Author: Emma Jilavian

The Michigan State University (MSU) has been granted $1.2 million to develop new less commonly taught language courses, reports.

Center for Language Teaching Advancement, or CeLTA, faculty have been awarded funding by the Mellon Foundation for 38 months to create new language programs through a partnership with the Big Ten Academic Alliance.

Though MSU already offers 29 less-commonly taught languages, or LCTLs, CeLTA faculty hope to add many more, including Armenian, Burmese, Gaelic, Hmong, Serbo-Croatian and Sinhala, according to the Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages’ website.

The new LCTL courses will be taught via CourseShare, an online distance-learning program used throughout Big Ten Academic Alliance schools.

Although LCTL learners agree that access to these languages is important, some students think the university could be doing more.

“Hopefully in the future MSU will show its commitment by hiring a full-time, in-person teacher instead of relying solely on digital language instruction,” doctoral student Shelbi Meissner said.

On 30 August Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan partook in Stepanakert at a solemn opening ceremony of a new sports hall, NKR President’s Press Office reports.

The President expressed gratitude to the “Border Community Development” fund for the realization of this program considering important widening the network of sports halls in the capital and the republic and noting that this process would be of an ongoing nature.

Primate of the Artsakh Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan, premier Arayik Haroutyunyan and other officials were present at the event.

A blast occurred at the Alaverdi Copper and Molybdenum Combine late on Friday, correspondent reports from Lori.

Two employees were hospitalized as a result of the blast.

According to preliminary data, the explosion occurred on one of the ovens of the factory.

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly adopted the 2016 Tbilisi Declaration today, addressing key issues in the fields of political affairs and security, economics, the environment, human rights, and humanitarian concerns.

In the declaration the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly “expresses concern over military escalation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone and welcomes the active engagement of the OSCE Chairmanship in finding a political solution to protracted conflicts in the OSCE region within established negotiating formats and mechanisms.”

OSCE PA calls upon parliamentarians to encourage political will from the sides in the region to engage in serious efforts to reach an agreement on confidence building-measures to reduce the risk for further hostilities along the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone and to negotiate a comprehensive settlement within the framework of the Minsk Group.”

Photo: SPL

Researchers say they have found the first clear evidence that the thinning in the ozone layer above Antarctica is starting to heal, the BBC reports.

The scientists said that in September 2015 the hole was around 4 million sq km smaller than it was in the year 2000 – an area roughly the size of India.

The gains have been credited to the long term phasing out of ozone-destroying chemicals.

The study also sheds new light on the role of volcanoes in making the problem worse.

President of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic Bako Sahakyan had a meeting in Yerevan with OSCE Chairman-in-Office, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier this morning.

“The meets was held in a sincere atmosphere. The parties exchanged views on issues related to the ways out of the current situation,” NKR Foreign Minister Karen Mirzoyan told reporters after the meeting.

“The steps that will pave the way for restoring the negotiation process shave long been discussed. These include the development and implementation of the investigation mechanism, as well as the expansion of the office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office. We expressed our views on the matter. It was noted, in part, that the proposals are in line with those Karabakh has been offering since early 2000. The Artsakh side has made a number of other proposals, which will not only allow to build confidence between the parties, but also pave the way for the uninterrupted negotiation process,” Minister Mirzoyan told reporters.

Frank Walter Steinmeier told a press conference yesterday that “the maintenance of the status–quo is impossible in the long run. Commenting on this, the NKR Foreign Minister said “we first need to understand what we mean under status-quo.”

“The current status of Artsakh, which does not ensure full rights to its people, does not provide an opportunity for the uninterrupted continuation of the process of independent state-building in Artsakh, is definitely unacceptable. It’s necessary to take all steps to reach the legal formulation of the achievements we have had over years,” he said.

The Minister said “official Stepanakert remains committed to the peaceful settlement of the issue within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group, but stresses the importance of restoring the full format of negotiations with the participation of Artsakh.

“This is our official position. It’s not only the demand of Artsakh, but also an objective reality that serious progress is impossible without Artsakh’s full participation in all stages of the negotiation process,” Minister Mirzoyan said.

Mirzoyan said it was made clear during the meeting that irrespective of the situation in the negotiations and the status quo, the people of Artskah have humanitarian needs and the OSCE, as a serious international organization, should take steps in that direction.

“The rights and freedoms of the people of Artsakh are being violated because of blockade. I mean the freedom of movement, education, and other right. I think the OSCE can also play serious role in this respect,” he said.

Speaking about the situation at the line of contact, Karen Mirzoyan noted that “the more stable the situation, the better conditions it will create for the diplomats and the negotiating parties for launching constructive dialogue.”

He added that “no matter where the next meeting is held, it’s important to reach agreement on the conditions and formats that will allow to restore the negotiation process.”

“There is definitely a common understanding  among the international community and the Armenian party that there is no military solution to the Karabakh conflict, and the peaceful negotiated settlement is the only option. The sooner Azerbaijan comes to understand this, the sooner will it be possible to further the process,” Karen Mirzoyan concluded.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has slammed Pope Francis for using the word ‘genocide’ during his trip to Armenia, accusing the Pontiff of “pursuing an unconditional commitment to Armenian perspective of the controversy.”

In a statement released on its official website Monday, the ministry said: “Pope Francis’ bias on historical events and marginalizing attitude during his visit to Armenia does not comply with his frequently-emphasized efforts to build peace between different groups.”

The ministry said it was disappointing to see that Pope Francis had no contribution to establishing highly-needed peace and stability in Eastern Caucasus in the wake of recent clashes at the Karabakh line of contact.

The statement added that Pope Francis was instead expected to put efforts in establishing peace and friendship for the coming generations.

Montenegro has temporarily annulled visa requirements for citizens of the Republic of Armenia, the Armenian Ministry of Foreign affairs informs in a twitter post.

The visa free regime will be in place until October 31, 2016.

– Kim Kardashian West was honored at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on Wednesday, June 1, 2016 for her long-standing friendship and support to the hospital. Kim was presented with a plaque by Children’s Hospital president and CEO, Paul Viviano, recognizing her as an ‘Honorary Armenian Ambassador’ during a reception of the Armenian Ambassadors of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Special guest at the event included His Eminence, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America.

Kim remarked how delighted she was to be recognized by CHLA and by her Armenian community. She shared that she has enjoyed visiting patients at the hospital for more than 8 years and that now, as a mother of two, her appreciation for having a world-class children’s hospital in her backyard has taken new meaning.

The Armenian Ambassadors of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles are a group of Armenian supporters dedicated to creating hope and building healthier futures for all children. Their goal is to help ensure that Children’s Hospital Los Angeles has the best resources to care for all children.