Author: David Nargizian

– You can’t become a knowledge economy by going after your brightest minds.

So says Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize winner in economics, speaking after Turkey’s highest education authority last week announced an investigation into more than 1,100 academics. They had signed a petition calling on the government to redouble efforts for peace in the southeast, where for months the military has been fighting an insurgency in largely Kurdish cities.

The petition was signed by international academics, including Noam Chomsky of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Judith Butler of the University of California, Berkeley, and faculty members at Turkey’s top universities. By the end of the week, professors in Turkey were subject to police raids, several had lost their jobs and at least a dozen were detained, according to press reports.

That pressure will have a “chilling effect,” according to Stiglitz, who said he intended to raise the issue when meeting Turkish officials at the World Economic forum in Davos, Switzerland.

According to a presidential decree of January 12, Tigran Sargsyan has been relieved of the duties of Armenia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States.

According to another decree, Grigor Hovhannisyan has been appointed to the position.

Remind that on December 21 Tigran Sargsyan was appointed President of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Union.

Dear Compatriots,

In a few moments, we will bid farewell to year 2015. The passing year has been in fact full of evens and impressions. We commemorated the memory of the victims of the Great Eghern. Events dedicated to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide had pan-Armenian and world-wide coverage. I believe that year 2015 will remain in the Armenian history first of all as the year of beatification of our innocent victims.

This year we all witnessed manifestations of the exceptional unity of the entire Armenian nation. Through our joint efforts and dignified stance, we have conveyed our message to the world. I am confident that next year too, all Armenian structures, individuals and entire Spyurk will continue to work side by side for the benefit of Armenia, for the benefit of Artsakh, for the benefit of all parts of the Armenian nation.

Today, the entire world is going through a difficult and intense period. Regrettably, year 2015 not only failed to decrease tension and freeze the existing wars, but in some cases intensified the existing tensions and flared up hotbeds of aggression. Inhumane acts of terror, which claimed lives of innocent people in different parts of the world, did not decrease in number. Against this backdrop and in this context, Armenia has lived another peaceful and stable year. We have preserved our rating as one of the safest countries in the world. We have carried on with the advancement of our country; we have built roads, housing, schools, and hospitals – always dreaming of doing more.

The passing year has been significant with yet another important state and political event. We have introduced changes to the Main Law of the land – Constitution. I have no doubt that together we have opened a door for the new opportunities for our political and economic development. We have opened a door towards becoming a more secure, more liberal, and more harmonious country.

On this festive night, we traditionally raise our glasses for our military. We live behind their infallible shield. We entrusted them things that are most precious to us all; and they are the most precious thing to us. The enemy is perfidious, nothing new here. But the Armed Forces of Armenia are strong – always. Today, the combat readiness and technical capabilities of the Armenian Army are exceptionally high, as never before. Let us wish our servicemen a safe term of duty. Let us wish peace to our country and the entire world.

Very soon, we will step into year 2016. In 2016, we will celebrate the 25th anniversary of Independence of the Republic of Armenia. It’s been a quarter of a century that we live as a free and independent country. It’s hard to recall when our country had a period of twenty-five years of independence. It means that we have a new and bright generation of those who are twenty or twenty-five years old, who have no idea what it means not to have an independent state, who are free and uninhibited both psychologically and politically.

This is a new and young Armenia, which is open to the world, which is ready to accept new ideas, to accept a new culture of work and lifestyle, which will live and advance in step with the contemporary world. We are entering the New Year with a new political structure, with new vigor and new dreams, convinced that we are building our own home and we build it on a right foundation. Armenia, which is 25 years old, is not yet the Armenia of our dreams, but it is an essential and forceful milestone on that road.

Dear Compatriots,

I wish you happiness and all the best in year 2016!
Happy New Year and Holly Christmas!

Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan is ranked 77^th (up from 85th last year) in choice of the world’s top 100 footballers for 2015.

Led by Zico, Javier Zanetti and Gheorghe Hagi, the panel of 123 experts from 49 nations compiled a countdown of the greatest male players on the planet.

Lionel Messi tops the ranking, followed by Christiano Ronaldo and Neymar.

“The problem for Henrikh Mkhitaryan is that, with Bayern Munich so utterly dominant in the Bundesliga, it may be difficult for him to keep improving in his current surroundings. He is not doing a bad job of looking a cut above most of the competition though. After a 2014/15 season blighted by injuries and patchy form – which could also be said more broadly for his club, Borussia Dortmund – the Armenian attacking midfielder has been excellent in their revival under Thomas Tuchel and had scored eight goals by 5 November. Liverpool were heavily linked in the summer, and those murmurs may get louder given the identity of their new manager; if Dortmund cannot run Bayern close this year a new challenge may well be in order,” The Guardian writes.

Photo:  Sputnik/ Vasily Batanov

 

A Russian Coast Guard vessel and Black Sea Fleet cutter on Monday forced an unidentified vessel sailing under the Turkish flag to change its course after it had violated international law and hampered the movement of drilling rig equipment, reports.

Two drilling rigs owned by Chernomorneftegaz were moved from the Odesa gas field to the territorial waters of Russia because of the complex international situation.

The gas company said that the drilling rigs were being towed when “an unidentified cargo vessel under the Turkish flag” appeared.

“Acting in violation of international law on the warning of ships crashing in the sea and the overall norms of marine transportation, the Turkish vessel did not give way to the caravan on a cross course and made an attempt to stop in the course [of the caravan], which obviously would create an emergency situation. The Turkish vessel’s captain did not contact the [Russian] ships by radio, nor did he respond to calls,” the gas company said in a statement.

The first military plane carrying Syrian refugees to be resettled in Canada has arrived in the country, the BBC reports.

Welcoming the 163 refugees, new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country was “showing the world how to open our hearts”.

The newly elected Liberal government has pledged to take in 25,000 refugees by the end of February.

Canada’s stance on the issue differs sharply to that of the US, which has been reluctant to take in migrants.

Another plane is due in Montreal on Saturday.

Immigration Minister John McCallum said all 10 provinces in Canada are in favour of accepting the refugees.

“This is a great moment for Canada,” he said. “This shows the way we really are. It truly is a non-partisan, national project.”

Since early November, hundreds of Syrians have already arrived in Canada via commercial aircraft.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić.

The parties referred to the Serbian Presidency of the OSCE and the efforts targeted at solving the issues on the organization’s agenda.

The Foreign Ministers of the two countries discussed issues related to bilateral relations, and the  efforts targeted at the reinforcement of friendly ties.

British PM is to ask his cabinet to endorse a one-day Commons debate and vote on Wednesday over UK air strikes against so-called Islamic State in Syria.

David Cameron said there was “growing” parliamentary support for air strikes, saying it was “the right thing to do” and in the national interest.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is granting his MPs a free vote on the matter.

He has criticised the decision not to hold a two-day debate, saying Mr Cameron should “stop the rush to war”.

Mr Cameron said he would recommend that a debate and vote is held to extend air strikes against Isil in Iraq to Syria in order to “answer the call from our allies and work with them, because Isil is a threat to our country and this is the right thing to do”.

The Russian Insider presents a report on massacre in Kessab, a town in Syria populated mostly by ethnic Armenians.

The reports says Damascus’ jihadists crossed from over the Turkish border to target civilians, launching mortar attacks in the town and surrounding villages. Hundreds of families were forced to flee.

Turkish fans booed during the minute’s silence for the victims of the Paris attacks before their national team drew 0-0 with Greece in a friendly international soccer game on Tuesday, Reuters reports.

According to The Daily Mail, chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’ were reportedly heard in Istanbul as some Turkey fans shamefully booed a pre-match minute’s silence for the victims of the Paris attacks.

The mark of respect was observed at matches across Europe, including at Wembley where France faced England, after Islamic State militants struck Paris on Friday killing 129 people.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras watched the game together, in a sign of reconciliation between the two neighbors, whose relationship has suffered from hostilities in the past.

It was the first time the two teams had met for eight years and the Turkish Football Federation had announced a string of additional security measures before the match at the Istanbul Basaksehir stadium, which was a 17,000 sell out.