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

Louvre’s new department for Byzantine Arts and Christianity in the East to include Armenia

Emil Lazarian

 20:20,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 12, ARMENPRESS: The Louvre is preparing the opening of a new department of Byzantine Arts and Christianity in the East, including Armenia, Ambassador of France to Armenia Olivier Decottignies said in a post on X.

“The Louvre is the most visited museum in the world (9.6 million visitors per year). It is preparing the opening of a new department of Byzantine Arts and Christianity in the East, including Armenia.

 In Armenia, the Louvre is assisting in the redesign of the Erebuni Museum," the French ambassador wrote.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s abandoned capital transforms under Azerbaijani rule

Emil Lazarian
eurasianet
Jan 11 2024

It's a ghost town that looms large in the minds of both Armenians, who know it as Stepanakert, and Azerbaijanis, who know it as Khankendi. 

It served for three decades as the de facto capital of the self-proclaimed, now-defunct Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR).

It was home to the majority of the republic's 100,000-some population, nearly all of them Armenians, who fled to Armenia after Azerbaijan's lightning offensive to seize the whole of the NKR on September 19-20. As they fled they endured a gas explosion that killed over 200, a days-long traffic jam during which 64 people reportedly died, and faced an uncertain status once they reached their destination.

Azerbaijan never accepted the existence of the NKR, nor even the term "Nagorno-Karabakh," let alone the idea that it had a capital. But the town of Khankendi is of enormous symbolic importance for it, too, as its seizure represents the total nature of Baku's victory in Karabakh.

It was Khankendi where President Ilham Aliyev delivered his most triumphant victory speech, raised the Azerbaijani flag and mocked the detained former NKR leaders. 

And it was Khankendi where the victory in the 2020 war against Armenia over Karabakh was celebrated with a military parade attended by Aliyev and his family in November. 

“During these 20 years [of my presidency], I never doubted that this day would come and a military parade under the Azerbaijani flag would be held in the city of Khankendi,” he told the parade. “I once said [during the 2020 war] that without Shusha, our work would be incomplete. However, even then, I knew that without Khankendi and Khojaly, our work would be incomplete.” 

Footage posted on social media from Khankendi by a handful of Azerbaijanis with access to the town shows virtually no signs of life. According to the Armenian government, more than 100,000 people had left Nagorno-Karabakh for Armenia within the 10 days following the NKR's surrender after Azerbaijan's lightning offensive. 

In December, Azerbaijani media reported, citing the country's commission for Internally Displaced Persons affairs, that 50 Azerbaijani families, originally from Khankendi, would soon be resettled in the town. While the town served as the seat of the government of Soviet Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (1923-91), its population was overwhelmingly Armenian with an Azerbaijani minority. Its population was 11 percent Azerbaijani according to the latest Soviet census conducted there in 1979. 

The Azerbaijani government created a "reintegration portal" for Armenians deciding to remain in their homes and accept Baku's rule. It claimed in October to have received 98 applications, but the International Committee of the Red Cross estimates that only about 20 have stayed behind. 

While Armenia says that the local Armenians' flight in the face of Azerbaijani military advance amounted to ethnic cleansing, Azerbaijani officials insist that they left by their own will, as Aliyev reiterated in an interview with Euronews in December. 

“Our public communications with Karabakh Armenians, and what we did after, demonstrated that we wanted them to stay. We openly announced that and I, during my appeal to the Azerbaijani people after the end of the anti-terror operation [the September offensive], said that they could stay,” he said. “We opened the electronic portal of registration. All of those who want to come back have this right. Their property is duly protected. All the historical and religious sites are duly protected.”

In the reports of meetings of Azerbaijani officials with Armenian residents in Karabakh for the purpose of registration, we see mainly elderly people who were likely too weak to join the exodus. 

Azerbaijan disclosed its reintegration plan for Karabakh Armenians publicly only in October, after the vast majority of the population had fled the region. Vague as it is overall, it makes one thing clear: as expected, there will be no special treatment for Armenians; they are to have the exact same legal status as Azerbaijanis or other ethnic minorities. 

“The word reintegration, which I use many times, unfortunately, was met with a kind of irony, both from the Armenian government and also from the separatists. The same separatists who now wait for the verdict in the detention center,” Aliyev said in a forum in early December. 

“We even delivered the message to them that we will have a municipal election at the end of 2024, so they will participate. They will select their representatives, who will be the leaders of the municipalities. So, what else should we have provided or offered? It was the maximum and it was totally transparent.”

He also spoke to the forum about how Azerbaijani social workers were taking care of the Armenians who stayed behind. “[Y]ou have to eat, you have to have heating, you have to have other means of living. Not many of them, I would say, remained. But those who remain, they have been taken care of and those who want to come back, they can use this mechanism,” he said. 

A few Karabakhis have mused on social media about possibly going back to their homes given the difficulties they face in settling in Armenia. 

But it's not clear how widespread or serious the intention is, especially given the social pressures against accepting Azerbaijani rule. 

When it comes to the physical landscape, as soon as it restored its sovereignty, the Azerbaijani government rid Khankendi of all flags and other attributes of the former NKR. A presidential decree established "Karabakh University" in place of what had been known as "Artsakh University" under Armenian rule. And the seats at the local stadium had been arranged in such colors as to form the NKR flag but are now arranged to spell out "Karabakh is Azerbaijan." 

 

RFE/RL Armenian Service – 01/11/2024

Emil Lazarian 
                                        Thursday, 


Government Funds New Plant Moved Away From Azeri Border

        • Nane Sahakian

Armenia - The site of an industrial plant built in Yersakh, June 15, 2023.


Armenia’s government approved on Thursday a concessional loan worth 3.5 billion 
drams ($8.6 million) to a U.S.-Armenian joint venture that relocated, for 
security reasons, a metallurgical plant which it began building on the border 
with Azerbaijan last year.

The construction site in Yeraskh, a border village 55 kilometers south of 
Yerevan, came under fire from nearby Azerbaijani army positions on a virtually 
daily basis in June.

The automatic gunfire, which left two Indian workers seriously wounded, began 
one week after the Azerbaijani government protested against the $70 million 
project. It claimed that building the industrial facility without its permission 
is a violation of international environmental norms. The Armenian Foreign 
Ministry brushed aside Baku’s “false” environmental concerns, saying that they 
are a smokescreen for impeding economic growth and foreign investment in Armenia.

Despite making defiant statements, Armenian and U.S. investors behind the 
project suspended work on the plant and started moving construction and 
industrial equipment from the site later in the summer.

In a statement issued after its weekly meeting in Yerevan, Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian’s cabinet confirmed that the facility is now being constructed just 
outside the town of Ararat, several kilometers from Yeraskh.

It said that the investors wasted 2 billion drams on the construction work in 
Yeraskh and now need additional funding. The low-interest government loan, 
repayable in four years, will be channeled into the project through a state 
investment fund, added the statement.

The plant is to process scrap metal, employ up to 500 people and have an annual 
turnover of at least $200 million. Its owners plan to finish the construction by 
the end of this year.

Areg Kochinian, a political analyst, believes that the plant’s relocation set a 
dangerous precedent for Armenia, meaning that Azerbaijan is in a position to 
disrupt economic activity in Armenian border regions by force.

“This situation could and should have been avoided. It’s a classic example of 
irresponsible administration which we have seen many times,” Kochinian said, 
commenting on the initial site of the plant located just a few hundred meters 
from an Azerbaijani army post.

Armenia’s largest gold mine also located on the border with Azerbaijan was 
likewise targeted by systematic Azerbaijani gunfire last spring. The Russian 
owner of the Sotk gold mine announced in June that it has no choice but to end 
open-pit mining operations there and put many of its 700 workers on unpaid leave.




Breach Of Armenia’s Territorial Integrity ‘Unacceptable’ To Iran

        • Ruzanna Stepanian

Armenia - Iranian Ambassador Mehdi Sobhani speaks to journalists, January 11, 
2024.


The Iranian ambassador in Yerevan, Mehdi Sobhani, on Thursday reaffirmed Iran’s 
strong support for Armenia’s territorial integrity, saying that any violation of 
it is unacceptable to Tehran.

“We have always supported Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and 
anything that causes a violation of Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial 
integrity is not acceptable for us,” Sobhani told reporters.

Asked what concrete action Iran will take in case of such a violation, he said: 
“It won’t be violated.”

The remarks came amid Azerbaijan’s renewed demands for an extraterritorial 
corridor to its Nakhichevan exclave that would pass through Syunik, the sole 
Armenian province bordering Iran. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on 
Wednesday that people and cargo transported to and from Nakhichevan must be 
exempt from Armenian border controls.

Last week, a Turkish government minister said that new roads and railways needed 
for the functioning of that corridor should be built by 2029. The Iranian 
Foreign Ministry responded by repeating its strong opposition to “geopolitical 
changes” in the South Caucasus.

Iran has repeatedly warned against attempts to strip it of the common border and 
transport links with Armenia. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi reportedly told a 
visiting Azerbaijani official last October that the “Zangezur corridor” sought 
by Baku is “resolutely opposed” by the Islamic Republic.

Raisi spoke less than two weeks after Azerbaijan’s recapture of Nagorno-Karabakh 
which raised more fears in Yerevan that Baku will also attack Armenia to open 
the corridor.

Andranik Kocharian, the chairman of the Armenian parliament committee on defense 
and security, did not rule out the possibility of such an attack when he spoke 
to RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Thursday. He said the Armenian government is 
reinforcing “every day” the county’s capacity to repel it.




Yerevan Keeps Linking Peace Deal With Border Delimitation

        • Shoghik Galstian

Armenia - A soldier at a new Armenian army post on the border with Azerbaijan, 
June 16, 2021.


Armenia continues to believe that its peace treaty with Azerbaijan should spell 
out a mechanism for delimiting the border between the two countries, a senior 
Armenian lawmaker said on Thursday, reacting to Baku’s efforts to delink the two 
issues.

“If this principle is not adopted and implemented, it will be unclear how the 
delimitation process will take place,” Sargis Khandanian, the chairman of the 
Armenian parliament committee on foreign relations, told reporters.

Khandanian also made clear that Yerevan insists on using the most recent Soviet 
military maps printed in the 1970s as a basis for ascertaining the long and 
heavily militarized Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

The leaders of the European Union and its key member states, France and Germany, 
backed this stance in a joint statement with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian 
issued after their meeting in Spain last October.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev reiterated Baku’s rejection of the proposed 
mechanism for border delimitation on Wednesday. He said that it favors the 
Armenian side.

“They [the Armenians] want to put aside maps of the 1960s, 1950s and 1940s and 
refer to the 1970s because our historical lands had been given to them by that 
time,” Aliyev said in a televised interview. “Therefore, we strongly opposed and 
oppose that.”

Echoing statements by other Azerbaijani officials, Aliyev said that the border 
should be delimited after the signing of the peace treaty. He did not cite any 
concrete delimitation mechanism acceptable to Baku.

Armenian analysts and opposition figures believe that Aliyev wants to leave the 
door open to Azerbaijani territorial claims to Armenia. They say this shows that 
Pashinian’s “peace agenda” regularly touted by him and his political allies 
cannot guarantee the country’s territorial integrity even after the September 
2023 fall of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Azerbaijani leader on Wednesday again accused Armenia of occupying “eight 
Azerbaijani villages.” He referred to several small enclaves inside Armenia 
which were controlled by Azerbaijan in Soviet times and occupied by the Armenian 
army in the early 1990s. For its part, the Azerbaijani side seized at the time a 
bigger Armenian enclave.

Aliyev said that the return of those enclaves will top the agenda of an upcoming 
joint session of Armenian and Azerbaijani government commissions on border 
demarcation and delimitation. The office of Deputy Prime Minister Mher 
Grigorian, the chairman of the Armenian commission, declined to comment on 
Aliyev’s claim. Meanwhile, some opposition lawmakers in Yerevan demanded 
explanations from the government.




Armenia To Attend Another ‘Anti-Russian’ Meeting On Ukraine


MALTA – Delegates attend a meeting organised by Ukraine to discuss its peace 
formula for ending the war with Russia in an unnamed hotel in St Julian's, 
October 28, 2023.


Risking further condemnation by Russia, the secretary of Armenia’s Security 
Council will fly to Switzerland this weekend to take part in a new round of 
multilateral peace talks initiated by Ukraine.

Armen Grigorian’s office announced on Thursday his participation in the 
conference that will take place in the Swiss resort town of Davos on January 14.

Grigorian already attended the last such meeting held in Malta in October. 
Security officials from more than 60 countries converged on the island to 
discuss Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s plan to end the war with 
Russia. Grigorian met with Zelenskiy’s chief of staff during what Moscow 
condemned as a “blatantly anti-Russian event.”

Grigorian’s trip to Malta contrasted with Armenian leaders’ boycott of 
high-level meetings of Russian-led groupings of ex-Soviet states and highlighted 
Yerevan’s mounting tensions with Moscow. The Russian Foreign Ministry called the 
trip a “demonstrative anti-Russian gesture” and accused Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian’s administration of systematically “destroying” Russian-Armenian 
relations.

Despite the angry Russian reaction, Armenia kept up diplomatic contacts with 
Ukraine. The foreign ministers of the two states held talks in Brussels on 
December 11 on the sidelines of an annual meeting of the top diplomats of 
European Union member states and ex-Soviet republics involved in the EU’s 
Eastern Partnership program.

Beglium - Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Ukrainian 
counterpart Dmytro Kuleba meet in Brussels, December 11, 2023.

Pashinian did not boycott fresh ex-Soviet summits that were hosted by Russian 
President Vladimir Putin in Saint Petersburg two weeks later. But his attendance 
did not seem to ease the unprecedented rift between the two longtime allies.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said later in December that Armenia is 
reorienting its foreign policy towards the West at the expense of its alliance 
with Russia. He warned that the South Caucasus country cannot successfully 
confront its grave security challenges with the help of the United States and 
the European Union.

Citing an unnamed “informed source,” Russia’s main official news agency, TASS, 
claimed on Wednesday that Germany is pressing Pashinian’s government to force 
Russian border guards out of Armenia and purge the Armenian state apparatus from 
pro-Russian elements in return for greater economic aid.

There was no official reaction to the claim from Berlin or Yerevan. While 
pledging to “diversify” Armenia’s foreign and security policy, Pashinian has so 
far indicated no plans to demand the withdrawal of Russian border guards or 
troops from Armenia.



Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2024 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

Armenpress: Georgia in the spotlight of tourists from the Middle East. What are the possibilities of Armenia?

Emil Lazarian

 09:00,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 11, ARMENPRESS. According to statistics provided by the Georgian National Tourism Administration (GTNA) 4,703,945 tourists visited Georgia in 2022, more than 80% of them were Europeans and 4.4% were citizens of the Middle East countries.

 In the overall picture of inbound tourism, the number of visitors from the Middle East is very small but dynamics is significant in this case. According to the results of 2022, Georgia has received 208,341 tourists from the Middle East, which is 15 times more than ten years before.

Moreover, the increase in the number of visitors from the region has exceeded the pre-pandemic level. Furthermore, the former Soviet republic admitted almost 160,000 visitors from the Middle East in 2019. Georgia is popular among tourists from the Middle East not only thanks to its picturesque views, affordable hotels, and relative proximity but also because of the growing availability of halal food and Arabic-speaking guides (Middle East Monitor, 2022).

The increase in the number of visitors from the Middle East is mainly due to tourists from the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, particularly Saudi Arabia, which accounts for more than 50% of the total number of tourists from the Middle East. In 2022, the number of tourists from Saudi Arabia increased by 60% compared to the pre-pandemic period of 2019, reaching 119,921 visitors.

Let's consider how the above-mentioned success factors for Georgia work and examine the possibilities of achieving similar results in Armenia.

Citizens of only 45 countries can enter Armenia without a visa and stay in the country for up to 180 days, which is twice less than in the case of Georgia, when this opportunity is given to citizens of 107 countries (Table 4). Moreover, only citizens of two countries of the Middle East- UAE and Qatar are allowed to visit Armenia without a visa.

Unlike Georgia, in Armenia the number of direct flights from many airports of the region (Dubai, Doha, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam) is less and they are more expensive.

The price of a round trip ticket from the mentioned cities to Armenia if booked two months before the date of departure is 82 – 470 Euros while the average price is 454 Euros.

At the same time, Armenia is considered one of the safest countries in the world, according to the Numbeo crime index as of July 2023, Armenia ranks 6th in terms of security, with a crime index of 21.6 and a safety index of 78.4. This is a notably high safety index, surpassing that of Georgia, which holds the 20th position. In terms of safety, Armenia is a much more preferred destination for tourists compared to Georgia (Numbeo, 2023).

For more information, please view the following 
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1127765.html?fbclid=IwAR2yKI5H1dFSQJsV4CICnofsVxeFVvFFwBGlVJe-nUKmQsnzxwhslGI80A8

New Governor of Armavir named

Emil Lazarian

 10:01,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 11, ARMENPRESS. Mayor of the town of Armavir Davit Khudatyan is set to be appointed Governor of Armavir Province.

The appointment is included in the agenda of the January 11 Cabinet meeting. 

Khudatyan has been the Mayor of Armavir and the President of the Armavir Regional Board of the Civil Contract Party since 2018.

Papua New Guinea declares state of emergency after 15 killed in rioting

Emil Lazarian

 18:16,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 11, ARMENPRESS. A state of emergency has been declared in Papua New Guinea's capital after at least 15 people were killed in rioting.

More than 1,000 troops are on standby "to step in wherever necessary", Prime Minister James Marape said on Thursday, reports BBC.

Shops and cars were torched and supermarkets looted after police went on strike on Wednesday over a pay cut the authorities say was a mistake.

 The unrest was triggered after police and other public servants staged a protest strike outside parliament on Wednesday, after discovering that their wages had been reduced by up to 50% in their latest pay cheques.

According to the source, in response, Mr Marape said the pay cut was an error due to a computer glitch – which had deducted up to $100 (£78) from the pay cheques of public servants. He said the administrative error would be corrected in next month's payments.

But this answer was not accepted by many protesters.

Supervisors Call for Release of Armenian Hostages Held Captive by Azerbaijan

Emil Lazarian
Random Lengths News
Jan 9 2024

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Jan. 9 unanimously approved a motion introduced by Supervisor Kathryn Barger and co-authored by Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell that throws the weight of Los Angeles County behind calls for the release of Armenians being held hostage by Azerbaijan.

At least 36 Armenian prisoners are captive and remain in Azerbaijani custody. Additionally, Azerbaijan is holding eight former military and political leaders of Artsakh captive as political prisoners as of September 2023. 

“This is about accountability,” said Supervisor Kathryn Barger. “We need to hold Azerbaijan accountable for violations of humanitarian law. As leaders of a County that is home to the greatest number of Armenians outside of Armenia itself, we must do what is within our power and use our voice to condemn Azerbaijan’s violations of human rights and urge the return of all Armenian hostages and prisoners of war. We have a moral obligation to do so. I am proud to stand in solidarity with the Armenian community.”

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved several motions authored by Supervisor Barger related to the ongoing humanitarian violations and acts of violence committed by the Azerbaijani government against the ethnic Armenian people of Artsakh.  

The motion notes that the only “crime” committed by these individuals was the peaceful exercise of their political rights; they are being held under false and fabricated charges.  

According to a recent report by the Center for Truth & Justice, Armenian civilians have been the target of illegal arrests by Azerbaijani officials, with no basis or evidence. 

A letter will be sent with all five Supervisors’ signatures to United States President Joseph Biden, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen urging the Administration to take action at the federal level and suspend all U.S. military and economic assistance to Azerbaijan.

 

Armenia tense as Turkey and Azerbaijan renew ‘Zangezur corridor’ discussions

Emil Lazarian
Jan 10 2024
 

ByIsmi AghayevandArshaluys Barseghyan

After Azerbaijan and Turkey resumed discussions of the ‘Zangezur corridor’, Armenian officials have expressed their opposition to the proposal.

The corridor is proposed to connect Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan through Armenian territory, with Azerbaijan demanding that such transport be exempted from any customs checks. It has been a consistent point of disagreement in Armenia–Azerbaijan peace negotiations. 

While it appeared in late 2023 that discussions of the corridor had been put on hold after the agreement to construct an alternative route to Nakhchivan through Iran, since early January, Azerbaijani officials have resumed its discussion.

[Read more: Azerbaijan begins construction of corridor to Nakhchivan through Iran]

On 2 January, Elchin Amirbayov, an Azerbaijani presidential envoy for special assignments, told Estonian Public Broadcasting that restoring transport links was ‘an integral part of the peace process’. 

‘We started talking with the Armenian side about restoring the so-called “Zangezur corridor” so that Azerbaijani citizens living in Nakhchivan, or the main part of Azerbaijan, had an unhindered passage of this territory’, said the official. 

Amirbayov added that the 42-kilometre railway would be ensured by Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) forces, as per the trilateral agreement signed on 9 November 2020 that ended the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. 

Two days later, Hikmat Hajiyev, the advisor to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, told Berliner Zeitung that Azerbaijan expected cargo to be exempted from customs and border control when transported through Armenia between Nakhchivan and Azerbaijan’s main territory. He added that were goods being transported to a third country, customs and border control would be provided by Armenia. 

On 7 January, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, Turkey’s transport minister, said that they expected the Zangezur Corridor would be ‘implemented’ by 2029. He added that Turkey considered the corridor ‘irreplaceable’ despite previously endorsing propositions to route the corridor through Iran. 

Armenian officials have consistently opposed the proposition, with Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan stating on 23 September 2023 that Azerbaijan was attempting to ‘forcefully impose’ an extraterritorial corridor on Armenia that would pass through Armenia’s territory but be out of Armenian control, with the aim of creating a new target. 

‘This is unacceptable for us and should be unacceptable for the international community’, said Mirzoyan, speaking at the UN General Assembly. 

Sargis Khandanyan, the chair of Armenia’s Foreign Relations Committee, told RFE/RL on 8 January that while Yerevan was willing to discuss simplified customs and border regimes and unblocking regional transport, ‘unhindered crossing’ would not be accepted by Armenia.

‘It again assumes extraterritoriality […] which is a violation of our sovereignty’, said Khandanyan. 

The previous week, Armen Grigoryan, Secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, told News.am that discussions regarding unblocking transport between the countries could take place after Azerbaijan had publicly confirmed that the principles of sovereignty, preservation of jurisdiction, reciprocity, and equality would form the basis of the discussions. 

‘We have heard agreement from Azerbaijan on these principles; we expect that they will announce [it] publicly as well, and we will continue to work on clarifying the next steps,’ said Grigoryan.

Azerbaijan has, since the end of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, increasingly sought to establish a corridor to connect the exclave of Nakhchivan to the rest of the country.

However, in October 2023, Azerbaijan’s Presidential Advisor Hikmat Hajiyev told Reuters that the construction of a route through Armenia had ‘lost its attractiveness’ for Azerbaijan after the two countries failed to agree on its opening. 

The construction of an alternative route through Iran began the same month. On Monday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani stated that developing regional transport cooperation could not be ‘a basis for geopolitical changes and violation of the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of countries’.

The idea of a corridor through Armenia’s territory has resurfaced in statements by Azerbaijani officials since the beginning of 2024.

Azerbaijani political commentator Zardusht Alizade told RFE/RL that while Azerbaijan wanted goods to travel to Nakhchivan without passing border or customs checks, the country did not seek to control the corridor.

‘There is such an example in international practice: the corridor that connects the Kaliningrad region with Russia. Trains from Russia on that corridor pass through the territory of Lithuania to Kaliningrad without obstacles and are not checked by customs officers or border guards. This regime can also be applied to the 42 kilometres passing through Armenia’, said Alizade.

While there were hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan could be signed by the end of 2023, this failed to take place. 

On 8 January, Armen Grigoryan stated that Armenia had responded to Azerbaijan’s most recent proposals regarding a peace treaty the previous week, adding that the two countries’ demarcation commissions would meet at the end of January. 

‘There are issues on which we reached an agreement during the verbal negotiations, but we have seen certain setbacks in the text of the peace agreement’, said Grigoryan. He also affirmed that there could be no question of a corridor in the peace agreement. 

Mediation of the negotiations also remains a point of contention. Azerbaijan has been pushing for bilateral negotiations amidst a reported refusal to engage in US-mediated talks. 

Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated in December that it was ‘extremely dangerous’ for Armenia and Azerbaijan to pursue peace negotiations without taking into account tripartite Russia-mediated agreements made in 2020, 2021, and 2022. 

‘Unlike Russia, the United States and the European Union are not trying to bring peace and stability to Armenia and other states of the South Caucasus’, said Zakharova, while calling for the countries to return to Russia-mediated negotiations. 

Speaking to Berliner Zeitung, Hikmat Hajiyev stated that while ‘all formats’ of negotiations had advantages and Azerbaijan was grateful to ‘all mediators’, the country’s goal was ‘result-oriented negotiations’. 

He added that while Azerbaijan was ‘not against honest mediation’, it preferred direct discussions. 

‘Accordingly, the text of the peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan will be prepared directly and bilaterally’, said Hajiyev.

Azerbaijan has also repeatedly proposed separating the border delimitation and demarcation process from the agreement of a peace treaty, which Armenian officials have suggested might be acceptable. 

On Wednesday, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan stated that the peace treaty should include ‘clear foundations’ for the demarcation process, even if demarcation itself took significantly longer. 

‘I want to emphasise that these two issues — territorial integrity and inviolability of borders and also the further delimitation of borders — are issues where the Republic of Armenia cannot see and cannot allow any uncertainty’, said Mirzoyan. ‘Any uncertainty is a great basis and fertile ground for further aggressions and further escalations.’


"Armenia’s prosperity is possible only with Europe" – Greek Foreign Minister

Emil Lazarian
Jan 10 2024
  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

Visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece

“Greece contributes to the strengthening of Armenia-EU relations and supports the EU presence in Armenia in the form of an observation mission [refers to EU civilian observers who patrol on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border],” Greek Foreign Minister Yorgos Gerapetritis said in Yerevan today.

He vowed that Greece, as one of the first states to become a member of the European Union, will work to strengthen the “institutional dialogue” between the EU and Armenia.

During the joint press conference, the Foreign Ministers of Greece and Armenia also answered journalists’ questions regarding the settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations and the possible signing of a peace agreement.

  • “I don’t expect an invasion, but strong pressure on Armenia” – Tom de Waal on Baku’s plans
  • “The past year has resulted in losses and brought Armenia back to square one.” Opinion
  • “Iran welcomes Crossroads of Peace project” – Abdollahian in Yerevan

Greek Foreign Minister Yorgos Gerapetritis said that his country can do a lot for the strengthening and development of Armenia-EU relations. He believes that the presence of the EU civilian observer mission on Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan is certainly an important factor for the establishment of stability in the region, but other tools should also be used.

“It is very important to constantly emphasize Armenia’s European orientation. This is necessary not only for the sake of Armenia’s future, not only to contribute to the growth and stability of the people’s welfare, but also for the sake of Europe. Armenia is an important part of Europe.”

According to Gerapetritis, the well-being and prosperity of the Armenian people is possible only with Europe.

The Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that the country still has a long way to go to deepen relations with the EU. Concrete steps are already being discussed with the EU, including cooperation beyond the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement.

“Despite all challenges, Armenia is actively pursuing democratic reforms. We are convinced that they, in turn, bring Armenia closer to the EU. This is a path on which we should take larger and more intensive steps. And, of course, with the assistance of Greece. Yerevan is really ready to develop these ties based on the protection of democracy and human rights,” Ararat Mirzoyan said.

Responding to the question of whether peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is possible, the Greek Foreign Minister said:

“My country believes that only three words are needed to solve any conflict: democracy, diplomacy and dialogue. And the use of force and aggression should be excluded.”

According to Gerapetritis, Armenia is taking necessary steps to achieve lasting peace.

In this regard, the Minister also touched upon the “Crossroads of Peace” project developed by the Armenian government. According to him, it implies “realistic, fair and stable” solutions to unblock regional transport.

“The peace process [between Armenia and Azerbaijan] should include concrete agreements. The delimitation of borders should be clear to avoid further atrocities and aggression,” the Greek foreign minister said.

Yerevan and Baku have been exchanging written proposals on the text of the peace treaty for a long time. On January 4, the Armenian side handed over another document to Azerbaijan and is again waiting for a reaction. The Secretary of the Armenian Security Council said that he sees both regression and progress in the previous Azerbaijani version of the preliminary text of the agreement.

In the opinion of the Armenian Foreign Minister, regardless of progress or regression on individual articles, the final version of the peace agreement should be based on the following principles:

  • mutual recognition of territorial integrity without ambiguities and reticence,
  • establishment of the order on the basis of which delimitation should be carried out in the future,
  • unblocking of transport on the basis of sovereignty, jurisdiction, equality and reciprocity.

“The Republic of Armenia cannot allow any uncertainty on these issues. Any uncertainty is a basis and fertile ground for further aggressions and escalations. The Armenian side strives for a peace that will be as difficult and practically impossible to question and violate as possible.”

Over the past 30 years, Armenia and Greece have developed strong partnership and friendly relations, Mirzoyan said, and now the moment has come to further advance the political dialogue, economic and security cooperation.

The Armenian Minister presented to Gerapetritis the details of the peace process and the new problems and challenges faced by the country, the situation after all Armenians left Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Greek Foreign Minister said that his country intends to provide “financial support to the IDPs so that they can pay their expenses.” He also talked about the preservation and protection of the cultural heritage of MK Armenians. In his opinion, it is necessary to send a UNESCO fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh, which will “reveal the damage that has been done to Armenian cultural monuments”.

https://jam-news.net/visit-of-the-minister-of-foreign-affairs-of-greece/

Greece Will Give Aid to Nagorno-Karabakh Forcibly Displaced Persons

Emil Lazarian
The National Herald
Greece – Jan 10 2024

ATHENS – Residents of Nagorno-Karabakh who were forced out of the region after Armenia was defeated in a brief war by Azerbaijan after a short war in 2020 will be getting some financial assistance from Greece.

Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis made the announcement in Armenia and said Greece “will soon support a program that will fund the forcibly displaced persons of Nagorno-Karabakh, to meet their needs, particularly accommodation. “It will also relate to the preservation of the Christian cultural sites in Nagorno-Karabakh. We are definitely in favor of preserving the Christian sites in Nagorno-Karabakh, and we want the UNESCO fact finding mission to be on the ground to reveal the damages that these sites have suffered or could suffer, ”he said, reported Armen Press.

The region’s Armenian population had to flee the region during the Azeri invasion in what the European Parliament said was an ethnic cleansing but whih Azerbaijan reclaimed property.

Greece supports the strengthening of the Armenia-EU ties and the deployment of the EU monitoring mission in Armenia, Gerapetritis said at a joint press conference with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.

“Greece has been working to strengthen EU-Armenia institutional dialogue, to offer our expertise acquired over the years as one of the oldest members o fteh EU,” the Greek FM said.

“There is a lot we can do about EU-Armenia relations. Armenia is an important part of Europe, and we will always be there for the Armenian people and the Armenian government,” the Foreign Minister stated.