Author: Eduard Nalbandian

AW: Congressional Commission to shine a spotlight on Azerbaijani aggression

Eduard Nalbandian
 ANCA ANCA News 0

The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission will be hosting a hearing focusing on Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) security and Azerbaijan’s ongoing aggression on June 21.

WASHINGTON, DC – Members of Congress will shine a legislative spotlight on Azerbaijan’s genocidal actions against the indigenous Armenian Christians of Artsakh during a Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC) hearing set for Wednesday, June 21 at 2:15 p.m. EST, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).  The Capitol Hill hearing is organized by TLHRC co-chairs Chris Smith (R-NJ) and James McGovern (D-MA).

“We welcome Chairman Smith’s leadership in shining a Congressional spotlight on America’s responsibility to stop Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Artsakh, and want also to thank Ranking Member McGovern and all those on the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission who are working to hold the Aliyev regime responsible for its genocidal actions against the indigenous Christian Armenians of this sacred Armenian land,” said ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian. “As these legislators know, any deal that forces democratic Artsakh into genocidal Azerbaijan is a death sentence for more than 120,000 at-risk Armenians.”

Titled “Safeguarding the people of Nagorno Karabakh,” the hearing will include testimony by former US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback, American Enterprise Institute Senior Fellow Michael Rubin and Columbia University Director of the Peace-Building and Human Rights Program, Institute for the Study of Human Rights, David Phillips. The hearing will be open to members of Congress, Congressional staff, the interested public and the media.  The ANCA is encouraging Armenian Americans throughout the DC area to attend the hearing.  Streaming video will be available.

An announcement posted by TLHRC co-chairs Smith and McGovern expresses concerns about the escalating tensions resulting from Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin (Berdzor) corridor to Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) and the latest Azerbaijani military checkpoint installed on the corridor that is widely viewed as inconsistent with the provisions of the 2020 ceasefire agreement.

“This hearing will examine the measures required to adequately safeguard, during this period of blockade and negotiation, a vulnerable ethnic population, and offer recommendations for US policy,” explain hearing hosts.

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The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) is the largest and most influential Armenian-American grassroots organization. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters and supporters throughout the United States and affiliated organizations around the world, the ANCA actively advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.


Armenia can become unique regional hub of electrical energy – Pashinyan at Eurasian Congress

Eduard Nalbandian

 15:06, 9 June 2023

YEREVAN, JUNE 9, ARMENPRESS. Armenia can become a unique regional hub of electrical energy, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the Eurasian Congress in Sochi.

“The economic growth and activity indexes of Armenia create a favorable foundation for highly optimistic forecasts for both the current year and foreseeable future,” Pashinyan said, noting the “impressive” economic growth of Armenia.

GDP growth comprised 12,6% compared to 2021.

“This is the highest indicator since 2008,” he said, referring to the GDP growth.

“The growth in manufacturing, trade, including trade services and construction also contributed to this,” Pashinyan added.

Exports grew 77,7% in 2022, while exports to EEU countries tripled. 

“Sustainable growth is only possible in case of balance of the three main components, economic growth, social responsibility and environmental balance. Eurasia has huge potential for economic growth, and we must jointly carry out major projects in energy, digitization, logistics, climate agenda and other areas of mutual interest,” PM Pashinyan said.

The Armenian Premier said logistic security is among the most important factors for the development of economies in EEU countries. He added that ensuring energy security requires literate approach.

“Based on the current geopolitical realities, we need a new approach for energy agenda. Armenia is currently working in the direction of gradual liberalization of the electrical energy market, which creates new opportunities and favorable conditions for interstate electrical energy trade. We are developing our output capacity, carrying out major reconstruction of substations and transmission lines, the construction of the Armenia-Iran and Armenia-Georgia high-voltage lines, which contribute to the formation of the North-South electrical energy route and create new opportunities for electrical energy exports, imports, transit and seasonal exchange. Thus, Armenia can become a unique regional hub of electrical energy,” Pashinyan said.

LA Leftists Attack Armenian-Americans for Resisting ‘Pride’ Agenda in Schools

Eduard Nalbandian
June 8 2023

CV NEWS FEED // On Friday, a mob of Antifa and LGBTQ activists fought with a group of Armenian-American parents outside a school board meeting in Glendale, California. 

According to the city’s police department, three arrests were made following the event. Glendale is a large suburb of Los Angeles.

Journalist and anti-extremism advocate Andy Ngo tweeted a video of the scuffle. “Immigrant families have been furious that elementary schools are doing pride events,” he wrote. “Antifa have gathered to oppose the parents.”

As The Daily Signal reported:

Following the Glendale school board’s decision to incorporate LGBTQ+ “Pride” festivals and celebrations into June school days, dozens of parents pulled students from classrooms—with some elementary schools seeing only 40% of students show up for class on June 2.

Additional documents revealed that Glendale staff have attempted to incorporate LGBTQ+ materials and ideology into other curriculum. One assistant principal even told staff to teach children that every person is, by default, “queer” and “socialist.”

Parents from the traditionally conservative Armenian and Hispanic communities in Glendale planned to protest the board’s decisions at an upcoming school board meeting. Antifa Southern California called for activists to counter protest against these parents, whom they labeled “hate groups.”

One of the concerned parents who petitioned the school board said that one of his daughters was “afraid to change in the locker room because she knows (a) guy could come into the room.” When the father reached out to the principal, he informed him “there were no cross-gender bathroom policies.”

Armenians are a historically persecuted minority group from Western Asia who are predominantly Orthodox Christians. Approximately one million Armenians were killed in a genocide during World War I.

The city of Glendale is well-known for its vibrant Armenian-American community. Many local Armenians came in the 1970s to escape communism. The area currently has the largest Armenian population outside of Armenia.

Notably, one of the teachers at the Glendale School District was recently caught on camera downplaying the Armenian Genocide. This teacher also works at a Los Angeles children’s hospital with “queer and trans youth.”

She spoke at the school board meeting, saying: “I deal with a lot of the trauma of LGBT youth related to the hetero-normative, Judeo-Christian, patriarchal, imperialist, capitalist system that oppresses them.”

“Armenians talk about the genocide,” she added, “but they don’t want to talk about the indigenous genocide in 1850, and the lack of reparations for indigenous and black people in this country.”

Significant amounts of footage of the “all-out brawl” circulated on the internet in the hours following the incident. One of the leftist rioters, a man in a pink bandana, was seen assaulting the parent protestors before police arrested him. 

The riot was led in part by local far-left politician Maebe A. Girl, D-CA, a male drag queen who identifies both as “transgender” and “nonbinary” – preferring “she/they pronouns.” He serves on the Neighborhood Council of Silver Lake, an up-and-coming Los Angeles neighborhood that has been described as “trendy and hip.” Girl ran for Congress in 2020 and 2022, losing both times in landslides to incumbent Adam Schiff. Girl is currently running again in the crowded 2024 race to replace Schiff, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

Girl was present at the event and live-tweeted it, incorrectly using the term “Proud Boys” to refer to the group of fathers who opposed his mob.

A previous quarrel between Antifa and mostly Armenian-American parents took place outside of an elementary school on Friday, June 2. 

The attacked parents, many of them reportedly immigrants, were waving American flags and wearing shirts bearing the words “Leave Our Kids Alone.” Several of the aggressors were draped in “pride” flags.

https://catholicvote.org/la-leftists-attack-armenian-americans-for-resisting-pride/

Nagorno Karabakh presidency responds to Aliyev’s latest demands

Eduard Nalbandian

 14:25, 29 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. The Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh presidency has responded to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s latest statement demanding the elected officials of Nagorno Karabakh to surrender.

Presidential spokesperson Lusine Avanesyan issued a statement in response to Aliyev’s speech.

“Just a few days ago, the President of the Artsakh Republic called on the people and authorities of Azerbaijan to end the hatred and genocidal policy towards the people of Artsakh, to truly accept the principle of equality of people established by international law, the title and rights of the indigenous Armenian people to Artsakh.

At the same time, President Harutyunyan expressed his willingness to start a dialogue in an international format, based on the norms and principles of international law, especially on the principles of equality and self-determination of people, non-use of force and threat of force, peaceful settlement of disputes and principles of territorial integrity.

It is not the first time that Azerbaijan has spoken threateningly to the people of Artsakh after the Tripartite Declaration of a ceasefire, we have seen and continue to see manifestations of aggression in the form of local combat operations, blockade, energy and other pressures. This time, the President of Azerbaijan has added illegal demands to the elected authorities of the people of Artsakh.

The President and the National Assembly hold the primary mandate of the people of Artsakh, elected on democratic principles and on the basis of the Constitution of the Artsakh Republic. And the president of Azerbaijan is well aware that the main source of the subjectivity of Artsakh is those state institutions, and, in fact, with such demands, he recognizes the legitimacy and importance of those institutions.

Along with the active international efforts aimed at ensuring lasting peace in the South Caucasus, the repeated threats of the Azerbaijani President to the people and statehood of Artsakh are aimed at undermining the perspective of the effectiveness of these efforts. Emphasizing once again that Azerbaijan does not respect any international principles and obligations, President Harutyunyan reaffirms the provisions of his May 23 message addressed to the parties of the Tripartite Declaration and the UN Security Council,” Avanesyan said.

Partnership for Good Governance: EU and Council of Europe launch three joint projects for Armenia

Eduard Nalbandian
May 30 2023

Three new projects in the field of the judiciary, fight against corruption, combating discrimination and violence against women will be implemented in Armenia in the next five years.

The new projects will be carried out in Armenia under the third phase of the EU-Council of Europe ‘Partnership for Good Governance (PGG)’ programme in 2023-2027.

The first Local Steering Committee meeting for these projects took place last week in Yerevan, where the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia and the Council of Europe, together with 40 representatives of national partner institutions, discussed joint actions for the new programme phase.

“The EU will continue supporting reforms in Armenia. We prioritise strengthening the rule of law through independence of the judiciary, enhancing good governance through public administration reform and anti-corruption measures, as well as allowing for an inclusive and human rights-based development,” said Frank Hess, Head of the Development Cooperation Section of the European Union to Armenia.

The projects have a total budget of €2.36 million and are co-funded by the EU and the Council of Europe.

In addition, Armenia is taking part in three projects implemented at regional level aimed at fighting economic crime, promoting equality and non-discrimination, and facilitating access of women to justice. 

Find out more

Press release

https://euneighbourseast.eu/news/latest-news/partnership-for-good-governance-eu-and-council-of-europe-launch-three-joint-projects-for-armenia/

Problem won’t be resolved without Baku-Stepanakert dialogue, says Speaker of Parliament

Eduard Nalbandian

 15:04, 1 June 2023

YEREVAN, JUNE 1, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan has said that direct dialogue between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan would also be highly important for Azerbaijan because if the dialogue fails to take place the problem won’t be resolved.

Asked whether the formation of an international mechanism for dialogue between Stepanakert and Baku is a principled matter for Armenia, given the fact that Azerbaijan doesn’t agree to it, Simonyan said: “We must reach a point where Azerbaijan starts to speak about it because otherwise there won’t be a beneficial situation for Azerbaijan itself, there will be a big gap which it won’t be able to fill for years, decades. If Azerbaijan doesn’t sit down and speak with the Armenian population living in Artsakh, that wound will someday [open].”

He added that international pressure and the international factor have big role. The Speaker said Armenia has success in this direction.

The problem won’t be resolved without dialogue between Baku and Stepanakert, Speaker Simonyan said.

“The other option is genocide, which we won’t allow. The Azerbaijani authorities should think that this issue is far more important for them than for us,” he concluded.

Speaking about a possible peace treaty, Simonyan called for guarantees to be in place for implementation of the terms of the agreement. As an example he mentioned the 9 November 2020 trilateral statement, which Azerbaijan is regularly violating while Russia – who is supposed to guarantee its implementation – fails to give proper response.

Russia’s position on Lachin corridor hasn’t changed — Putin

Eduard Nalbandian
 TASS 
Russia – May 25 2023
The Russian president was responding to Pashinyan’s remarks that the situation in the area of the Lachin corridor remained tense

MOSCOW, May 25. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said Russia’s position about the Lachin corridor hasn’t changed.

“You know our position about our trilateral statement regarding the Lachin corridor. We have never changed our position in this regard. Never,” the president said at a meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Thursday.

Putin was responding to Pashinyan’s remarks that the situation in the area of the Lachin corridor remained tense.

Armenpress: Armenian market offered new option for Russia-Georgia Black Sea shipments as alternative to Upper Lars

Eduard Nalbandian

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 09:00,

YEREVAN, MAY 22, ARMENPRESS. Authorities are offering importers and exporters an alternative to the Upper Lars checkpoint on the Russian-Georgian border for shipping goods to and from Russia.

Throughout the year, bad weather conditions prompt indefinite shutdowns of the Upper Lars checkpoint due to safety precautions, given its location in a canyon. As a result, the subsequent traffic congestion impacts freight forwarders and shippers, with businesses losing time and money.

Authorities had been working on an alternative for a long time – sea shipping through a port in Georgia. The goods will be shipped by land from Armenia to the Batumi port, and then to Novorossiysk by sea – or the other way around. 

The goal is to make logistic infrastructures for shipments from or to Armenia more accessible, reduce logistical obstacles and expenses.

C&M International, a shipping company selected by the Armenian government as an operator, has been organizing the sea shipment for Armenian importers and exporters in the Novorossiysk-Batumi roundtrip direction in the Black Sea since April.

The shipments will be carried out through government subsidy, offering affordable options. 

“As of today, our ship can carry 350 containers,” C&M International Director Davit Iloyan told ARMENPRESS, adding that they’ve already operated the route twice.

“We plan to operate regular shipments once a week from Novorossiysk to Batumi and in the opposite direction,” he added, noting that they are able to increase the shipments as much as necessary in case of growing demand. “What matters now is to operate regular, stable shipment once a week.”

Many businesses will benefit from using this method of shipment, Iloyan said. The cargo reaches its destination within 20 to 24 hours with no problems on the way, and the businesses don’t have to worry about delays.

“We are able to guarantee stable timeframes and stable prices for the shipments, something which isn’t possible in many cases during shipments by land. The capacity of Upper Lars isn’t sufficient in case of large flows and it constantly leads to problems, such as exporters and importers being unable to deliver the goods to their partners in time. No such problems will happen in case of sea shipping. We used to have only one road, the Upper Lars, but now we already have the second route,” the C&M International director said, adding that their operations will reduce the overload of Upper Lars checkpoint, and as a result tourists will also move a lot easier.

Iloyan said his company will offer a stable price for a year. The state plans to subsidize the cost in order for businesses to pay less for the shipment.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy had organized an introductory meeting between businesses and representatives of C&M International.

Anna Gziryan

Envoy: Reports of EU observers not shared with Armenia or Azerbaijan

Eduard Nalbandian
Panorama
Armenia – May 15 2023

The EU observers deployed to Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan do not share their reports either with the Armenian or the Azerbaijani authorities, Andrea Wiktorin, head of the EU Delegation in Yerevan, said on Monday, adding the civilian mission reports back to Brussels.

“But as the mission is accompanied by officers of the Ministry of Defense, the Armenian side is well aware of what they see,” she told a news conference.

Wiktorin said the EU observers were not in the border village of Sotk during the latest Azerbaijani attacks which left one Armenian soldier killed and several others wounded. They visited the area after the tensions eased, she added.

“So far with the latest incursion and hostilities they were not present on the ground… when the incursion happened. You have quite a long border and there is a schedule of the patrols. It is also not an intention that they had to be there while something happens. They are monitoring the border and they see what they see around the border, but it does not mean that they are actually on the spot when something happens,” Wiktorin said.

PM Pashinyan holds short meetings with the leaders of France, Germany, Latvia and Georgia in Reykjavik

Eduard Nalbandian

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 18:03,

YEREVAN, MAY 17, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan held short meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Latvian President Egils Levits, and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili within the framework of the 4th Council of Europe Summit, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister.

Various issues of mutual interest were discussed.

The Prime Minister’s working visit to the Republic of Iceland is over.