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

Pro-government MPs reject proposal to discuss situation on Armenia’s borders

Emil Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Sept 22 2021

Pro-government lawmakers voted down a proposal of opposition Armenia faction MP Artur Ghazinyan to discuss the situation on Armenia’s borders at the meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense and Security on Wednesday.

“Today the proposal to discuss the issue in an emergency mode was rejected by the ruling force, it was not put on the agenda, while the need to address the same issue in the future has arisen,” Ghazinyan said at the meeting.

He noted that the proposal was specific and was about the establishment of a working group, as provided by the Rules of Procedure, but it was rejected.

Tigran Abrahamyan: Armenian authorities deliberately disrupting work of parliament’s defense and security committee

Emil Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Sept 22 2021

The appointment of the deputy chairman of the Armenian parliament’s Standing Committee on Defense and Security is being thwarted for various reasons, MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition I’m Honored bloc told reporters on Wednesday.

His comments came after the ruling Civil Contract faction MPs voted against the candidacy of opposition Armenia faction MP Artur Ghazinyan for the post for the fourth time.

Abrahamyan said that the failure to appoint a deputy chair disrupts the activity of the Committee on Defense and Security.

“There is another aspect, too. It is unacceptable that the committee holds a meeting to discuss an issue, which has no significance for the public. There are priorities that have been set and presented during this period. They are related to the problems on the border, the concept of army reforms, as well as the situation on Goris-Kapan interstate road, but are not put on the agenda,” the lawmaker said.

He considers it inappropriate to constantly delay the appointment of the deputy chairman of the committee against the backdrop of such important issues.

“It goes to show that the authorities are deliberately disrupting the work of the committee,” Abrahamyan said.

Referring to the nomination of another candidate, the opposition MP noted that it’s not for the authorities to decide which candidate should be nominated by the opposition.

“At the moment we have decided to take a common position on the issue of candidates. We won’t be guided by the whims of the authorities,” he said, underlining that security issues are a priority for him.

U.S.-Armenia Relations: Thirty Years of Partnership Rooted in Shared Values

Emil Lazarian
US Embassy in Armenia
Sept 21 2021
Home | News & Events | 

 

U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy

by Ambassador Lynne M. Tracy, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia

Exactly thirty years ago, the Armenian people overwhelmingly voted to secede from the Soviet Union, taking the first step to regain their status as an independent, sovereign nation.

Today, as we commemorate the 30th anniversary of its independence, I see the strength and resiliency of the Armenian people and the commitment to building a better future despite the unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic and war Armenia has faced in the last year.  I see an old nation that has used its independence to chart a new history.  An Armenia that is taking a path of democratic reform and developing economic opportunities for its citizens while seeking to address critical security concerns.  For thirty years, these have been the bases of U.S.-Armenia partnership rooted in shared values.

Building a Broad and Deep Partnership

 We opened the first U.S. Embassy in Yerevan in 1992, shortly after Armenia’s independence; but the U.S.-Armenia partnership predates the official establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries.  As far back as 1919 under President Woodrow Wilson’s administration, the American government provided relief support to Armenians throughout the region impacted by the Genocide.

The United States later played an active role in helping Armenia recover from the devastating 1988 earthquake, with the U.S. government and private citizens providing technical and financial assistance to aid in recovery efforts and help those displaced by the disaster.  The overwhelming U.S. response underscored both the scale of the tragedy but also the depth of the people-to-people ties between our countries.  And it would be impossible to talk about our people-to-people ties without acknowledging America’s vibrant Armenian diaspora community that has been an enduring source of strength for both our countries and our relations.

With the establishment of official diplomatic relations between the United States and Armenia, the door opened wider on the possibilities for our partnership.  Indeed, three decades later and having provided nearly $3 billion dollars in U.S. assistance, our ties are stronger than ever.  Building and maintaining strong democratic institutions, advancing the rule of law and combating corruption, providing humanitarian support to the vulnerable, improving the capacity of the security structures, unlocking and promoting economic opportunities, strengthening health care systems, preserving cultural heritage, expanding access to education, investing in people through exchange programs, and supporting regional peace initiatives underscore the broad bilateral relationship that Americans and Armenians have worked together to establish and strengthen.

Resiliency Amid Challenges

A key thread that ties together our diverse partnership is the aim to improve people’s lives, to keep us all healthy and safe, and to leave a better world for our children.  As President Biden stated earlier this year in his commemoration of the Armenian Genocide: “Let us also turn our eyes to the future — toward the world that we wish to build for our children.  A world unstained by the daily evils of bigotry and intolerance, where human rights are respected, and where all people are able to pursue their lives in dignity and security.”

 The last twenty months have been trying, yet they again showed the resiliency of the Armenian people and the strength of Armenia’s democracy.  This summer we saw a parliamentary election which was not only praised by international observers for upholding fundamental freedoms but was also a source of pride for many Armenians who saw the country’s democratic institutions stand strong in the face of adversity.  And while we will not forget the challenges, tragedies and hardships which persist to this day, we should not lose sight of all that Armenia has achieved and potential to achieve.

Building on the strong foundation of ties developed over the last thirty years, we continue to see a positive future for the U.S.-Armenia relationship – and continue to look with confidence at the future for Armenia — a sovereign, prosperous state accountable to its people and secure with its neighbors. We look forward to our continuing partnership as Armenia follows the path it began on September 21, 1991.

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 09/20/2021

Emil Lazarian 
                                        Monday, 
Vehicles ‘Escorted By Armenian Border Guards’ On Azeri-Controlled Road
        • Susan Badalian
An Azerbaijani checkpoint set up at on the main road conneting Armeia to Iran, 
September 14, 2021.
Armenian border guards have reportedly begun escorting Armenian vehicles driving 
along an Azerbaijani-controlled section of the main highway that connects 
Armenia to Iran.
The 21-kilometer section is part of contested border areas along Armenia’s 
Syunik province which were controversially handed over Azerbaijan following last 
year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijani forces set up a checkpoint there on September 12 to check and tax 
Iranian commercial trucks transporting cargo to and from Armenia. The move 
caused serious disruptions in Armenian-Iranian trade operations.
Officials in Syunik have also accused masked Azerbaijani officers of bullying 
some Armenian drivers and their passengers at the same section of the road that 
also connects the Syunik towns of Goris and Kapan.
Two Armenian men were detained by Azerbaijani authorities in the area in unclear 
circumstances on Saturday. Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) said they 
“deviated” from the highway.
Both men were set free late on Sunday night as a result of what the NSS 
described as joint efforts of Armenian as well as Russian border guards deployed 
in Syunik.
“The Goris-Kapan highway is safe,” an NSS officer said on Monday, answering a 
call to the security agency’s hotline. “They [the travellers] are escorted right 
now. So no problems arise at that four-kilometer stretch.”
The security escorts began on Sunday morning, according to the NSS.
Two Iranian truck drivers were arrested at the Azerbaijani checkpoint last week 
for allegedly travelling to Nagorno-Karabakh without Baku’s permission. The 
Iranian Foreign Ministry called for their immediate release on Sunday.
Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi discussed the road crisis with Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian at a meeting held in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe on Friday.
Pashinian Congratulates Putin On Election Win
Russia - A man casts his ballot during parliamentary and local elections at a 
polling station in St. Petersburg, Russia, September 18, 2021.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on Monday congratulated Russian President 
Vladimir Putin on the Kremlin-backed United Russia party’s “convincing” victory 
in parliamentary elections held over the weekend.
“The election results testify to support shown by citizens of Russia for 
policies consistently implemented by the country’s political leadership,” 
Pashinian said in a congratulatory message publicized by his office.
He expressed confidence that “close cooperation” between the newly elected State 
Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament, and Armenia’s National Assembly 
will help to “advance the Russian-Armenian alliance.”
With 99.7 percent of ballots counted, the Russian Central Election Commission 
said United Russia, which backs Putin, won 49.84 percent of the vote. Its 
closest rival, the Communist Party, had 18.95 percent, and the nationalist 
Liberal Democratic Party received 7.5 percent.
United Russia Secretary-General Andrei Turchak said the party expects to control 
315 of the Duma's 450 seats, giving it a comfortable two-thirds majority that 
continues to allow it to change the constitution.
The three-day elections were marred by allegations of voting irregularities and 
ballot tampering.
An independent monitoring agency called them "one of the dirtiest" elections in 
Russian history.
Germany said on Monday that the allegations must be taken “seriously and should 
be clarified” and the European Union denounced the climate of "intimidation" in 
the run up to the vote.
The vote is widely seen as an important part of Putin’s efforts to cement his 
grip on power ahead of a possible run in the 2024 presidential election, making 
control of the State Duma key.
Transport Corridors ‘Not Discussed’ In Armenian-Azeri Talks
        • Sargis Harutyunyan
Armenia - Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk speaks with journalists 
during a business forum in Yerevan, .
Armenia and Azerbaijan have not discussed possible transport corridors in 
Russian-mediated talks on restoring economic links between them after last 
year’s war, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk said on Monday.
The Russian, Armenian and Azerbaijani governments set up in January a trilateral 
working group to try to work out practical modalities of opening the 
Armenian-Azerbaijani border for commercial traffic. The task force co-headed by 
Overchuk and his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts has met regularly in 
Moscow since then.
A Russian-brokered ceasefire deal that stopped the six-week war in 
Nagorno-Karabakh last November commits Armenia to opening rail and road links 
between Azerbaijan and its Nakhichevan exclave. Armenia should be able, for its 
part, to use Azerbaijani territory as a transit route for cargo shipments to and 
from Russia and Iran.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly claimed that the deal 
envisages a permanent land “corridor” that will connect Nakhichevan to the rest 
of Azerbaijan via Armenia’s Syunik province. He has threatened to forcibly open 
such a corridor if Yerevan continues to oppose its creation.
Armenian leaders have denounced Aliyev’s threats as territorial claims, saying 
that the truce accord only calls for transport links between the two South 
Caucasus states.
“We don’t have corridors [on the working group’s agenda,]” Overchuk told 
journalists while attending a Russian-Armenian business forum in Yerevan. He 
said that no such issue is being discussed by the trilateral group.
“We discuss the issue of economic unblocking. The parties have been exchanging 
views,” added Overchuk.
The group’s Armenian co-chair, Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigorian, said 
Armenian, Azerbaijani and Russian officials have been exploring “possible 
infrastructure solutions” and a legal framework for customs and other border 
controls. He did not give any details.
“We are very interested in the opening of transport links because we see that as 
an opportunity to overcome the blockade in which Armenia has been more than 25 
years,” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian told Overchuk later in the day. He said 
he hopes that the ongoing talks will yield “concrete decisions.”
Pashinian Said To Seek Meeting With Turkey’s Erdogan
        • Heghine Buniatian
        • Tatevik Sargsian
        • Nane Sahakian
CYPRUS -- Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses the Turkish Cypriot 
Parliament, in Nicosia, July 19, 2021.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that Armenian Prime 
Minister Nikol Pashinian has offered to meet with him for talks on improving 
Turkish-Armenian relations.
Erdogan appeared to make such talks conditional on Armenia agreeing to open a 
transport corridor that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave.
“It is bewildering that on the one hand Pashinian is saying that the Armenian 
side is not discussing that [corridor] issue and on the other expressing a 
desire to meet with me,” he said. “If he wants to meet with Tayyip Erdogan then 
clear steps will have to be taken.”
Erdogan said that the offer was communicated to him by Georgian Prime Minister 
Irakli Gharibashvili. The latter met with Pashinian in Tbilisi on September 8.
Pashinian did not explicitly deny making such an offer when he reacted to 
Erdogan’s remarks through his spokeswoman, Mane Gevorgian, on Monday.
“As of now, there have been no contacts between Armenian and Turkish officials, 
even though the Armenian government is prepared for such contacts,” Gevorgian 
told the Armenpress news agency. “In the event of such productive work, Armenia 
will also be ready for meetings at a high and the highest level.”
Gevorgian also criticized Erdogan’s calls for the “Nakhichevan corridor,” saying 
that such statements run counter to efforts to establish “peace and stability 
and overcome the atmosphere of enmity in the region.” She said that Armenia 
stands for the opening of all regional transport links.
Pashinian spoke on August 27 of “some positive signals” sent by the Turkish 
government to Yerevan and said his administration is ready to reciprocate them.
Erdogan responded by saying that Ankara is open to normalizing Turkish-Armenian 
relations. But he cited in that context Azerbaijan’s demands for a formal 
Armenian recognition of Azerbaijani sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh.
Pashinian described Erdogan’s statements as encouraging and reiterated his 
readiness to embark on a dialogue with Ankara hours before flying to Tbilisi on 
September 8.
GEORGIA -- Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili (L) and his Armenian 
counterpart Nikol Pashinian attend official welcoming ceremony in Tbilisi, 
September 8, 2021
Armenian opposition leaders and some analysts say Ankara continues to link the 
normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations to a resolution of the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict favorable to Baku. They say the Turks also want 
Yerevan to stop campaigning for a greater international recognition of the 1915 
Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire.
Erdogan expressed hope on Sunday that the “problem between Armenia and 
Azerbaijan will be overcome through the opening of corridors.”
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev threatened earlier this year to forcibly open 
a corridor to Nakhichevan through Armenia’s southeastern Syunik province 
repeatedly described by him as “historical Azerbaijani lands.” Yerevan strongly 
condemned the threat.
A Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement that stopped last year’s war in Karabakh 
commits Armenia to opening rail and road links between Nakhichevan and the rest 
of Azerbaijan. Armenia should be able, for its part, to use Azerbaijani 
territory as a transit route for cargo shipments to and from Russia and Iran.
Armenian leaders maintain that the agreement does not call for the creation of a 
permanent land corridor for Nakhichevan. The Azerbaijani region also borders 
Turkey.
Turkey provided decisive military assistance to Azerbaijan during the six-week 
war in Karabakh. Armenia says that Turkish military personnel participated in 
the hostilities on the Azerbaijani side along with thousands of mercenaries 
recruited in Syria’s Turkish-controlled northern regions.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 09/21/2021

Emil Lazarian 
                                        Tuesday, 
Armenia Marks Independence Anniversary
        • Naira Nalbandian
        • Marine Khachatrian
Armenia - A concert dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Armenia's independence 
is held in Yerevan's Republic Square, .
Armenia marked on Tuesday the 30th anniversary of its declaration of 
independence from the Soviet Union with official ceremonies and an open-air 
concert boycotted by opposition leaders and condemned by some relatives of 
Armenian soldiers killed in last year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The ceremonies began in the morning at the Yerablur Military Pantheon in Yerevan 
where President Armen Sarkissian, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and other 
senior officials laid wreaths at a Karabakh war memorial.
Journalists were barred from not only approaching the officials but also 
watching the wreath-laying ceremony. Security officers deployed at Yerablur also 
interrupted their interviews with the parents of several fallen soldiers who 
wanted to prevent Pashinian from approaching their graves.
“He must not come to my boys’ home,” said one woman. “I didn’t invite him.”
Moments later the angry father of another soldier was forcibly removed from the 
military cemetery where hundreds of Armenian victims of the first Karabakh war 
of 1991-1994 were also laid to rest.
“Nikol, you will answer for ruining our independence,” shouted another man 
holding Pashinian responsible for Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 war that left 
about 3,800 Armenian soldiers dead and more than 200 others unaccounted for.
He and other protesters, most of them relatives of soldiers killed in action, 
argued with riot police after the prime minister left Yerablur.
Armenia - Riot police scuffle with relatives of Armenian soldiers killed during 
the war in Nagorno-Karabakh at the Yerablur Military Pantheon, Yerevan, 
.
More than 200 other relatives led by a well-known political activist staged a 
candlelight march to Yerablur from the city center in the afternoon. They not 
only paid their respects to their loved ones but also protested against the 
Independence Day concert organized by the Armenian government in the city’s 
central Republic Square.
Pashinian announced the concert on September 8, saying that it will be the 
culmination of “large-scale and colorful” celebrations of Armenia’s main public 
holiday. He said it will be “first and foremost dedicated to our martyrs who 
sacrificed their lives for Armenia’s independence.”
The announcement prompted strong condemnations from many families of war victims 
as well as opposition politicians and other critics of his government. They said 
that any festivities would be highly inappropriate in a country which is still 
mourning the war dead and has not yet found, identified and buried all of its 
fallen soldiers.
Pashinian last week apologized for using the word “colorful” but said the 
concert will not be an affront to the soldiers’ memory and will go ahead as 
planned.
The concert featured classical, folk and modern music played in front of the 
country’s political leadership and other dignitaries. It also attracted hundreds 
of ordinary people to the sprawling square guarded by an unusually large number 
of police officers and other security personnel.
Armenia - President Armen Sarkissian (R) and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian 
shake hands at the Yerablur Military Pantheon, Yerevan, .
Addressing the crowd before the live performances, Pashinian paid tribute to the 
fallen soldiers. He said they must be regarded as “symbols of life, not death.” 
He also urged Armenians to “transform our defeat into victory” and “defeat 
desperation, destiny and death.”
Lawmakers representing Armenia’s two main opposition alliances led by former 
Presidents Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sarkisian were also invited to the event 
broadcast live by state television. Predictably, they chose to boycott it.
Also invited was Levon Ter-Petrosian, another former president who led Armenia 
to independence in the final months of Soviet rule. Ter-Petrosian, whose 
spokesman branded Pashinian a “nation-destroying scourge” right after last 
year’s war, shunned the event too.
The government’s press office declined to clarify whether personal invitations 
were also sent to Kocharian and Sarkisian, who are even more critical of the 
current Armenian authorities.
Both ex-presidents again blamed Pashinian for the outcome of the six-week war 
stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire last November in separate statements 
issued earlier on Tuesday on the occasion of the independence jubilee.
“As recently as one year ago, we were proud of our Armed Forces and were an 
essential factor in the geopolitical configuration of the South Caucasus,” read 
Kocharian’s statement. “But now we have not only ceased to be the security 
guarantor of Artsakh (Karabakh) but are also unable to protect our own 
sovereignty and citizens.”
Macron Wants To Deepen France’s ‘Special’ Ties With Armenia
FRANCE -- French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during the annual dinner of 
the Co-ordination Council of Armenian organisations of France (CCAF), in Paris, 
February 5, 2019
France and Armenia enjoy a “special relationship” that should be deepened 
further, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday.
“France and Armenia have forged a special relationship deeply rooted in history. 
This relationship of friendship, dense and trustful, continues today in all 
areas,” Macron said in a congratulatory message sent to President Armen 
Sarkissian on Armenia’s Independence Day.
“I would like this link, which forms the richness of our bilateral relationship, 
to deepen even further when it comes to our cooperation in various sectors such 
as culture, education, health or even economic cooperation,” he wrote.
France, Macron went on, “stands with Armenia to help it overcome the challenges 
facing it one year after the deadly conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.” He said Paris 
will also remain actively involved in international efforts to resolve the 
Karabakh conflict spearheaded by the U.S., Russian and French co-chairs of the 
OSCE Minsk Group.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian discussed those efforts in a 
September 17 phone call with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan. According 
to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, the two men also agreed on the need to expand 
“multidimensional cooperation” between their countries.
“The sides agreed to discuss in greater detail soon prospects for stepping up 
their cooperation in the economic sphere, including through the implementation 
of new development programs in Armenia,” the ministry said in a statement.
Mirzoyan praised France’s position and actions taken during and after last 
year’s Armenian-Azerbaijani war over Karabakh.
Macron criticized Azerbaijan and accused Turkey of recruiting jihadist fighters 
from Syria for the Azerbaijani army shortly after the war broke out in September 
2020. Le Drian demanded “the departure of the Syrian mercenaries” from the 
conflict zone following a Russian-brokered ceasefire that stopped the 
hostilities in November.
Turkey denied sending members of Turkish-backed Syrian rebel groups to fight in 
Karabakh. Azerbaijan also denied their presence in the Azerbaijani army ranks. 
Both Ankara and Baku accused Paris of pro-Armenian bias.
Macron was also quick to voice strong support for Yerevan after Azerbaijani 
forces reportedly crossed some sections of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and 
advanced several kilometers into Armenian territory in May.
“The Azerbaijani troops must leave Armenia’s sovereign territory,” he said 
during a June 1 meeting in Paris with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.
Baku maintains that its troops took up new positions on the Azerbaijani side of 
the frontier and did not cross into Armenia.
France is home to an influential Armenian community. The latter was instrumental 
in the December 2020 passage by both houses of the French parliament of 
resolutions calling on Macron’s government to recognize Karabakh as an 
independent republic. The government ruled out such recognition, saying that it 
would be counterproductive for France and the Karabakh negotiating process.
Biden Vows Continued U.S. Efforts For Karabakh Peace
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the Delta variant of coronavirus, 
September 9, 2021.
President Joe Biden said the United States will continue to strive for a 
peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict when he congratulated Prime 
Minister Nikol Pashinian on Armenia’s Independence Day on Tuesday.
In a message sent on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the South Caucasus 
state’s declaration of independence from the Soviet Union, Biden also promised 
continued U.S. support for the Armenian government’s “efforts to strengthen your 
democratic institutions, advance human rights, combat corruption, and uphold the 
rule of law.”
“The Armenian people have faced challenges over the last year, including the 
tragic loss of life in the fighting in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” added the 
letter publicized by the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan.
“As we mourn with the people of Armenia, we will work hand in hand with your 
government, including through the OSCE Minsk Group and other regional formats, 
to promote regional stability and conflict resolution. The United States will 
continue to advocate for the release of all Armenian detainees held in 
Azerbaijan.”
Biden similarly assured Pashinian in early August that Washington remains 
committed to facilitating a “comprehensive” Karabakh settlement together with 
Russia and France, the two other co-chairs of the Minsk Group.
The U.S. ambassador to Armenia, Lynne Tracy, has repeatedly said since then that 
the Karabakh conflict remains unresolved after last year’s Armenian-Azerbaijani 
war.
“We do not see the status of Nagorno-Karabakh as having been resolved,” Tracy 
insisted on September 13.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry condemned the envoy’s remarks. It echoed 
President Ilham Aliyev’s repeated claims that Azerbaijan’s victory in the 
six-week war put an end to the conflict.
Aliyev ruled out on July 22 any negotiations on Karabakh’s status, saying 
Yerevan must instead recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over the 
Armenian-populated territory.
Later in July the U.S., Russian and French co-chairs of the Minsk Group issued a 
joint statement calling for a “negotiated, comprehensive, and sustainable 
settlement of all remaining core substantive issues of the conflict” and urging 
the conflicting parties to resume talks “as soon as possible.”
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

CivilNet: 10 Years on the Air With CivilNet

Emil Lazarian
CIVILNET.AM

21 Sep, 2021 09:09

Armenia marks 30 years of independence on September 21. CivilNet marks 10. Armenian authorities have decided to hold a large-scale celebration on that day. CivilNet will continue to cover protests, human interest stories, sad stories, happy stories, political turns, revolutions, wars, elections, and well – just life. All the things that matter to Armenia. 

Through these years, CivilNet’s staff has been on the ground as witnesses to events. Journalists, cameramen and video editors give voice to a  society, they are the ones who tell people’s stories and inform the  public. We are those journalists, cameramen and editors. Today, we are  in front of the camera remembering the biggest moments of the last decade.  

September 21, Armenia’s Independence Day, Losing its Momentum

Emil Lazarian
by Asbarez Staff

 

 

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Commentary, Featured Story, Latest, Op-Ed, Top Stories

Armenia’s celebrate independence in Yerevan in 2019

BY MADELEINE M. MEZAGOPIAN

With Armenia heading farther away from the true spirit of being independent, does the second independence of Armenia of September 21, 1991* represent an occasion to celebrate or simply an occasion to contemplate on how to preserve Armenia’s existence amid growing domestic and external threats?

Armenia receives the anniversary of its Second Republic amid emerging new world order, evolving regional and international powers and accompanying change in balances of power, and foremost amidst uncertainty and undeclared preferences by neighboring and far countries e.g. Russia and USA.

Thus, urgent need arises for all Armenians in Diaspora and in Motherland Armenia to concert efforts towards not only preserving Armenia’s independence, but foremost to preserve Armenia’s existence per se.

While life goes on as usual with Armenians in Motherland Armenia and in Diaspora and somehow their suffering of being hypnotized and insensitive to the ongoing and growing existential threats of Motherland Armenia. Parts of Armenian Artsakh were ceded to neighboring Azerbaijan thus bringing it and its ally Turkey closer to the heart of Armenia (1).

A day doesn’t pass without Armenia losing another hero protecting its borders while Armenia’s leadership considers normalization and rapprochement with Armenia’s past and present enemy Turkey whose leadership continues uprooting Armenian historical sites on occupied Armenian territories and sponsoring Azerbaijan’s expansionist schemes in Armenian Artsakh and further.

Hence, revisiting the past velvet revolution and the struggle to uproot corruption and those with external affiliations in the homeland Armenia is gaining further urgency.

Thus, should be a day of determination to rescue Armenia from extinction rather a day to celebrate an independence that lost its momentum with the arrival of an acquiescent leadership. A leadership that ceded to the enemy not only precious Shushi, but even parts of the Homeland Armenia thus undermining Armenia’s sacrifices and betraying its martyrs.

With the current leadership in Armenia unable to protect its borders and ceding its responsibility to Russia, September 21 should be a day of grief for all Armenians for compromising its sovereignty if not losing its independence to Russia, which in the past gave parts of Armenia to Turkey and Azerbaijan and debilitated the spirit, the culture and the civilization of Armenia.

This year, September 21 should be a day for Armenians to acknowledge that Armenia is on its own after complete indifference by all key actors while Armenians suffered its fourth genocide and mass human rights abuses during and in the aftermath of Armenian Artsakh’s existential war.

September 21 ceases to be a day of celebration, but rather a day for Armenians to ask forgiveness from their martyrs for not rewarding their sacrifices rather betraying their memory through rewarding the enemy.

September 21, should be a day for Armenians to promise their martyrs to finally realize genuine velvet revolution and eventually establish a true, neutral and united independent Armenia with a leadership solely loyal to Armenia and to the Armenian nation while establishing solid bridges with all key actors worldwide thus best serving Armenia’s national interests.

  • On May 27, 1990, different parts of Armenia, the Armenian Soviet Socialist Armenia, witnessed confrontations between the newly established Armenian army (NAA) and the troops of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD). On August 23, 1990, Armenia declared its sovereignty over Soviet laws. On September 21, 1991, Armenia declared its independence and on July 5, 1995, the new constitution of Armenia was adopted and the Second Republic of Armenia was born.
  1. On September 27, 2020, Turkey, taking advantage of its own expansionist policies in the Mediterranean, targeting both European and Arab states, and unleashing terrorists in several European states and of USA preoccupation with controversial historical elections, hand in hand with Azerbaijan and Turkish trained terrorists of multi nationalities declared war and attacked Armenian Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh). On November 9, 2020, a ceasefire agreement, mediated by Russia, was signed between Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan surrendering parts of Armenian Artsakh to Azerbaijan.

Madeleine M. Mezagopian is scholar and an academician based in Amman, Jordan.




A short, sordid history of brands and warfare

Emil Lazarian
Sept 12 2021
Originally published: Red Pepper by Tommy Hodgson (September 12, 2021 )  |  – Posted Sep 15, 2021
Financialization, Imperialism, Inequality, WarMiddle EastNewswire

Last year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh was devastating. In September 2020, a decades-long ethnic and territorial dispute between neighbouring Caucus countries Armenia and Azerbaijan re-erupted. After an eventual Azeri victory, with thousands of deaths and displacements, there has been some reflection of the tragedy of the conflict.

One particular moment of the war stood out for its strangeness. At the height of the conflict, the official Azerbaijani Instagram account of Burger King posted pro-Azeri propaganda, boldly stating ‘Victory is with you, Azerbaijani Soldier!’ and that ‘Karabakh is Azerbaijan’. McDonald’s too claimed that ‘Every inch of the homeland is one and indivisible’–while showing a map of Azerbaijan encompassing the whole of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Though seemingly outlandish, brands taking sides in warfare has historical precedence. War is a miserable business, but it is a business in itself. In the Global North, the biggest and best-known brands flex their ‘responsible credentials’ by taking sides in social disputes. More intimate involvement in actual wars though, such as in Nagorno-Karabakh, have ranged from producing propaganda in support of one combatant country to playing both sides of a conflict to make money off shared misery.

Wars have been fought on behalf of corporate interests for years. The East India Company pioneered imperial plunder in South Asia on behalf of the British state. It occupied parts of modern India in the late 1700s and early 1800s, using its own private army to protect its interests, and eventually moving to administer whole regions as a governing power.

After the brutal successes of the Industrial Revolution, the British upper classes began to grow accustomed to foreign luxuries like Chinese tea. To deliver increasing quantities of the precious leaves, the East India Company gave incentives to ramp up opium production in the Indian territories they controlled, paying private merchants to illegally trade the drug for tea with their Chinese counterparts. Fostering a dependency on opium in China, the company threw the balance of trade off so badly that the Chinese government eventually demanded opium stock be destroyed to halt its ruinous impact on their economy and the populace. Thus began the Opium Wars of the mid-1800s, a series of clashes born out of early capitalist influence. This ravaging of natural resources and local populations was an integral part of colonial policy, and private companies were its vanguard.

Another starker example from the twentieth century are the ‘Banana Wars’, a series of conflicts which saw American troops sent into Central America to protect access to profitable food plantations for the companies Standard Fruit and United Fruit, now known as Chiquita. The U.S. was a growing empire in the early 1900s after the successful gains of the Spanish-American war, including Guam, Cuba and Puerto Rico. As the U.S. sought to secure corporate control of local fruit production in the area, insurrections against imperial rule became a problem. President Theodore Roosevelt issued an addition to the Monroe Doctrine known as the ‘Roosevelt Corollary’ which stated that ‘chronic wrongdoing… [may] ultimately require intervention by some civilized nation’, indicating the US’s intent to suppress dissent to protect domestic commercial interests.

The trigger point for capitalist violence in Latin America came when agricultural labourers attempted to unionise and demand labour rights. Companies like United Fruit exploited the lack of local labour laws to ensure banana production increased for export. One of the most egregious and revealing examples of anti-labour violence from this period was the 1928 ‘Banana Massacre’. Colombian United Fruit workers went on strike, demanding recognition as employees and a six-day week, amongst other rights. The U.S. government denounced the employees as ‘communists’ and pressured the Colombian authorities to punish the strikers, threatening to send in marines if their corporate interests were not protected. The Colombian government, fearing invasion, sent in troops who massacred strikers in the name of United Fruit.

Corporate and national interests were now registered as one and the same, and the vast and growing military apparatus of the United States was used to ensure workers remained compliant. From this point onwards, ‘democracy’ and capitalism were to be used interchangeably. The Banana Wars have parallels in continuing U.S. interventions in Latin American politics today: the corporate descendants of banana barons are still pushing for regime change in Latin American democracies, demonstrating once again the long impact of corporatism on the history of human conflict.

The rise of public relations in the twentieth century saw brands invest in sanitising their image and win over hearts and minds. During World War I, companies seized on nationalism as an advertising technique. British brands like Bovril played on the threat of combat, announcing that their hot drink had ‘body-building power’ particularly suited to those ‘at the Front’. The French brand Perrier went further in February 1915, challenging whether consumers wanted to ‘drink German waters’ instead.

But many companies were as interested in maintaining access to markets on the other side of the conflict as they were in boosting the home front spirit. After U.S. entry into WWII, a strict embargo was imposed on trade with the Axis powers. Coca-Cola, long-established and popular in Germany, was worried about losing access to this huge market. The corporate giant circumvented the embargo by using the existing German factories to create a new soft drink for the internal market. It was made of apple shavings, fruit pulp and whey, and was named ‘Fanta’.

For the modern world, corporate influence in conflict is perhaps one of its defining features. It is therefore fitting that in the late 1980s, Pepsico briefly had the sixth-largest military in the world, after the Soviets traded a fleet of ships and submarines for access to the sugary drink. Then there’s the arms industry itself, a bloated commercial enterprise which directly profits off human misery.

Perhaps even more alarming is that the recent Azerbaijani controversy suggests a further trend towards brands’ self-insertion in complex military, political, and often ethnic disputes in localised areas. With international corporations reliant on local franchises, regional branches are beginning to use the reach of the global brand to weigh-in on sectarian conflicts. But there is a point to be made from all this: that capitalism is loyal to capital and capital alone.

Tommy Hodgson is a writer and researcher with a particular interest in post-Soviet states and the Global South. He is also active in the radical collective Our Future Now

 

​Planning your trip to River Debed in Armenia

Emil Lazarian
Khaleej Times, UAE
Sept 16 2021

Planning your trip to River Debed in Armenia

Anjaly Thomas/Dubai
Filed on September 16, 2021

“Every village along River Debed has a church, a monastery, few old ruins or spattering of khachkars,” my driver tells me at the start of the journey in Vanadzor. “You will be surprised.” Our communication is limited to Google Translator, but questions are asked and answered promptly, except when we hit no-connectivity zones.

The road through Debed canyon is busy — as it connects Armenia to Georgia and packs in more history and culture than anywhere else in the country. We ease past the town and stop under a bridge to catch the best views of the canyon. The river, brimming with last night’s rain, gushes its way past us and disappears around the bend. A thin mist clings to the canyon but cannot hide its beauty.

Somewhere beyond that mist is my destination of the day. We drive on. I am undertaking this journey because of a recent interest in Armenia’s UNESCO World Heritage sites and abandoned monasteries which are among the oldest in the world.

Monastery in the mountains

Soon, my driver stops beside the railway track and points at a non-existent trail he assures me will lead to the ruins of Kobayr Monastery ‘a hundred meters’ up the wall of the gorge. I cannot say what prompted me to undertake this vertical hike, but I began enthusiastically. From afar, the ruins of this medieval 12th century monastery perched on a precarious slope had looked alluring, but, with every step, my heart explodes in my ears. I encounter ducks, goats and cows along the way and frequently resort to walking on all fours, past settlings, before I drag myself over the last step and collapse.

But I am not alone here. A bunch of teenagers are busy taking selfies among the ruins.

The history of Kobayr monastery is linked to the royal families (Kyurikyans, Zakarians and Bagratunis) of medieval Armenia. The main entrance resembles a tunnel and once upon a time was

covered with a carved frame with the facades decorated in geometric patterns and rosette. The church is somewhat intact and has a few preserved frescos. A short inspection of the grounds reveal the ruins of a church, a belfry-sepulcher and a refectory.

The monastery is somewhat difficult to get to, but the location is spectacular – with sweeping mountain views over the Debed Canyon. This is what makes the descent a little easier.

Sanahin and Haghpat

We continue our journey and thirty minutes later arrive at Sanahin Monastery, the first of the two UNESCO World Heritage–listed monasteries in Lori Region, which claims to be the older one. The proof is in its name. Sanahin translated mean “This one is older than that one” — that one being Haghpat, my next stop.

Sanahin monastery complex is built into the nature surrounding it and at first glance seems rather irregular –but I soon alter that notion. I am told that it is composed of five churches (now rather blackened), a theological college, book depository, two gavits (Armenian-style of narthex), a bell tower encircled by a fortified wall – a necessity back in those days to secure against attacks. The monastery doubled up as a school for illuminators and calligraphers and served the students of science, philosophy and religion during the 12th – 13th centuries.

My driver, quite the expert joined my exploration, pointing out the remnants of the original wall that did not get damaged by the earthquake. The monastery was founded by Queen Khosrovanush in 966.

The college, he explains, had many notable calligraphers, artists and philosophers, the most famous being the 11th century philosopher and scientist, Grigor Magistros Pahlavuni whose remaining texts contain information on theology, literature, politics and natural sciences in those days. He predates Leonardo da Vinci by 500 years.

Sanahin’s bell tower, along with Haghpat, are three stories high and held up by columns with intricate designs. I am shown the ornately carved khachkars (cross stones) in varying shades of red and yellow tuff stones

and told of its evolution from being simple in design (10th centruty) to turning ornate (13th century). The contrast is intriguing. And, particulary fascinating is the 12th-century mausoleum of the Zakarian princes, the patron of the monastery.

From here, we proceed to the nearby museum of Mikoyan Brothers, the two most famous Soviet-Armenians. Artem Mikoyan was one of the designers of MiG aircraft and Anastas Mikoyan was a revolutionist. The brothers were born in Sanahin Village and were hugely famous during Soviet times.

We stop for a cup of soorj (coffee) in a wayside cafe, as the rain clouds gather. Coffee is cheap, strong, unfiltered, easily available and is especially bracing after spending hours of exploring blackened old monasteries in cold weather. I am ready for Haghpat Monastery, another medieval, 10th century monastery complex that served as a spiritual and cultural centre of Armenia alongside Sanahin.

As far as impressions go, the Monastery of Haghpat is top league – the location is unmatched, the architecture is magnificent and the style represents medieval Armenia, particularly in the churches of St Gregor (built in 1025), St Nshan (built by Ashot 3rd in 976-991 in a cruciform type) and St Astvatsatsin (1208-1220). These churches were built at different times and hence the varied architecture. A churchyard, a repository, a bell tower, a refectory, and many khachkars complete Haghpat.

The monastery complex, silhouetted against the mountains and valleys beyond is breathtaking. Like Sanahin, Haghpat also reveled in the fame and glory that came with being a famous library and school where students learnt music, manuscript illumination and philosophy.

I walk around the site studying the khachkars wondering what or who lay beneath when the rains begin – first as a gentle showers then as torrents. We retire into a coffee shop.

The Sanahin Bridge

I am ready for the final attraction of the day, a moment I have been waiting for eagerly. From Haghpat, we drive down to the town of Alaverdi, an important town in the Debed Canyon. Ramshackle roadside khoravat stands is almost the only eating option, but given the season, there is plenty of fresh fruit everywhere. Khorovat is Armenia’s answer to the barbecue and is eaten through the day, often wrapped in fresh lavash bread. Drinking water is free.

Once upon a time, Alaverdi was a mining hub – but now the industries are in ruins. Derelict Soviet-era infrastructure dot the riverbank but it here my heart seeks solace – in an old bridge from the 12th century. The Sanahin Bridge over River Debed. It’s the sort of thing only a pontist or a romantic would dream of visiting. I am both.

We wind our way to this magnificent architectural remain of medieval Armenia. Commissioned by Queen Vaneni, this 60m bridge contains carvings of animals and looks unloved, but to this day, it has not undergone any renovation. It is hard to believe that until the 1980’s there was auto-travel on this bridge.

It is said that years ago, young residents of Alaverdi town jumped from the bridge into the river to show off their spirit and manliness. The tradition continues today, but less frequently and strictly as a matter of fun.

The unseasonal rains have turned the river muddy and violent. With a furiously roar, the river continues its journey into Georgia. I imagine it centuries ago. I suppose nothing has changed, except for a dilapidated chimney of the copper mine watching over it today.

Azerbaijan detains Iranian truck drivers as ‘land corridors’ dispute with Armenia worsens

Emil Lazarian
Sept 16 2021

Kapan, the provincial capital of Armenia’s southeastern Syunik Province, is set around 80 km (50 miles) from the Iranian border.











By bne IntelIiNews September 15, 2021

The dispute over Iranian truck drivers driving through Azerbaijani territory in order to supply goods to Armenia and ethnic-Armenian-held parts of Nagorno-Karabakh worsened on September 15 when Azerbaijan’s internal affairs ministry confirmed that two Iranian truckers had been detained.

Earlier, Armenian media reported that two truck drivers from Iran were detained by Azerbaijani police on the Goris-to-Kapan (the towns are known as Gorus and Gafan to Azerbaijanis) highway.

Azerbaijan’s move against Iranian trucks supplying Armenia via a short trip across Azerbaijani territory is almost certainly related to Baku’s dissatisfaction that Armenia has not facilitated its ambition to open a land corridor across Armenian territory to link up with the Azerbaijani Nakhchivan exclave. Azerbaijan claims that such a corridor should be opened in accordance with the ceasefire deal brokered by Russia in November 2020 to end the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, but Armenia says the deal promises no such thing.

Azerbaijani interior affairs ministry spokesman Ehsan Zahidov told Sputnik Azerbaijan that the drivers entered Azerbaijan illegally: “Trucks crossing from Armenia to Azerbaijan illegally were identified and [the drivers were] detained by the Interior Ministry, the State Customs Committee and the State Border Service,” he stated. He added that “measures” would now be applied “in accordance with legislation”.

Tehran is yet to comment on the situation.

A report from News.am said that the drivers, having poured cement in Nagorno-Karabakh, were on the return journey to Iran when they were stopped by police.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that as the state frontiers of Armenia and Azerbaijan were drawn according to the former Soviet era borders, the Goris-Kapan road—which largely runs through Armenia’s southern Syunik region—does indeed cross into Azerbaijan twice: “I suppose that since the text of the agreement [brokered by Russia to end last year’s war] does not address the circumstance as regards the passage of foreign goods, Azerbaijan decided to apply this mechanism [against the Iranian drivers].”

Earlier, Azerbaijan confirmed that it has been asking $130 in road tax from truck drivers entering its territory on the Goris-Kapan road. It is not clear, however, that the tax has been demanded from any non-Iranian foreign truck drivers.