Author: Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS

Russian FM speak of some progress in activities of tripartite group on the opening of communications

Emil Lazarian
ARMINFO
Armenia –


Marianna Mkrtchyan

ArmInfo.There is some progress in the activities of the tripartite working group on the opening of communications in the South Caucasus, Russian FM Sergey Lavrov stated  at his meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. 

“As for regional issues, we are ready to do everything possible to  facilitate the implementation of the three documents signed by the  three leaders in November 2020, January and November 2021. According  to our assessment, there is some progress in the activities of the  tripartite working group on the opening of communications. We are  discussing the issues to be agreed with the Armenian side. It seems  to me that a general idea is being formed on how to solve the problem  of organizing this work so that there are no artificial obstacles to  the movement of cars with maximum comfort. Russia will help in this  until the results are achieved. I do hope that this will happen soon.  We are also ready to provide consulting services on the work of two  commissions established for the delimitation and demarcation of  borders in Azerbaijan and Armenia in accordance with other  agreements. There are specific proposals on this. I would be glad to  discuss them with you.

“You mentioned the normalization of relations, the peace agreement  and provisions of the future agreement submitted by you. By the way,  we have heard that the Armenian side, Prime Minister Pashinyan, is  ready to hold talks on this issue. We are ready to help here with the  consent of Azerbaijan and Armenia,” Mr Lavrov said.  

Armenian, Belarusian Prosecutors General meet in Minsk

Emil Lazarian

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 10:50,

YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. Prosecutor General of Armenia Artur Davtyan met with Prosecutor General of Belarus Andrei Shved in Minsk, advisor to the Prosecutor General of Armenia Gor Abrahamyan said.

During the meeting Artur Davtyan thanked for the warm welcome and congratulated his Belarusian counterpart on the 100th anniversary of the Prosecution system of Belarus. He informed that the Prosecution of Armenia will mark its 104th anniversary soon.

Artur Davtyan highly valued the level and results of the cooperation between the Offices of Prosecutors General of Armenia and Belarus, adding that the implementation of the cooperation agreement signed between the two Offices in Minsk in 2005 continues contributing to this.

In his turn Andrei Shved expressed confidence that the session of the Coordination Council of Prosecutors General of the CIS states in Minsk will strengthen the partnership between the member states in countering crime in the CIS zone, will contribute to more effectively resisting the challenges emerging in the fields of security, human rights.

The sides discussed the opportunities of taking additional steps to develop the potential of the prosecutions of the two countries, as well as other issues of mutual interest.

Armenian Healthcare Ministry, Netcracker/BostonGene companies discuss cooperation

Emil Lazarian

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 11:36,

YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Minister of Healthcare of Armenia Artak Jumayan received co-owner and Vice-President of Netcracker/BostonGene companies Michael Feinberg, the healthcare ministry said.

The guest said their company is planning to establish a Research and Development (R&D) center in Armenia with several thousand employees. Currently, the number of staffers in Armenia is 360.

BostonGene is a biomedical software company for advanced patient analysis and personalized therapy in the fight against cancer.

Artak Jumayan highlighted the role and significance of BostonGene in the field of telecommunications. He expressed hope that the cooperation will serve to the development of healthcare in Armenia through high technologies.

Armenia participates in meeting of CIS Council of Defense Ministers

Emil Lazarian
PanARMENIAN
Armenia –
– 10:59 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenia’s defense chief Suren Papikyan participated in the meeting of the Council of Defense Ministers of the CIS member states on Friday, June 24 in Russia.

More than 20 issues were in the table, including international developments, growing dangers and challenges for the security environment of the CIS member states.

“The participants of the meeting discussed a number of issues related to the establishment of a joint humanitarian demining engineering unit, the deepening of cooperation in the field of military education, contact between the Armed Forces of the CIS member states, as well as the necessary legal and organizational work for the establishment of joint air defense systems,” the Armenian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

“Given the full agenda of the Armenian-Russian military cooperation and the allied relations between the countries, an additional agreement was reached to organize a meeting of Armenian Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan and Russian Minister of Defense Sergey Shoigu in Moscow in August.”

Joint humanitarian demining unit to be created in CIS – Russian Defense Minister

Emil Lazarian

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 17:03,

YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. The member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have set the means to establish a joint humanitarian demining unit, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said summing up the results of the session of the CIS Council of Defense Ministers, TASS reports.

“The practical means for creation and preparation of the joint humanitarian demining unit have been set up” he said.

The Russian Defense Minister said that the CIS Council also approved creating a Medal for Contribution to Strengthening of Peace in CIS format, as well as approved the joint measures of the Armed Forces in 2023.

“The practical and constructive nature of the 80th session of the Council once again affirmed that the mutual partnership in the CIS format on defense and military cooperation issues is consistently developing, and our multilateral ties are strengthening”, the Russian Defense Minister said and thanked the session participants for the work.

Prosecutor Generals of Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan discuss issues of resolving humanitarian- legal issues caused by war

Emil Lazarian

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 19:06,

YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. A trilateral meeting took place in Minsk between the Prosecutor General of Armenia Artur Davtyan, the Prosecutor General of Russia Igor Krasnov and the Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan Kamran Aliyev.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Prosecutor General’s Office, within the competences of the prosecutor’s offices of the three countries the sides discussed ways to find new opportunities for resolving the existing humanitarian and legal issues arising as a result of the war unleashed against Artsakh and issues related to the implementation of the agreements reached during the previous two meetings on the same agenda in 2021.

The parties stressed the importance of maintaining the trilateral format of the Prosecutor Generals as an effective platform for maintaining contacts in the legal sphere for ensuring stability, legitimacy, de-escalation, basic living rights and security of the population in the region.

In this regard, the diligent and consistent efforts of the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation, and personally the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation Igor Krasnov aimed at fully complying with the humanitarian requirements of the November 10 trilateral statement, was emphasized.

Prosecutor General of Armenia Artur Davtyan noted that despite the agreement reached during the previous trilateral meetings on the incidents on the contact line of the Armenian-Azerbaijani armed forces and on the mediated exchange of operative information on the ongoing investigations, ceasefire violations continued, resulting in human casualties, new threats to the realization of vital rights and security have been created for the civilian population.

As an obvious example, the Prosecutor General of Armenia referred to the actions carried out by the Azerbaijani armed forces in the direction of Parukh settlement, as a result of which 3 servicemen were killed and 16 servicemen were injured. Arthur Davtyan stressed the need to properly investigate the actions in the village of Parukh, as well as other cases of gross violations of the ceasefire.

Prosecutor General of Armenia Artur Davtyan raised especially the issue that the 8th point of the trilateral declaration of November 10, 2020 has not been implemented. He stressed that the speedy return of 38 Armenian detainees confirmed by Azerbaijan is crucial for restoring trust between the parties, establishing lasting peace in the region and establishing security guarantees, emphasizing the full fulfillment of the humanitarian requirements of the trilateral declaration by Armenia.

An agreement was reached to continue the talks with the mediation of the Russian side in order to fully resolve the humanitarian issues in a short time.

Russia ready to consult Armenia, Azerbaijan on border delimitation: Lavrov

Emil Lazarian
India –
  • IANS
  • World News
  • 2022-06-24 07:45

Baku, June 24 (IANS) Visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed Moscow’s official readiness to consult Azerbaijan and Armenia on delimitation and demarcation of borders.

At a meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku, Lavrov said Russia is ready to consult on the work of the Azerbaijani and Armenian commissions that were set up for delimitation and demarcation of borders, Xinhua news agency reported.

“We have concrete proposals in this regard. I will be glad to discuss them with you,” Lavrov told Aliyev.

The Russian Foreign Minister pointed out “certain progress” in the work of the trilateral working group between Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia on the opening of communications.

“We stand ready to do everything possible to assist in the implementation of the three documents signed by the leaders of the three countries in November of 2020, in January and November of 2021,” he said.

Lavrov also expressed Moscow’s commitment to providing assistance with the negotiations on the signing of a peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan.

“We heard that the Armenian side, Prime Minister Pashinyan is ready to hold negotiations on this issue. We are ready to help with Azerbaijan’s and Armenia’s consent,” he added.

–IANS

https://in.investing.com/news/russia-ready-to-consult-armenia-azerbaijan-on-border-delimitation-lavrov-3251833





Armenian Ambassador raises denial of genocide, destruction of cultural heritage at UN

Emil Lazarian
Public Radio of Armenia
Armenia –


, 14:19

 

Intolerance, discrimination, identity-based hate speech are among the underlying causes of atrocity crimes, Mher Margaryan, Permanent Representative of Armenia to the United Nations said at discussion on “Responsibility to Protect and the prevention of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity” at the UN General Assembly.




Below are the Ambassador’s remarks in full:

Mr. President,

I thank Special Advisor Alice Nderitu for presenting the report of the Secretary-General, dedicated this year to the special needs of children and youth in the contexts of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, outlining recommendations on strengthening their protection from atrocity crimes.

One of the key messages of the report is the human rights-based approach in prevention efforts. Indeed, ensuring full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all should be central in addressing atrocity risks and advancing protection of younger generation. The Safe School Declaration, the Paris Principles and the Vancouver Principles, to which Armenia is a party, remain crucial instruments to promote and protect the rights and the dignity of all children, in particular those residing in conflict areas.

Mr. President,

Intolerance, discrimination, identity-based hate speech are among the underlying causes of atrocity crimes. A grave source of concern should be the involvement of children in the state-led and sponsored propaganda of hatred targeting a particular ethnicity or religion. Indoctrination of children with identity-based hate, incitement of violence and intolerance through educational programmes sows seeds of hate crimes and atrocities only waiting to happen in the future.

Countering hate speech, genocide denial, incitement to violence and war-mongering is another crucial priority of the prevention agenda. I would like to underscore the critical importance of the timely detection and adequate responding to the early warning signs of incitement to hate and identity-based violence on ethnic and religious grounds, instances of justification and glorification of past crimes. The UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech sets a practical framework for enhancing the Organization’s monitoring and reporting capacities.

Mr. President,

The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, recognizes that at all periods of history genocide has inflicted great losses on humanity. Despite continuous efforts of the international community in support of the genocide prevention agenda, mass atrocities continue to persist, often, due to the lack of acknowledgment and condemnation of the past crimes. In this regard, education, in particular, human rights and genocide education can play an important role in promoting remembrance and awareness, to preserve historical memory and promote truth, justice and reconciliation.

The deliberate efforts to deny the historical reality of the Armenian Genocide have been employing various narratives, including those based on attempts to reinterpret international law to claim that the killings do not fit the definition of genocide because the events predate their legal concept – failing to account for the well-documented historical fact that it was precisely with reference to the systematic extermination of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire that prominent Polish Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin originally coined the term “genocide”. Often, denialists seek to challenge and mischaracterize the existing scholarly consensus as a “subject of a legitimate debate protected under the freedom of _expression_”.

Whatever methods the denialists seek to involve, all of them invariably run contrary not only to the vast body of existing historical evidence, but also to the findings of the reports mandated by the United Nations, including the Report of the United Nations War Crimes Commission of 1948 and the report adopted by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1985, prepared by Mr. Benjamin Whitaker, confirming that the systematic massacres of Armenians in 1915 without any question meet the criteria for the United Nations definition of genocide.

Mr. President,

Armenia has been consistently campaigning to reinforce the implementation of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and to advance the prevention agenda.

Since 2015, the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime established by a GA resolution on the initiative of Armenia, has turned into a platform to foster cooperation for prevention of atrocity crimes, promoting development of national and international early warning mechanisms.

The United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect has a key role to play in advancing international cooperation to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, promoting prevention through monitoring grave human rights violations and assessing risks of potential atrocity crimes. We encourage strengthening the resilience of the Office by equipping it with the necessary human resources and financial capacities to properly deliver on its mandate in an independent and coherent manner. We also support the activities of the Office in coordinating the implementation of the UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech.

Mr. President,

The UN system, the United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect should be able to monitor, identify and react unambiguously to instances of propagating distorted narratives denying existence of ethnic and religious groups, their history, culture and heritage, inciting xenophobia and hate and glorifying perpetrators of the past crimes.
The UN Human Rights Council and its mechanisms – including the special procedures and treaty bodies, play an essential role in providing early warning of the risk factors that can lead to mass atrocity crimes.

The resolution on Prevention of Genocide presented by Armenia at the Human Rights Council and unanimously adopted in March this year, recognizes that early warning signs may also include an increase in serious acts of violence against women and children and calls upon states to take the legislative and other measures necessary to protect women and children from all forms of intimidation.

Mr. President,

The deliberate destruction of cultural heritage is often intimately linked to the preparation and perpetration of mass atrocity crimes. Since culture constitutes an intrinsic part of identity – an attack on cultural heritage is consequently an attack on particular people and their right to exist. In this regard we support the involvement of UNESCO in implementing necessary programs and actions aimed at protecting the cultural heritage of the people, particularly in conflict settings and rehabilitating and restoring monuments of cultural, religious and historic value.

Mr. President,

Let me conclude by reiterating Armenia’s support to advancing prevention agenda through constructive dialogue with all stakeholders, including civil society, academia, media and youth organizations.

Thank you.