April 12, 2026
“Epics of ancient peoples are spiritual. They are interpretations of prayers to God, cosmology and the divine calling of man,” he believes. h:Artur Armin, author of the film “The Mystery of Mheri Door”, with whom we talked about the “Sasna Tsrer” epic, the Mheri door inscription, the discoveries made.
– When the premiere of the film “The Mystery of the Dark Door” took place at Kino House, the hall was full. Did you expect such a reaction?
– To be honest, I didn’t expect it. It’s a science documentary, and I thought people would leave after 5-10 minutes due to the weight of the material, but the opposite happened. they stayed until the end. People feel their root, their beginning.
The Mheri door inscription is a ritual calendar-calendar. I found that the numbers of bull and ram sacrifices are based on mathematical and geometrical patterns. Taurus and Aries have astrological significance. Each bull represents one draconian semester. And the total number of rams is the number of days in the lunar year. On the door of Mher, about 3000 years before us, the first month begins with the Sun month and ends with Mehekan, that is, the month of February. It starts on March 21 and ends on February 21.
– Since when did Mher’s door and inscription attract your attention? Did you do this study alone?
– 2007 Historian Artak Movsisyan sent me the history of Armenian history, I looked through it and on the first page I saw the translation of the Mheri door inscription and independently I started counting the number of rams and bulls and immediately saw the mathematical and geometric relationship. Then, when Artak called, I asked why they didn’t write about it, he said that there is no such thing. Then, the monument expert Samvel Karapetyan gave me the dimensions of Mher’s door, and I went, measured with my own hands and found the Urartian size. It turned out that the width and height of the door is made in proportion to the gold ratio.
I think 95-97 percent of the mystery of Mher’s door has been fully revealed.
– You mention that a ram sacrificed to the gods means one day. In:how did you understand?
– By number. The door of Mher is a 365-day calendar, and it is called a lunisolar calendar, and they are all calculated by the astrologers. The arc of the ecliptic, which rotates in two halves, was divided into 5-day or 10-day intervals, and that the constellation-god rises at sunrise, a few tens of minutes before the sun’s rays, that is its zero point. The next day he will leave 4 minutes earlier.
– You are talking about the stars, for example, some archaeologists do not consider Karahunj an observatory. What would you say?
– The one who says that there was no observatory, but a tomb, proved himself that it was an observatory. If it is a mausoleum, then it is an observatory. According to the old belief, the king, the hero, the priest, in short, after death goes to his god, who is the astrologer. The mausoleum, the temple, the sanctuary and the astrologer are one whole complex.
What did observatory or astronomy mean in ancient times? they thought they were going to find the lens of the Byurakan observatory in Karahunj, they would say, yes, is it an observatory? Ancient astronomy had one function: to measure time, which was as necessary as air. Spring sowing, autumn sowing, birth of a child, keeping for 7 days after burial… all this comes from paganism. People were able to determine the time by the position of the sun, how high it is above the horizon. Let me say the words of Hrachya Acharyan. the peasant says: when will you go out tomorrow, he answers: when the star of the plow has risen, I should already be there. Now this villager is not an astronomer, so what is he? The Plow Star is today’s Aries constellation. The time was determined by the stars and was passed down from father to son. And the tomb in general should be connected with ancient faith, astrology. So, I don’t understand the contradictory conversations that reach the point of absurdity.
– It is interesting that you consider the heroes of the “Sasna Tsrer” epic to be gods.
– They are gods. When morons talk about the “Sasna Tsrer” epic, it is already annoying. Archaeologist, orientalist Hovsep Orbeli said that the heroes of the Armenian epic are gods, and the Armenian epic is older than the Greek one, and brings an important pattern. Older, archaic gods are endowed with one function, because in our epic every hero-god has one function. Greek Zeus is both a judge and a blackmailer. It has 10 functions. it means that he has fallen.
However, they say that the heroes of the epic are historical persons. Uncle Toros is supposedly Toros Rshtun, David is Davit Bagratuni. And all those who say that the epic is based on historical heroes, then I ask a question, which historical hero is the dragon, maybe it was your uncle? The lightning-sword is the weapon of the thunder deity.
It is necessary to understand and evaluate correctly. as if you had gold, but use it instead of copper. It is a bad thing and also a crime against world science.
Regarding the statue of David of Sassoon, do you understand that this is the statue of the thunder deity that is 50-60,000 years old?
It is entirely about the gods, it is religious preaching, what is the epic story? It should be called an ancient fairy tale, which is our birth certificate, religious world knowledge.
– Now Sanasar and Baghdasar or Dzenov Ohan are gods of what?
– All Indo-European twins, Indra and Agni, are twin brothers, Sumerians too. Let’s take our Sanasar and Baghdasar. one is silver. Sanasar is a silver circle. In one of the stories of the epic, he says: what should they give for my head? They say: half a copper for your head, one for your horse, he gets angry and says no, three silvers for my head and two silvers for my horse. There is the mystery of the trinity. The heroes show who they are one by one.
Hovsep Orbeli was the first to say that our Hersians are gods. Vergo of the dew is the deity of rain, Ohan of Dzenov is the bull. He pulls the bull’s skin and screams. Leo Mher is the “Leo” constellation. If we put these three, it is called vernal equinox, summer solstice, winter solstice. The opponent remains, Misra Melik, the autumnal equinox.
In other words, the heroes of the “Sasna Tsrer” epic acted as gods in ancient times. Tsovinar, the deity of the cosmic pre-waters, the twins Sanasar and Baghdasar, hydrogen-gun beings who fight with the dragons of the sky and the underworld. Uncle Thoros is identified with the deity of the windstorm, which, with his six-legged steed, having traveled hundreds of kilometers in one day, appears in the cities of Van, Arzrum, and Kars. And Dzenov Ohan, Tsran Vergo, according to academician H. They are deities of lightning, thunder and rain. Even the “enemy”, Misra Melik, also appears as a deity. This deity is invoked with the lunar year of 360 days; Melik’s gurz weighs three hundred and sixty liters.
What did Tsovinar get pregnant from, 1.5 handfuls of water? After 9 months, 9 days, 9 hours, she gave birth and had twins. Go back from the Gemini and you will reach the Virgo constellation. Or, he says, chew 40 peach branches. If you open the Babylonian horoscope, it is written chewing a branch, a tree standing behind a lion or a girl is drawn. There are even pictures of the tiles. Pictures of 12 of our gods in 1995. were found in the ancient site of Vani Vern Ansav. A royal shield is found, broken, and just as the gods are lined up in the Mheri door inscription, on this shield we see the pictures of 12 gods, each standing on the corresponding animal. If we compare it with the Babylonian one, we see that on that day, at that hour, a goat rises, in sequence, the god standing on the goat on the shield and his name is Turk. Turk is not ugly, Turk is ugly. Opposite the owl constellation is Angeghya Turk.
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Verelq: Gagik Tsarukyan heads the electoral list of PAP
The regular congress of the “Prosperous Armenia” party ended a little while ago, during which Gagik Tsarukyan was unanimously re-elected as the party’s chairman.
As Iveta Tonoyan reports, the congress also approved the first three dozen candidates of the PAP election list for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
1. Tsarukyan Gagik
2. Tevanyan Andranik
3. Louisa Sargsyan
4. Ayvazyan Ara
5. Manukyan Armen
6. Babayan Metaksya
7. Grigoryan Martun
8. Suren from Suren
9. Elinar Vardanyan
10. Hovhannisyan Vahe
11. Stepanyan Gevorg
12. Iveta Tonoyan
13. Mikael Melkumyan
14. Arman Abovyan
15. Arustamyan Nora
16. Rostomyan Hrachya
17. Arman Piroyan
18. Lianna Manukyan
19. Armen Kosakyan
20. Grigoryan Karen
21. Davtyan Nune
22. Bozoyan Yervand
23. Kakoyan Kamo
24. Karapetyan Satenik
25. Shakaryan Roman
26. Danielyan Stepan
27. Manukyan Aregnaz
28. Harutyunyan Mkhitar
29. Sergoyan Karen
30. Grigoryan Gayane
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Armenia and Ex-Soviet States Must Choose EU or EAEU
Armenia, a former Soviet republic, and Russia were members of the Soviet Union and were strictly guided by rules and regulations.
Armenia, a former Soviet republic, and Russia were members of the Soviet Union and were strictly guided by rules and regulations. After the collapse of the Soviet empire in 1991, the republics have legitimacy to their sovereignty and territorial integrity. But that has not been the case. Kazakhstan operates a liberal economic system, as do other republics, including Armenia. These republics mostly have a tough time and, to some extent, control from Russia.
At a tense meeting in early April with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Vladimir Putin issued an ultimatum to its neighbor Armenia over maintaining closer ties with the European Union (EU).
“We see that there is a discussion in Armenia about developing relations with the European Union,” Putin said at the meeting with Pashinyan, adding that Moscow treats it “absolutely calmly.” But it should be obvious and honestly stated upfront that membership in a customs union with both the EU and the Eurasian Economic Union is impossible,” Putin told Pashinyan as recorded on camera.
The Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), created in 2015, includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, and it is meant to enable the free movement of goods, capital, and labor among its members. Azerbaijan, Armenia, and others have an increasing interest in getting closer with trade and establishing a working mutual economic cooperation with the EU, with Pashinyan even declaring an intention to join the 27-member bloc in the future.
During the meeting at the Kremlin, Putin followed up on Moscow’s gas supplies to Armenia, saying that Russia now sells gas to its neighbor at a “substantially” lower price than the EU does. ” Gas prices in Europe exceed 600 dollars per 1,000 cubic meters, whereas Russia provides gas to Armenia at 177.5 per 1,000 cubic meters,” he told Pashinyan, adding that “the disparity is vast; the difference is substantial.”
The Case of Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, one of the Russian neighbors and former Soviet republics, also opens its doors for a broader external expansion. Given its geographical location and combined with current political reforms aimed at transforming its economy from the Soviet system to a more modernized system infused with Western culture of life, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has chosen multi-vector policies, consistently advocating for more openness and improving necessary conditions for attracting foreign businesses and investors to participate in the various economic sectors, including the cultural and educational sectors.
Declaring that the creation of a fair Kazakhstan is its main goal, Tokayev has emphasized that the foreign policy course must also aim at the protection of national interests, the strengthening of mutually beneficial cooperation with all interested states, and international peace and security. As part of promoting a multicultural and friendly society, Kazakhstan has seriously made inbound tourism one of its priority spheres, so it has established a visa-free regime for citizens of 54 countries, including the European Union and OECD member states, the United States, Japan, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand.
Kazakhstan has a GDP of $179.332 billion and an annual growth rate of 4.5%. Per capita, Kazakhstan’s GDP stands at $9,686. Its increased role in global trade and central positioning on the new Silk Road gave the country the potential to open its markets to billions of people. Further to this, it joined the World Trade Organization in 2015.
According to some reports, Kazakhstan has an abundant supply of accessible mineral and fossil fuel resources. Development of petroleum, natural gas, and mineral extractions has attracted most of the over $40 billion in foreign investment in Kazakhstan since 1993 and accounts for some 57% of the nation’s industrial output (or approximately 13% of gross domestic product).
The Concept of the Foreign Policy of Kazakhstan for 2020–2030, as announced and made public, outlines the following main points:
– An open, predictable, and consistent foreign policy of the country, which is progressive in nature and maintains its endurance by continuing the course of the first president—the country at a new stage of development;
– Protection of human rights, development of humanitarian diplomacy, and environmental protection;
– Promotion of the country’s economic interests in the international arena, including the implementation of state policy to attract investment;
– Maintaining international peace and security;
– Development of regional and multilateral diplomacy, which primarily involves strengthening mutually beneficial ties with key partners, for example, Russia, China, the United States, Central Asian states, and the EU countries, as well as through multilateral structures
– The United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Kazakhstan is the world’s largest landlocked country, located in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It declared independence on 16 December 1991, thus becoming the last Soviet republic to declare political independence. Nursultan Nazarbayev became the country’s first president. Kazakhstan was the last Soviet republic to declare independence after the Soviet collapse in 1991. With a population of approximately 25 million, Kazakhstan strictly recognizes its political freedom, national interest, and territorial sovereignty.
Comparing EU with EAEU
The European Union (EU) and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU/Eurasia Union) are distinct regional blocs with major differences in scope, purpose, and scale. The EU is a deeply integrated economic and political union of 27 democratic, mostly Western European nations, while the EAEU is a Russia-led economic union focusing on trade among post-Soviet states, featuring smaller GDP and less political integration.
Here are key differences: Membership & Leadership: The EU includes 27 mostly Western/Central European countries (e.g., Germany, France). The EAEU consists of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia.
Economic Scale: The EU’s economy is significantly larger—roughly four times larger in GDP than the EAEU (approx. $19.4 trillion vs. $4.8 trillion in 2023).
Integration Level: The EU is both a monetary (for most) and political union with strong democratic institutions, shared policies, and a common market. The EAEU is primarily an economic union focused on free movement of goods, labor, and capital, but it lacks the deep political integration of the EU.
Geopolitics & Values: The EU is built on shared democratic values and legal frameworks (EU law). The EAEU is often seen as a political tool for Russia to retain influence over post-Soviet states.
Conflicts & Stability: EAEU members are closely tied to Russia, which has created tensions in the post-Soviet space, especially following the war in Ukraine. The EU has increasingly become a preferred partnership for Eastern European nations over the EAEU.
According to the Kutafin Law Review, in essence, the EU is a deep political and economic integration project, whereas the EAEU is a smaller, trade-focused, post-Soviet initiative.
Exchanging Thoughts Over Political Sovereignty
The Armenian leader made it clear that when the time comes to make a choice, it will be solemnly made by the citizens of Armenia, without any interference. “And when the processes reach the point where it will be necessary to make a decision, I am sure that we, I mean the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, will make that decision,” Pashinyan told Putin, not mincing words.
With its long-standing influence in the South Caucasus fading and what appears to be the Kremlin’s ongoing intent to have a say in Armenia’s political decision-making, Putin told Pashiyan that Moscow hopes pro-Russian forces will be allowed to compete freely in Armenia’s parliamentary elections set for June.
Without mentioning names, Russia’s president claimed that some of their representatives have been put in custody, saying, “Some are in detention despite having Russian passports.” Putin, however, referred to Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, who was arrested last year after calling for the ouster of the government.
Pashinyan, also without naming Karapetyan, noted that Armenian law requires political candidates to hold exclusively Armenian citizenship, adding that “no restrictions” are being imposed on political opposition under such circumstances. “Persons with Russian passports, according to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, cannot be either a candidate for deputy or a candidate for prime minister,” Pashinyan explained to Putin.
Pashinyan firmly stated to Putin that “Armenia is a democratic country,” where the political processes are ongoing at all times. “In fact, twice a year we hold municipal elections, which are also very politicized, because as a result of our political reforms, people there also vote for or against political parties,” Pashinyan said.
The Armenian prime minister, then, referred to the internet outrage in Moscow and the Kremlin-introduced restrictions on the popular Telegram messaging app. “Our social networks, for example, are 100% free, with no restrictions at all,” Pashinyan told Putin on camera and added that, unlike Russia, there are no political prisoners in Armenia, stating that “in the general context, to be honest, we do not have participants in political processes in places of detention.”
“We have citizens who think that there is too much democracy in Armenia. But this is a matter of principle for us,” Pashinyan said.
Yerevan’s Balancing Act
Armenia’s relations with Russia have grown increasingly strained after Azerbaijan fully reclaimed the Karabakh region in 2023. Decades of bloody conflict ended as the two former bitter rivals embarked on a historic peace process, launching an economic revival in the region amid new stability in the South Caucasus. In 2024, Armenia suspended its membership in the Russia-led Yerevan Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) after Moscow failed to support Yerevan during the 2022 Karabakh escalation.
“In my opinion, the CSTO mechanisms should have been activated (in 2022),” Pashinyan told Putin, adding that “they were not activated, and this, of course, led to the situation that we have in relations with the CSTO.” He confirmed that Armenia is currently not participating in the CSTO for what he described as a “simple reason.”
“We are still unable to explain to our people, our citizens, why the CSTO did not respond, and did not respond despite the obligations that exist under the Collective Security Treaty,” the Armenian leader told Putin.
Putin called Armenian concerns “certain grievances” as he argued that Moscow’s decision not to intervene was on Yerevan and Russia did not see a point in stepping in. “It is obvious that after you accepted in Prague in 2022 that Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan, the CSTO’s intervention in this process, which has acquired an intra-Azerbaijani nature, was simply absolutely wrong in this matter,” Putin told Pashinyan.
“This is not an assessment; I am not saying that this is good or bad. From the point of view of organizing peaceful life, I think that, probably, it made sense,” the Russian president added. “Here we simply need to look for ways to further strengthen relations. But it seems to me that here too we need to finish here,” Putin concluded.
Since reaching an agreement to put an end to almost four decades of a bloody conflict in Karabakh, Armenia and Azerbaijan have been working on normalizing and strengthening their bilateral relations as well as the cooperation in the region, with one exception. Russia has been notably absent from the Karabakh peace process, both during and after the agreement was reached, and both Yerevan and Baku have been distancing themselves from Moscow while jointly redirecting their foreign policy focus toward the EU and the US.
Tracking the Argumentative Sequence
In this analysis, tracking the argumentative sequence, with notable precision, the significant differences between the European Union and the Eurasian Union, sometimes referred to as the ‘Greater Eurasian Union,’ are as follows:
In either case, Armenia is a sovereign republic; it has its own right to determine the political system of governance, the parameters of economic development, and the shape of its own diplomatic directions with external partners without any restraint or restrictions. Armenia operates within the constitutional framework, and the prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, has the mandate from the electorate of Armenia. The choice of political sovereignty and foreign relations are stipulated in the constitution.
Russia’s political regulatory architecture, the system of restraints and mechanisms of instructing directives, is optional but not necessarily compulsory. The logic that any former Soviet republic must only maintain membership with the Eurasian Union and not at the same time with both is rather illogical, particularly when Russia is a staunch advocate of ‘multipolarism,’ which ascribes to flexible and broad practice and openness to global integration. An argument for making choices based on restrictions does not, precisely, fit into the context of global unity, new liberal architecture, and emerging multipolarism.
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Armenian Foreign Minister, EU top diplomat discuss high-level visits, Middle E
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan spoke by phone on Tuesday with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas.
According to the Foreign Ministry’s readout, Mirzoyan and Kallas discussed ongoing efforts aimed at the consistent implementation of the strategic agenda of the Armenia–EU partnership. They also reviewed the agenda for upcoming high-level visits and events, as well as related initiatives aimed at ensuring tangible and sustained results.
Mirzoyan and Kallas also exchanged views on developments in the Middle East and possible ways to resolve the situation.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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“We submitted a lawsuit to the court. I don’t know whose work I did wrong
April 6, 2026
Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on Defense and Security Affairs Andranik Kocharyan, talking to journalists in the parliament today about the report of the 44-day war, said that the report is in the secret department.
“We have handed over all the latest documents and secret documents related to the report. It is 3 months, imagine the volume, how many documents were studied. This gives an opportunity not only to the deputies, but also to the relevant bodies to receive the report, to have it with its justifications, because the report is not just a written paper, is it? The actual report is more than 500 pages long. Parents, as they wish, are not empowered with such authority to get acquainted with that top secret document.” mentioned Andranik Kocharyan.
Arsen Ghukasyan, uncle of soldier Sargis Ghukasyan, who went missing in the 44-day war speaking about Andranik Kocharyan’s statement, he mentioned that recently he was the first to speak about it and told all parents that they should go and demand that the report be published.
“I sent a written application, the rejection of which I have already received in the form of a document. But they are so short-sighted that they do not understand that this is not the case and cannot be. We have already filed a lawsuit, we have submitted a lawsuit to the court, because they do not have the right to do such a thing by law. If the country suffers irreparable losses as a result of the actions of state bureaucrats and high-ranking officials, they have no right to put a seal of secrecy on such a document.
I don’t really want to comment on Ando’s words, no matter what he says or doesn’t say. The same Andranik Kocharyan came and told us that you have gone through all that, we need your materials in the commission, and we have said that there is no question, as you know, we will give them. of 168.am Arsen Ghukasyan said in a conversation with
He raises a rhetorical question: how is it that now Andranik Kocharyan knows everything, they don’t?
“It is not the case that now the government should find out for these parents in America who is a traitor, who is a deserter, spreading panic, reporting top secret information to the Turks, etc.
Andranik Kocharyan, Nikol Pashinyan said that there will be thousands of cases, he cannot tell me, and even more so, the relatives of the victims, because I have the status of the victim’s successor according to the court. My relative suffered as a result of the 44-day war, but I don’t know whose wrongful work caused those losses. It’s just that now they are trying to delay in every possible way, understanding very well that the moment will come when they will present the reality to the public, and that moment will undoubtedly come.
I do not give up hope that finally our public will wake up and demand it, every RA citizen has that right, it is a topic of public interest.
Now, if the people wake up and demand it, they will say it soon, if they don’t wake up, the day will come, and the good will come later. It’s just that they now understand that if the truth is revealed, many people’s heads will go crazy, but is this what they need now? Well, it’s the pre-election period, it’s their rating, etc., added Arsen Ghukasyan.
According to our interlocutor, even the authorities did not want to talk about the 44-day report, perhaps they decided that they had nothing to say to the people.
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FM: Citizens and Civil Contract stood side by side during difficult trials
Armenia’s Foreign Minister and member of the Civil Contract party’s board, Ararat Mirzoyan, said at the party congress on Saturday that during the most difficult trials, the people stood by the ruling party and upheld democracy, the country’s sovereignty, and later also peace.
He thanked party delegates for shaping a leadership that, “led by Nikol Pashinyan, will continue to seek a mandate to govern the country and assume responsibility for administering a homeland with an area of 29,743 square kilometers.”
“Recently, I was discussing the ongoing processes in our country with several friends who are not members of Civil Contract, and we were drawing parallels between April 2026 and April 2018. We recalled some of my remarks addressed to tens of thousands of citizens in Republic Square. On that day, when the victory of the people’s, non-violent Velvet Revolution had already become tangible, I told the people that this was not the end of the process or the struggle, because there were forces that would try to take away the people’s achievements and that victory. I assured them that those who assumed leadership during the revolution, just as they stood on the front line of the struggle then, would continue to do so. But I also had a request—an appeal—to our citizens: I urged them not to abandon us in the next stages of the struggle, but to stand by our side,” Mirzoyan said.
The minister noted that what followed was both anticipated and, at the same time, difficult to foresee.
“There were extremely difficult trials, during which the citizens of Armenia did not abandon us and stood by democracy, the country’s sovereignty, and later also peace. Much will still be said about this, but there is another side to the story. During those severe trials, we did not abandon the citizens of Armenia either. We wavered under the blows, we were wounded, but we remained standing—we did not flee, we did not abandon our share of the front line. By the mandate of our people, we led them toward sovereignty, peace, and democracy,” Mirzoyan said.
The minister added that throughout this process, what they had years earlier called the “Civil Contract” took shape, materialized, and was strengthened.
“This was the contract that was concluded, embodied, and put into practice between us and the citizens—between everyone, and even between any two individual citizens. Today, we can say that during those trials, all parties to the contract fulfilled their obligations with honor. I see that the citizens of Armenia have not finished their work, and they see that we, too, have not completed ours—the mandate they entrusted to us, for which they have paid a high price and continue to pay. Therefore, we must continue to implement our shared contract together, move forward together, and stand by our democracy, peace, and sovereignty,” Ararat Mirzoyan concluded.
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Serzh Sargsyan supported Onik Gasparyan’s proposal to stop the war.
April 4, 2026
In his speech at the 18th congress of the RPA, the third president of the Republic of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, did not avoid the topic of the April 2016 military operations and the war in general.
He first remembered whether to recognize Artsakh or not on April 4, 2016 His meeting with the ambassadors of the OSCE member states.
“The Republic of Armenia, as a party to the 1994 Armistice Agreement, will continue to fully fulfill its duties of ensuring the safety of the people of Nagorno Karabakh. Moreover, I instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work towards signing a military mutual aid agreement with Nagorno Karabakh. And here I must mention that I have stated more than once that if, indeed, the military operations continue and become large-scale, the Republic of Armenia will recognize the independence of Nagorno Karabakh.” Serzh Sargsyan warned the ambassadors of the OSCE member states.
Why the de jure Artsakh-Armenia strategic alliance plan was not implemented is a separate topic for discussion. Moreover, similar discussions also happened after the change of power in 2018, when at almost the same time Nikol Pashinyan announced: “Artsakh is Armenia, and that’s it.”
And Serzh Sargsyan explained during the congress why they did not recognize the independence of Artsakh de jure.
“In 2008, Azerbaijan, taking advantage of the internal political disputes in Armenia, launched a diplomatic attack and passed a resolution contradicting the Madrid principles in the UN General Assembly. All OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries voted against that resolution. It also did not receive the support of the European Union member states. And then we We conveyed to the co-chairing countries of the Minsk Group that Armenia will recognize the independence of Artsakh Republic in two cases. firstly, if there is a long-term, large-scale war, secondly, if the co-chairs of the Minsk Group do not encourage Azerbaijani diplomatic encroachments to move the resolution of the Artsakh issue to another platform, including the UN General Assembly. When the rulers of Armenia speculate, my response to this question is simple: Apart from these two occasions, the recognition of Artsakh would in itself lead to the isolation of Armenia from the international community and a large-scale war. There was no large-scale war during the previous era, thanks to our combative army and our effective diplomatic work, therefore, the negotiation process was not put under attack.
Under them, the war of 2020 was already on a large scale, had disastrous consequences and was stopped by a cowardly populist and dragged out for 44 days to avoid being called a traitor.
I ask a question, if all these factors were present – a large-scale and long-lasting war, which, despite mediation efforts, did not stop, then why did you not recognize Artsakh, and what could have happened after that? And when such claims are made from outside that you didn’t even recognize, what do you want from us? But the participants of the negotiation process are still there, didn’t they know that we agreed with the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group not to rush, not to provoke a war, not to fail the work of the OSCE Minsk Group?”
In other words, Serzh Sargsyan says, and perhaps makes it clear, that one cannot violate the political and diplomatic agreements, that although they negotiated the right to self-determination of Artsakh, they did not recognize Artsakh’s independence, because they promised that they would not do so unless there was a large-scale war. Here we are talking about what Aliyev did during the 44-day period had accused Nikol Pashinyan, that “Artsakh is Armenia, and that’s it” was outside the “elevator agreements”.
In this context, let’s go back to the days of April combat operations in 2016 and recall one episode as proof of Serzh Sargsyan’s other thought expressed at the congress, that the army and diplomacy complemented each other.
on April 3, 2016 with military attachés of embassies of foreign countries accredited in RA meeting at that time Davit Tonoyan clearly stated. “The Armenian side is ready for any development, if necessary, up to direct military support for NKR defense.”
Meanwhile, after the 44-day war 168.amin a conversation with former Minister of Foreign Affairs Ara Ayvazyan had confessed that the connection between the army and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was not working well.
“There should be complementarity. But power structures, security and diplomacy, especially in a country like ours, must work together and coordinate. This trinity – security-army-ministery of foreign affairs, must exist“, he continued.
On one occasion we we have touched on military leadership and those responsible for foreign policy and the dose of responsibility for diplomacy, the army alone cannot answer for the defeat.
And Serzh Sargsyan, in the part of his speech at the 18th congress of the RPA, essentially indirectly supported the proposal made by the former head of the RA Armed Forces General Onik Gasparyan to Pashinyan at the session of the Council of Ministers on the 4th day of the war.
It should be noted that Colonel-General Onik Gasparyan in 2020 In his message of November 17, he disclosed an important episode, detailing:
“The fourth day of the war During the security council meeting, I presented our losses and the armed forces’ assessment of the situation noting that within two or three days it is necessary to take measures to stop the war, otherwise in the case of combat operations conducted at this intensity, our resources will be exhausted in a short period of time and we will have more unfavorable conditions for the negotiation process in the following days.
I have presented similar assessments many times during my round-the-clock work with the Prime Minister. as well as in the meetings of the Security Council”.
Then General Onik Gasparyan continued in his address.
“All attempts and proposals to stop the war at a certain stage have been rejected by Turkey and Azerbaijan. and: we have been forced to continue fighting`trying the enemy to cause great losses and to force to sit at the negotiation table”.
Despite our human, military-technical and territorial losses on the first day of the war, on the basis of this proposal of Onik Gasparyan, as on one occasion we wrote in fact, first of all, the geopolitical situation, the attitude of allies and partners towards us and our diplomatic abilities were taken into account.
In other words, the head of the General Directorate warned: every single day will work against the negotiation process.
The army was able to resist for 44 days, for better or for worse, even, according to our information, the General Staff had under its eye the possibility of the war continuing for a few more days. There is also a remarkable episode here. Aliyev after the war admitted that it was in Azerbaijan’s interest to stop the war on November 9 to avoid heavy losses.
When we make certain comparisons between the actions of the state and the authorities during the April war and the 44-day war, it does not mean at all that before 2016 and after, there were no undone or delayed actions, including those related to the army, of course there were. This does not mean that we consider the circulated thesis that “Lele Tepe” was not a height of strategic importance to be correct, no. Another question is whether the current government, which handed over Karvachar, Aghdam, and Lachin, held by the army during the 44-day war, to Azerbaijan with the stroke of a pen, has the right to make this topic a banner, during whose reign the strategic heights of Armenia also came under the control of Azerbaijan, and they are unlikely to retreat from there.
By the way, the question whether we won the April war or…
On the plane returning from Vienna in April 2016, given to Armenian TV stations in the interview Serzh Sargsyan honestly answered that question. In particular, he said that he could use the word “victory” to summarize the events of April, but the most correct wording is “The armed forces fulfilled the task set before them, failing the enemy’s plan to break through and destroy the Armenian front.”
And in the meeting with journalists in August 2020, almost in the same logic had said that during the four-day meeting, Azerbaijan could not achieve the military-political and military overarching goal set before it, which was to change the course of the negotiations.
It should be noted that the April combat operations were followed by the agreements of Vienna and Saint Petersburg, which Nikol Pashinyan’s authorities put aside. And the topic of the April war did not escape Baku either “trial” time, and Levon Mnatsakanyan, the former commander of the Defense Forces, had the courage to declare in court: “During the April War, the Defense Force was not the attacking side.” And has Nikol Pashinyan ever directly accused Putin of organizing the April war, which he did remotely, is a question…
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Armenpress: Qatar expresses interest in investing in tourism in Armenia
Lusine Gevorgyan, Chairwoman of the Tourism Committee of the Ministry of Economy of Armenia, met with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Armenia, Mansour Abdullah Salem Saad Al-Sulaytini, and representatives of the embassy, the committee said.
During the meeting, the parties discussed prospects for strengthening and developing tourism ties between the two countries. They emphasized the need to implement measures aimed at presenting each other’s tourism potential and developing business ties.
The parties exchanged information on statistics and new sectoral developments in their countries, discussed travel preferences of their peoples, as well as issues in the field of hospitality and services.
Legislative reforms and digitalization processes in Armenia’s tourism sector, important events planned for the year, and possible cooperation within their framework were also discussed. The Qatari side expressed interest in investing in Armenia’s tourism sector.
The parties agreed to cooperate more closely in implementing joint initiatives in the near future.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Verelq: CP has a new decision. to be more correct and restrained
“Zhoghovurd” daily writes:
“KP sources told “Zhoghovurd” daily that Nikol Pashinyan At the last session of the “Civil Contract” party board, he announced that they are changing their political practices from April 1, and from now on they must strictly observe the principles of ethics and code of conduct of the CP.
The Prime Minister also instructed his teammates not to target political opponents, journalists and critics under any circumstances, to avoid offensive and disrespectful expressions and to act in a more restrained and civilized manner before the campaign. The campaign is planned to start on May 7.
The formation of such an approach within the CP, according to political circles, is due to the recent public attitude and a number of scandalous incidents. In particular, the case when a group of young people in the church showed an intolerant attitude towards the prime minister, as well as the incident when a young man spat in the direction of the prime minister’s cortege, after which he was arrested, became the subject of public discussions.
A belief has been formed within the party that on the eve of entering the electoral phase, it is necessary to reduce the level of polarization and move the political processes to a more correct and institutional field.
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AMD 200 million was recovered from the damage caused to the state
As part of the criminal proceedings being investigated in the Main Department of Economic Crimes and Smuggling of the RA Investigative Committee, it was found that the company registered in the RA hid its real turnover and did not fully include it in the tax calculations submitted to the RA State Revenue Committee, as a result of which particularly large amounts of taxes were hidden and not paid.
As a result of investigative and other administrative actions during the preliminary investigation, 200 million AMD was recovered from the damage caused to the state.
The investigation of the criminal proceedings continues.
Notice: the person accused of a crime is considered innocent until his guilt is proven in accordance with the procedure established by the Code of Criminal Procedure by a legally binding court verdict.
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