16:44, 28 September, 2021
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev says he wouldn’t mind holding an OSCE-mediated meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
In an interview to FRANCE24, Aliyev said that if the OSCE Minsk Group of mediators (France, the US and Russia) set up a meeting with Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan, he would have no objections.
WASHINGTON, DC – A full year after Azerbaijan’s September 27, 2020 attack on Artsakh, a US Agency for International Development (USAID) report to Congress failed to cite any direct U.S. assistance to at-risk families in Artsakh and a total of just $2.5 million in new USAID humanitarian aid to help Armenia deal with this ongoing crisis, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
In a two-page written response to Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-CA), USAID officials acknowledged the “acute humanitarian crisis” in Armenia caused by the displacement of 90,000 Armenians from Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh). Rep. Chu’s request for clarification of the U.S. humanitarian response is among a broad array of bi-partisan Senate and House inquiries on the subject.
“The Biden Administration – a year after Azerbaijan’s attack – fails to cite even a single U.S. aid program in Artsakh – the target of 44 days of relentless aggression,” said ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian. “And, while finally acknowledging the ‘acute humanitarian crisis’ facing Armenia – this long-overdue USAID response reveals that the Administration’s actual spending falls far short of the level required to meet the very basic humanitarian needs – shelter, protection, health, and food security – that USAID itself has identified.”
Rep. Chu stressed, “Azerbaijan’s aggression has created lasting pain and damage in Artsakh. Armenians have lost their lives, homes, and land, while many are still separated from families or imprisoned by Azerbaijan. And on top of the hurt caused by Azerbaijan’s war, Armenians are continuing to struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic. I believe the US can and must stand with the Armenian people. That means increasing our support for refugees and reconstruction, and ensuring the resources to help Armenians address the coronavirus. I have spoken with USAID Administrator Samantha Power about this urgent need and will continue to press the Administration to act to provide this much-needed aid.”
The sum total of all US State Department and USAID aid provided to all “people affected the fighting” – including both ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis represents a tiny fraction of the billions in U.S. emergency and humanitarian assistance distributed worldwide since the start of the Biden administration.
Below is the full text of the USAID response to questions raised by Congresswoman Judy Chu, who has received an “A+” rating from the ANCA. Rep. Chu joined Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) in visiting Artsakh in 2019 and saw first-hand the importance of US-funded demining efforts. Most recently, Rep. Chu supported a broad range of pro-Artsakh amendments to the FY2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), including, one calling on the State Department for a detailed report on all US assistance to Artsakh and plans to expand such aid.
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USAID RESPONSE TO REP. JUDY CHU (D-CA)
Questions from the Office of Rep. Judy Chu
1. Updates on Admin (through USAID or other means) efforts to assess the scope and nature of humanitarian needs among Armenians in Artsakh
2. What’s being done to get aid to this population
3. What kind of Congressional action could help USAID meet these needs?
From the outset of last year’s fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan in and around NK, the United States has responded to meet urgent humanitarian assistance needs for vulnerable populations fleeing the violence and the communities that host them. Throughout the crisis, USAID has continued to adapt its programming to effectively respond to the complex humanitarian crisis resulting from this fighting and assist the over 90,000 displaced persons that arrived in Armenia from NK.
The intensive fighting in the fall of 2020 sparked mass displacement of affected communities into Armenia, triggering an acute humanitarian crisis. Following the Ambassador’s October 9 disaster declaration, our Mission in Armenia provided an initial $100,000 in humanitarian assistance through partner Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and its local partner, Caritas Armenia, to distribute relief kits containing winter blankets, hygiene materials, and other items to affected populations in Armenia. On November 17th, Secretary Pompeo announced that the Department of State and USAID would provide $5 million in humanitarian assistance to support the operations of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other international and nongovernmental organization partners to assist people affected by the fighting. USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance provided an additional $2.4 million to meet the immediate and acute humanitarian needs of those displaced by the violence in NK in Armenia. This amount, along with the initial $100,000, comprised USAID’s $2.5 million portion of the $5 million in new assistance. In total, USAID has provided over $4.5 million in new and repurposed assistance to respond to the complex humanitarian crisis resulting from the NK hostilities and the conflict-associated COVID-19 resurgence in Armenia.
USAID efforts complement other parts of the comprehensive U.S. emergency response to mitigate conflict-related impacts in and around NK. The U.S. Department of State’s component of this effort, led by the Bureau for Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), through ICRC, supported $2.5 million in emergency assistance to meet the acute and ongoing humanitarian needs of populations impacted by the fighting in and around NK. USAID has not had any active programming in NK since March 31, 2020. From 1998 to 2020, USAID provided more than $48 million in assistance for NK. USAID is coordinating closely with the Department of State and interagency partners regarding the provision of humanitarian assistance to populations affected by the fighting in and around NK. The Department and USAID are also assessing needs as we consider additional opportunities for assistance to NK. In some cases this may include clarifying outstanding questions that bear on our ability to fund new programs there, including whether implementing partners would have reliable access to NK as well as the implications of the Russian presence in NK.
In Armenia, an estimated 37,000 ethnic Armenians displaced from NK face ongoing shelter, protection, health (including mental health), and food security needs. Of the more than 90,000 people displaced to Armenia by the fighting last fall, an estimated 30,000 are expected to remain in Armenia permanently. These remaining populations will need long-term integration assistance.
Significant challenges that inhibit humanitarian assistance efforts in and around NK remain. Many humanitarian organizations, including UN agencies, have been blocked from accessing vulnerable populations in the area, further complicating efforts to provide needed assistance. As the displacement situation continues to evolve, USAID is working closely with the Department of State to assess post-conflict humanitarian needs and possible future U.S. engagement. We anticipate that the focus of USAID assistance will transition from emergency humanitarian assistance to longer-term recovery and integration of displaced persons in Armenia.
Going forward, in addition to coordination with our interagency and donor partners, USAID will continue to track conflict-related displacement and humanitarian needs and opportunities to support the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of displaced populations to their home communities as conditions allow. The United States remains committed to helping foster a more stable and peaceful future for all the people of the region, including in NK.
One of the two participants in the attack on the Turkish Consulate General in the French city of Marseille in 2016 was sentenced to 6 months of house arrest, writes Anadolu.
According to the newspaper, the attacker is an ethnic Armenian.
The case was heard in the Court of Appeal of Marseille on Friday September 24.
The basis for the guilty verdict was the data of a fingerprint examination, which proved that one of the bottles with Molotov cocktails thrown into the building of the consulate had the defendant’s fingerprints.
Judge sentenced the man to three years of suspended imprisonment for attacking a place demanding respect and replacing him with 6 months of house arrest while wearing an electronic bracelet.
YEREVAN. – Zhoghovurd newspaper of the Republic of Armenia (RA) writes: The European Court of Human Rights [(ECtHR)] has issued a decision by which it ruled in favor of the complaint filed on behalf of the Dareskizb LLC (Haykakan Zhamanak [(HZh)] daily) back in 2008 against the decree of RA second president [Robert] Kocharyan dated March 1, 2008.
In this case, the ECtHR has found that the decree violated Article 10 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and Article 6 was also violated against the petitioner; domestic courts were inaccessible. It means that Haykakan Zhamanak daily defeated RA government.
And in this situation, it is interesting that, in fact, [PM] Nikol Pashinyan, a person who is the owner of Haykakan Zhamanak daily, has been the head of the government for three years. And the question arises whether the RA government has served the interests of Haykakan Zhamanak for three years, whether it has submitted the government’s objections to the European Court, or, in the same way, the RA position and interests.
After all, a lawsuit was filed against the government itself, and logic suggests that Nikol Pashinyan should serve the interests of the government, not of the daily. Has the government submitted counter-arguments to the European Court [of Human Rights] in connection with HZh’s lawsuit to have the lawsuit dismissed in court? It is a question the answer to which Zhoghovurd daily has not been able to find out yet.
Let us added that, according to the European [Court of Human Rights] decision, the petitioner—Nikol Pashinyan, the owner of Haykakan Zhamanak—will receive 9,000 euros from the RA government as compensation for the moral damage caused during Kocharyan’s tenure.
11:20, 13 September, 2021
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Hayastan opposition bloc lawmaker Vahe Hakobyan is warning that Azerbaijan could cut off the town of Kapan from the rest of Armenia at any moment.
“The Azerbaijani side has set up a police checkpoint on the Vorotan road,” he told reporters in parliament. “Videos posted online show, and according to my information, the Azerbaijanis are stopping Iranian cargo trucks and are demanding some kind of a customs duty and then only allow them to proceed,” Hakobyan said, adding that the Armenian National Security Service’s latest statement over the matter where the security agency described Vorotan by an Azerbaijani toponym is perplexing. “What does this mean? Does this mean that little by little they want to make us think that indeed that’s an Azerbaijani territory?”
According to Hakobyan, who served as Governor of Syunik in the past, today there is no other top priority issue than Syunik.
“The Azerbaijani side could cut off Kapan at any moment. The immediate ousting of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan would be the solution to all problems,” he said.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
The statement made by Russia’s Ministry of Defense claiming two armed Armenian men were wounded as a result of shelling by the Azerbaijan Army near Shusha on September 17 is “surprising and regrettable,” said an official from Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense on Sunday.
“Thus, the incident was investigated with the joint participation of representatives of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the leadership of the peacekeeping forces of the Russian Federation. As a result, it was established that the Azerbaijan Army Units did not open fire on the indicated date,” said Lieutenant Colonel Anar Eyvazov, the deputy head of the press service of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense.
“The Azerbaijani side continues its efforts to ensure stability in the region and prevent possible provocations in accordance with the legislation of our country, strictly adhering to the provisions of the Joint Statement,” said Eyvazov.
On Nov. 10, 2020, following a 44-day conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Upper Karabakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh, and surrounding regions, the two countries signed a Russia-brokered cease-fire to end the fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.
During the six weeks of fighting, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and some 300 settlements and villages after a nearly three-decade occupation.
In line with the agreement, Armenian forces withdrew from Azerbaijani territories and Russian peacekeeping forces were deployed in the region.
Turkey is ready for talks with Armenia, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Sunday, adding that Yerevan needs to take steps toward opening a controversial transport link through its territory.
Armenia and Turkey never established diplomatic relations and their shared border has been closed since the 1990s.
The ties have further deteriorated due to Turkey’s support for its regional ally Azerbaijan, which fought with Armenia last year for control of the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region.
But earlier this month, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said Yerevan was prepared to hold discussions on repairing relations with Ankara.
“If he (Pashinian) would like to meet with Tayyip Erdoğan, then certain steps should be taken,” Erdoğan told reporters at an Istanbul airport before leaving for New York, where he will attend the annual United Nations General Assembly meetings.
He was referring to the creation of a transit corridor that would have to go through Armenia to connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan enclave that borders Turkey and Iran.
“We are not closed to talks (with Armenia), we will hold the talks,” Erdoğan said.
“I hope that not a negative but a positive approach will prevail there,” he said. “God willing, the problem between Azerbaijan and Armenia will be overcome with the opening of the corridors.”
18:12, 13 September, 2021
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan received on September 13 French Co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Stephane Visconti and Deputy Head of Department for Continental Europe Mr. Sylvain Guiaugue.
As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the MFA Armenia, a broad scope of issues related to Karabakh conflict was the key topic of the discussions.
Ararat Mirzoyan drew the French Co-Chair’s attention to the humanitarian situation created as a result of the 44-day war, emphasizing the need for the immediate and unconditional repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war, hostages and civilians held in Azerbaijan.
The interlocutors stressed the need to resume the process of peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. In this context, Minister Mirzoyan noted that the Armenian side supports the position expressed in the joint statements of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs following the 44-day war, in particular, the need for a lasting and stable settlement of the conflict based on well-known principles.
On the road from Goris to Kapan, Azerbaijani policemen do not inspect cars with Armenian state registration numbers, but residents of border regions prefer to use an alternative road. There are complaints against Azerbaijani policemen for their rough treatment, the Vice Mayor of Goris reports.
The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on September 9, the Azerbaijani side arranged a police checkpoint on the Azerbaijani section of the road from Goris to Kapan, and it began operating on September 11. The police checkpoint was arranged in violation of international norms, the Ombudsperson of Armenia Arman Tatoyan stated. Several days after the opening of the police checkpoint, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Azerbaijan reported about the detention of two Iranian truck drivers who transported cement.
The “Caucasian Knot” correspondent has been informed by Karo Kocharyan, Vice Mayor of Goris, that Armenian vehicles are not stopped at the Azerbaijani police checkpoint.
“However, there were cases when Azerbaijani policemen were rude to Armenian drivers when requesting them to quickly pass by concrete barriers. There is almost no traffic at night, because people are afraid of travelling through the dark,” Karo Kocharyan said.
Residents prefer to travel from Goris to Kapan along an unfinished road through Tatev so as not to meet Azerbaijani soldiers, the Vice Mayor of Goris has added.
According to him, a 21-kilometre section of the road has been under the control of Azerbaijan since December 2020. “The road is a serpentine there. In some places, it passes through the territory of Armenia, and in other places, the road goes through the territory, the control over which passed to Azerbaijan. In case if the road is closed, residents of three villages, including Vorotan, Shurnukh, and Bartsravan, will face problems. There are a dirt road and forest paths leading to villages, but they will not be able to solve the problem if traffic on the road is blocked,” the Vice Mayor of Goris explained.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on at 04:52 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Tigran Petrosyan; Source: CK correspondent
Source:
© Caucasian Knot
Slovak Foreign Minister pays tribute to the memory of Armenian Genocide victims
, 10:39
On an official visit to Armenia, the Foreign Minister of Slovakia Ivan Korčok visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial, accompanied by Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.
The Slovak Foreign Minister paid tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims.
The Foreign Ministers of the two countries held a meeting in Yerevan this morning.
Within the framework of the official visit, Ivan Korčok will have meetings with President Armen Sarkissian, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Speaker of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan