Armenia within the framework of the KATAPULT Creative Accelerator Program. 

Through a 12-week incubation process in the Fall of 2022 — taking place digitally through a cutting-edge online platform — selected projects across all creative fields will be given an unprecedented opportunity to work with prominent business leaders and renowned cultural figures to develop a comprehensive package around their projects, including a business plan, marketing strategy, video pitch, and financing plan. Once this package is ready, the artists will have the exclusive opportunity to present their projects for financial support, including grants provided by KATAPULT and possible investments by high-profile cultural investors. 

To learn more about the incubator and to apply by the August 12, 2022, deadline, please visit the website: www.artbox.am. 

“The idea of Artbox had its spark at Creative Armenia years ago – rising from our mission to provide artists a comprehensive and vital strategic support for their creative but, more importantly, economic success,” said Creative Armenia Director of Programs Anush Ter-Khachatryan. “Today we are thrilled to see that spark becoming an enlightenment and bringing a paradigm shift in our cultural landscape.”

The application is open for creators from across the world with projects to be realized within the Republic of Armenia. Preference is given to projects that seek investment and have potential to reach commercial success.

“Artbox is a unique opportunity that empowers artists and creative teams by investing in their entrepreneurship skills and their ideas,” — said Anna K. Gargarian, the lead of KATAPULT Creative Accelerator Program. “As KATAPULT works to catalyze the creative economy, Artbox’s focus on human capital and tailored learning modules for professionalizing the sector are essential for building an industry.” 

Inspired by innovative models in business and tech, Artbox is a reinvention of the incubator and accelerator model for the art world — a dynamic entrepreneurial system that provides strategic support, guidance, and access to funding to creative projects in theater, music, design, and across the arts, helping to develop them into commercially viable and investable creative products. 

Creative Armenia is a global arts foundation for the Armenian people that discovers, develops, and champions innovative talent across the arts. Artbox is developed by Creative Armenia, funded by the European Union in Armenia and launched in partnership with AGBU Armenia in the framework of the KATAPULT Creative Accelerator Program.

Foreign Minister of Rwanda visits Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

David Nargizian

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 16:43,

YEREVAN, JULY 11, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Rwanda Vincent Biruta and his delegation visited today the Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan on the sidelines of the two-day visit in Armenia.

The delegation was accompanied by Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Mnatsakan Safaryan, the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute said.

Director of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute Harutyun Marutyan introduced the guests on the history of the Memorial and the three cross-stones located in the territory of the Memorial.

Vincent Biruta laid a wreath at the Memorial and the guests laid flowers at the Eternal Flame by paying a tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims with a moment of silence.

The Rwandan guests also toured the Armenian Genocide Museum, got acquainted with the temporary and permanent exhibits, and then the Foreign Minister left a note in the Honorary Guest Book.

The guests also visited the seminar hall of the Museum-Institute where a training for American teachers was being held.

Addressing the training participants, the Rwandan FM, as a representative of a country that faced genocide, highlighted such programs, expressing hope that it would be possible to prevent the repetition of genocide through education.

At the end of the visit the guests toured the Memory park where Vincent Biruta watered the silver fir tree planted by former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Rwanda Louise Mushikiwabo.

Students from 64 countries to participate in International Biology Olympiad in Armenia

David Nargizian
Public Radio of Armenia
Armenia – July 9 2022
July 9, 2022, 15:52

 1 minute read

For the first time, Armenia will host the International Biology Olympiad will be held in Armenia. The 33rd edition of the event to be held in Yerevan on July 10-18 will feature students from 64 countries. Representatives of the international jury, observers, as well as winners of the last year’s Olympiad are also expected in Armenia.

Team Telecom Armenia will be the technological partner of the event. It has provided all the necessary technical and digital solutions to ensure the smooth running of the most prestigious school competition.

The competition will take place in two staged – theoretical and practical (each lasting 7 hours). The work of the jury members will be organized through the “OlyExams” program, which is designed to ensure the examination process of science olympiads.

The International Biology Olympiad is an annual competition for high school students. Armenian students started participating in the Olympiad in 2009.

The Olympiad aims to identify, inspire, empower and support the next generation of leaders in the life sciences and to develop their international network.

Belarus to take part in Armenia Expo in September

David Nargizian
Belarus – July 8 2022

MINSK, 8 July (BelTA) – Companies from Belarus will take part in the exhibition in Armenia in September, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belinterexpo exhibition company at the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BelCCI).

The regional universal trade & industrial forum Armenia Expo will be held in Yerevan on 16-18 September. Belarus will traditionally take part in the event and bring a representative official delegation.

The exhibition has a wide range of thematic sections: mechanical engineering, petrochemicals, construction, interior design, transport, cargo transportation, medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, woodworking, financial services, tourism and recreation. In 2022, the exhibition will draw more than 170 companies, associations, unions and organizations. Among the participating countries are Armenia, Belarus, Germany, Georgia, India, Iran, China, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, and Czechia.

In 2021, eleven Belarusian enterprises of the food industry and mechanical engineering took part in the exhibition. They showcased meat and dairy products, beverages, confectionery, and also agricultural machines: fodder and grain harvesters and many more. Enterprises concluded a number of contracts to supply products to Armenia.

The Belarusian exposition at the 21st installment of Armenia Expo in Yerevan has been organized by the Belinterexpo exhibition company at the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BelCCI) with the support of the Embassy of Belarus in Armenia.

Armenia says has 1.5 years to tackle problems of displaced Karabakh residents

David Nargizian
PanArmenian
Armenia – June 30 2022
June 30, 2022 – 17:05 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Secretary of the Security Council Armen Grigoryan has said the Armenian government is working with the authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) to find solutions to the issue of deportation of the residents Berdzor, Sputnik Armenia reports.

Grigoryan’s comments came days after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan revealed that there is a “preliminary understanding” that Lachin corridor connecting Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) will be changed. Asked what will happen to the residents of Aghavno and Sus communities in Berdzor, which is situated within the current corridor, Pashinyan said those territories will pass under the control of Azerbaijan.

Grigoryan said Thursday, June 30 that the authorities have 1.5 years to tackle the problem of providing the residents of said communities with housing and settling related issued.

The Secretary also noted that Armenia is resolutely advancing the agenda of peace in the region, although he added that the process is not going to be easy..

Food: A Lentil Soup With Its Heart in Armenia

David Nargizian
July 1 2022

Tsirani vosp apur gets its distinctive earthy, tangy flavor from apricots, the country’s national fruit.

Credit…David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

By Joan Nathan

For her birthday, my friend Audrey wanted one thing: a lentil soup from Yerevan Market and Cafe, an Armenian spot in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Ethereal yet somehow earthy, it was unlike any lentil soup we’d ever had — orange and slightly tangy. We were left curious about its flavor.

It turned out the secret ingredient was apricots, the national fruit of Armenia.

Though apricots originated in China, their tie to Armenia is strong. They’re botanically known as Prunus armeniaca (or “Armenian plum”). The wood of the tree is used to make the duduk, an ancient Armenian wind instrument still played today. When Armenia gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, its new flag was striped in red, blue and an orange hue that recalls what else but the apricot.

“Armenians are very much in love with apricots,” said Marina Sarukhanyan, the owner of Silk Apron Catering in Gaithersburg, Md., which counts Yerevan among its customers.

According to Armenian folklore, apricots were among the fruit that Noah brought on the ark to cultivate after the floodwaters receded. These most coveted trees are in the Ararat Valley, beneath Mount Ararat — the mountaintop on which the ark supposedly landed.

Armenians collect apricots quickly during their short season, to be put to use in pies, breads and punch. Often, the fruit is cut and dried in the sun for fruit leathers, frequently called fruit lavashes, one of the oldest-known snacks. Mostly they’re eaten fresh.

But possibly the most exquisite, yet simple Armenian dish in which apricots feature is simmered and savory. It was that very soup we tasted: tsirani vosp apur, which is among the modern Armenian dishes Ms. Sarukhanyan prepares for her clients, alongside lahmajoun and jingalov hats with 14 different herbs and greens.

Traditionally eaten in and around Yerevan, the Armenian capital where Ms. Sarukhanyan was born, the soup is prepared with fresh apricots in the summer and dried apricots throughout the year and can be eaten hot or cold.

“This contemporary soup is as common today as vegetable soup in other countries,” said Ms. Sarukhanyan, who came to the United States in 2006. “But Armenians from outside Armenia may not even know this dish.”

Lentils (red, orange or yellow), tomatoes and sometimes carrots are simmered in vegetable broth, though you could also use chicken broth. Lemon juice lends a punch of acidity. Then, it’s drizzled with pomegranate syrup and finished with a few bright red pomegranate seeds, if you have them. But the defining feature of this distinctive soup is, of course, the apricots.

“We have the best in the world,” Ms. Sarukhanyan said.

Recipe: Tsirani Vosp Apur (Armenian Apricot and Lentil Soup)

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/01/dining/armenia-lentil-soup.html

Armenia, Turkey agree to open borders for third-country nationals..

David Nargizian
July 1 2022

The two countries have also agreed to begin direct cargo flights in both directions, despite their strained relations.

Armenia and Turkey have agreed in normalisation talks to open their common border for third-country nationals and to begin direct cargo flights, according to the Turkish foreign ministry and Interfax news agency citing the Armenian foreign ministry.

Relations between the two countries have been strained for decades and the land border between the two neighbours has been closed since 1993, in the wake of clashes between Armenia and ethnically Turkic Azerbaijan.

Envoys for Ankara and Yerevan “agreed to enable the crossing of the land border between Türkiye and Armenia by third country citizens visiting Türkiye and Armenia respectively at the earliest date possible,” the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement – also on Friday.

“They also agreed on commencing direct air cargo trade between Türkiye and Armenia at the earliest possible date and decided to initiate the necessary process to that effect,” the statement said.

The Turkish and Armenian officials also “discussed other possible concrete steps that can be undertaken towards achieving the ultimate goal of full normalisation between their respective countries,” it added.

“Finally they reemphasised their agreement to continue the normalisation process without preconditions,” the statement said.

The statement was issued after Turkish Ambassador Serdar Kilic and Armenian National Assembly Deputy Speaker Ruben Rubinyan, both special representatives for the normalisation agreement, held their fourth meeting in Vienna, Austria, on Friday.

Turkey and Armenia restored diplomatic contacts in December 2021 after they were suspended for years.

In January 2022, special envoys from Ankara and Yerevan began talks to fully restore ties “without preconditions”.

Turkish and Armenian envoys met for the second time in Vienna on February 24, and the third meeting was held on May 3 in the Austrian capital.

Also, an historic bilateral meeting took place between the foreign ministers of Turkey and Armenia on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on March 12.

As part of the efforts, Turkey and Armenia have also resumed commercial flights as of February 2 after a two-year hiatus.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/7/1/armenia-turkey-agree-to-open-border-for-third-country-nationals

Elon Musk meets with Pope Francis

David Nargizian

 

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 12:19, 2 July 2022

YEREVAN, JULY 2, ARMENPRESS. American business magnate, CEO of Tesla Motors Elon Musk met with Pope Francis in Vatican. 

Reuters reports the world’s richest person tweeted a picture where he can be seen standing next to the pope, captioning it: “Honored to meet @pontifex yesterday”.

Musk’s four teenage boys are also pictured.