Author: Emil Karabekian

Turkish Press: Armenian soldier killed in border clash with Azerbaijan

Emil Karabekian
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
Armenian soldier killed in border clash with Azerbaijan

Jeyhun Aliyev   | 24.03.2020


ANKARA 

A cross-border clash between Armenia and Azerbaijan resulted in the death of an Armenian soldier, said the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry Tuesday.

“Armenian Armed Forces’ divisions attempted a provocation by violating the ceasefire in the frontline at Goranboy [district] direction,” the ministry said in a statement, referring to the occupied Azerbaijani lands.

The statement added that the vigilance of Azerbaijani military units in the region led to one Armenian soldier’s death and that the body of the soldier remained in the area between the trenches of the troops for one whole day.

It went on to say that clashes still continue in the area but that the situation is under control of Azerbaijani units.

The ministry said that the Armenian side is responsible for “escalating the situation” on the frontline.

Upper Karabakh is the internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan illegally occupied by Armenia through military aggression since 1991.

Four UN Security Council resolutions and two by the General Assembly, as well as decisions by many other international organizations, refer to the occupation and demand the withdrawal of the occupational Armenian forces from Upper Karabakh and seven other occupied regions of Azerbaijan.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group — co-chaired by France, Russia and the U.S. — was formed to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but has not reached any results.


Japanese flu drug reportedly shows promise against coronavirus in clinical trials

Emil Karabekian
Japanese flu drug reportedly shows promise against coronavirus in clinical trials
Medical authorities in China said the drug favipiravir has produced encouraging results in clinical trials in the Chinese cities of Wuhan and Shenzhen.

By
Joseph Guzman
• The clinical trials involved 340 patients.

• Japanese media reports patients tested negative for coronavirus after a median of four days, compared with a median of 11 days for those not treated with the drug.
• Japanese media reports a Japanese health ministry suggested the drug was not as effective for those who experience more severe symptoms.

A Japanese drug used to treat new strains of the flu has shown promise in being effective against the coronavirus in clinical trials, Japanese media reported on Wednesday. 

Medical authorities in China said the antiviral drug favipiravir, developed by a subsidiary of Fujifilm, has produced encouraging results in clinical trials in Wuhan and Shenzhen involving 340 patients, according to The Guardian.

Infected patients who were given the drug in Wuhan and Shenzhen tested negative for the coronavirus after a median of four days, compared with a median of 11 days for those who were not treated with the drug, The Guardian reported, citing public broadcaster NHK. 


“It has a high degree of safety and is clearly effective in treatment,” Zhang Xinmin, an official at China’s science and technology ministry, told reporters this week. 

Researchers also made the claim that the lung condition in about 91 percent of the patients treated with favipiravir improved, compared to 62 percent of patients who did not take the drug. 

Doctors in Japan are reportedly using the same drug in clinical studies on coronavirus patients with mild to moderate symptoms. 

But a Japanese health ministry source suggested the drug was not as effective in people who experience more severe symptoms, according to The Guardian. 

Currently, there is no treatment for the novel coronavirus that has infected more than 200,000 people worldwide and left more than 8,000 dead. 

Researchers on Monday administered the first shot in a trial for a potential vaccine at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle. The vaccine was developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and its collaborators at Modern Inc., based in Cambridge, Mass. 

But while the trial launched this week, public health officials have warned for weeks that a vaccine will not be ready for 12-18 months in the best circumstances.


https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/prevention-cures/488321-japanese-flu-drug-reportedly-shows-promise?fbclid=IwAR3T8H2yZy42MxtgkpnLI5FSx0rbv6bhxCjl9AvQafOHGrl7KR__lb4RG6M
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Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 17-03-20

Emil Karabekian

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 18:03,

YEREVAN, 17 MARCH, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 17 March, USD exchange rate up by 0.96 drams to 490.76 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 3.93 drams to 544.30 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.01 drams to 6.56 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 3.54 drams to 597.40 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 1,136.71 drams to 23473.38 drams. Silver price down by 43.77 drams to 204.57 drams. Platinum price down by 1,632.58 drams to 10681.91 drams.

Healthcare authorities gear-up Yerevan airport for two incoming flights from coronavirus-hit Italy

Emil Karabekian

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 12:45,

YEREVAN, MARCH 10, ARMENPRESS. A Ryanair flight from Milan will be the first flight to arrive from Italy to Armenia after the Italian authorities declared a nationwide lockdown in the COVID19 outbreak.

Two planes are expected to arrive to Yerevan from Italy – one from Milan (Ryanair) at 13:10 and one from Rome (Ryanair) at 21:25, according to the Zvartnots airport’s schedule.

The Healthcare and Labor Inspection Agency, the government body tasked with screening and taking countermeasures against the coronavirus, told ARMENPRESS that special precautionary measures will be taken at the airport. Arrivals will be maximally kept away from other passengers at the airport and everyone will be screened. The agency said they will give additional information about countermeasures soon.

Earlier today the Armenian Foreign Ministry issued its highest travel warning against Italy. Ninety-seven people have died of the novel coronavirus since Sunday in Italy, bringing its total number of deaths to 463. Italy has 9,172 cases so far.

Moreover, Armenia’s healthcare minister said nationals arriving from COVID19 hotspots, including Italy, must self-quarantine for 14 days.

 

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan




CIVILNET.In Significant Deepening of Relations, Armenia Purchases Indian Radar Systems

Emil Karabekian
CIVILNET.AM

2 March, 2020 15:33

By Mark Dovich

On March 2, one of India’s leading English-language newspapers reported that the Armenian and Indian governments signed a contract worth over 40 million U.S. dollars that provides Armenia with four Indian-made weapon locating radar systems. The defense systems, officially called the Swathi Weapon Locating Radars, can automatically track multiple projectiles in a 50 kilometer radius. They were first developed in the early 2000s by the Indian military’s research and development arm, and have been deployed in India since 2018.

According to media reports, the Armenian government also conducted trials of defense systems produced by Poland and Russia before choosing to purchase the Indian-made model. Indian media groups hailed Armenia’s acquisition of the system as a “major success” for the Indian government’s Make in India program, a flagship initiative of current Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The program, launched in 2014, aims to attract foreign direct investment to India in an effort to make the country a global manufacturing hub.

The past few years have seen a considerable expansion in cooperation between Armenia and India. Last year alone saw numerous high-level meetings between Armenian and Indian officials, including Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s first meeting with Modi. Most recently, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan met with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, highlighting the potential for cooperation between Armenia and India, particularly in “agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and light industry”. 

Recent years have also seen Armenia play host to a large number of Indian students, particularly at medical universities. Armenia’s State Migration Service estimates that roughly 3,000 Indian nationals currently reside in Armenia.

Aside from economic and educational ties, there is also a meaningful geopolitical component to Armenia’s friendly relations with India. India’s archrival Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world that do not have diplomatic relations with Armenia, along with Azerbaijan, Hungary, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.

Though Armenia’s choice of an Indian-produced defense system over a competing Russian bid represents a significant deepening in Armenian-Indian relations, the purchase in no meaningful way alters Armenia’s military dependence on its vast ally to the north. Indeed, Russia continues to supply Armenia with military equipment at discounted prices and station roughly 5,000 troops in Gyumri, Armenia’s second-largest city.

A spokesperson for Armenia’s Ministry of Defense refused to comment on the reported acquisition, claiming that “the Ministry never comments on issues of military-technical cooperation”.

Armenia COVID19 patient’s wife continues testing negative, indicating possible low contagiousness

Emil Karabekian

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 12:05, 5 March, 2020

YEREVAN, MARCH 5, ARMENPRESS. The first and by far only coronavirus patient’s wife who is quarantined for already 4 days continues testing negative for the virus, Minister of Healthcare Arsen Torosyan said at the Cabinet meeting.

He said that so far no new cases of the virus were recorded in the country and that all preventive measures continue being carried out.

“We have the one confirmed case, who is hospitalized at the Nork Infectious Diseases Hospital in Yerevan, and 31 citizens who are quarantined in special isolation conditions in Tsakhkadzor. All of them are feeling well, no one has any symptoms, including the confirmed patient. Yesterday we tested his wife, who tested negative for the disease. That is, this virus – being a contagious disease –  we see on our own practice that it isn’t highly contagious,” Torosyan said.

The patient is a 29-year-old man who traveled to Iran with his wife. His wife had tested negative once again during the first day of quarantine.

Torosyan said 161 suspected cases have been tested so far, and all results came back negative. He said the country can carry on with its normal life as the situation is under control.

PM Nikol Pashinyan asked about the quarantined citizens who are kept at the Golden Palace previously defunct hotel in the resort town of Tsakhkadzor. Pashinyan asked whether the citizens are provided with everything they need. Torosyan said the quarantined citizens have everything they need, including internet access and books to read. They will be kept in quarantine until March 14.

Torosyan said that the COVID19 infections and death rate in China is dropping. “However the situation is worsening in other countries, in South Korea, Iran, Italy, and a few hundred more cases have been confirmed in France and Germany. In Georgia and Russia the situation is better and it is expected that if European countries are able to carry out accurate measures we will see decrease in these countries two or three weeks after the peak,” he said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan




Vatican reports first coronavirus case

Emil Karabekian

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 13:39, 6 March, 2020

YEREVAN, MARCH 6, ARMENPRESS. The Vatican said today that a patient in its health services had tested positive for coronavirus, Reuters reports.

Spokesman Matteo Bruni said the discovery was made on Thursday and that outpatient services in Vatican clinics had been suspended to sanitize the areas.

He said its emergency services will continue, adding that the Vatican had informed Italian health authorities.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Armenian News/permalink/10162993629130585/

Armenian minister: No need to cancel flights to and from Yerevan and Milan and close border with Georgia

Emil Karabekian
News.am, Armenia
March 1 2020

14:20, 01.03.2020

At this moment, there is no need to cancel the flights to and from Yerevan and Milan. This is what Minister of Healthcare of Armenia Arsen Torosyan said during a press conference devoted to the first case of coronavirus in Armenia.

“Our colleagues from the healthcare and diplomatic sectors of Italy have provided us with information and shown that the cases are localized. Based on the information, there is no need to cancel flights now. However, decisions can change every day, and not only in regard to Italy or another country, but also in Armenia. In any case, Armenia attaches importance to public health, and all actions will derive from this, but every decision needs to be presented with facts and evidence,” the minister stated.

According to the minister, there is no need to close the border with Georgia at all. “The three cases in Georgia are local (two people brought the disease from Iran through Azerbaijan and another brought it from Milan, they all feel well, and there are still no cases of spread of the virus). When the virus spreads across almost all countries, there is no longer a need to close any border,” he said.

Provincial governors summoning village mayors, forcing that YES win in referendum, Armenia opposition MP says

Emil Karabekian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 29 2020

                        

We are already receiving reports from various provinces that the provincial governors are summoning the village mayors and forcing that YES win in their province [in the forthcoming referendum on constitutional amendments]. Gevorg Gorgisyan, secretary of the opposition Bright Armenia faction in parliament, told this to RFE/RL.

Gorgisyan added that they have already received such reports from 3 or 4 provinces, but did not want to say which provinces they are.

He expressed the hope that the Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Suren Papikyan, who also heads the YES campaign headquarters for the upcoming referendum, does not make secret calls to the provincial governors, other than public calls, and that the referendum would be conducted in accordance with the letter of the law.

Sports: 4 wrestlers to represent Armenia Olympic qualifying tournament

Emil Karabekian
News.am, Armenia
Feb 20 2020

Head coach of Armenian Greco-Roman wrestling squad Eduard Sahakyan named the athletes who will represent Armenia at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Budapest.

Gevorg Gharibyan (60 kg), Slavik Galstyan (67 kg), Maxim Manukyan (87 kg) and Davit Ovsipyan (130 kg) will represent Armenia.

Artur Aleksanyan (97 kg) and Karapet Chalyan (77 kg) have qualified to the Olympic Games.