PanARMENIAN.Net – The Azerbaijani military used large caliber firearms to target the Armenian positions in the eastern section of the contact line overnight, the Armenian Defense Ministry reports.
The Armenian troops, however, took retaliatory measures to silence the adversary.
The statement from the Defense Ministry also denied accusations of ceasefire violations from Baku.
Contract soldier, Junior Sergeant Kristine Chichyan, 37, the chief medic of the medical aid station of a military unit of Armenia who died Saturday, was from Shirak Province.
According to Armenian News-NEWS.am’s information, she died as a result of a car accident.
An investigation is underway to determine the circumstances surrounding her death.
Earlier we reported that Chichyan on Friday sustained injuries and was taken to hospital as a result of an accident that occurred in the aforesaid military unit. But despite the efforts made by doctors, she died on Saturday.
18:46,
YEREVAN, JULY 15, ARMENPRESS. On July 16, a meeting between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov will take place in Tbilisi, ARMENPRESS reports, Vahan Hunanyan, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, informed on his “Facebook” page.
Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ) condemns the annual U.S. presidential waiver of Section 907 restrictions on U.S. aid to Azerbaijan and urges passage of the amendment (#337) led by Rep. Congresswoman Jackie Speier calling for a State Department and Defense Department report on the effects of U.S. military assistance on Armenia/Azerbaijan peace negotiations, ANCA reports.
“We don’t believe that there is any justification for waiving [Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act] because of the constant threat that Azerbaijan poses not only to Nagorno Karabakh but also to Armenia itself, that continues ever since [the 2020] war.”
The Speier Amendment #337 will be voted on Thursday as part of “en bloc 3” – a larger grouping of amendments to the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R.7900).
Joining Rep. Speier and Rep. Pallone as congressional cosponsors of the bi-partisan measure include Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Dina Titus (D-NV), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and David Valadao (R-CA).
09:56,
YEREVAN, JULY 11, ARMENPRESS. A group of lawmakers requested Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to take the country’s presidency after the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, TASS reports citing the Daily Mirror newspaper.
“Following discussions held within the political parties till last evening, Wickremesinghe held a majority of nearly 115 seats in parliament. Several MPs have also requested him to continue and take over the presidency and not leave the economic crisis halfway especially since talks with the IMF were ongoing”, the newspaper said.
According to the Daily Mirror, “if Wickremesinghe continues in office, he will be sworn in as president on Wednesday following Rajapaksa’s resignation and till a presidential is held, he will concentrate on finalizing a deal with the IMF and restoring some kind of economic normalcy”.
Following protests on Saturday, which left over 100 people injured with protesters breaking into the residences of the president and prime minister, Rajapaksa said he would step down on July 13. Wickremesinghe also said that he was ready to resign.
17:34, 9 July 2022
YEREVAN, JULY 9, ARMENPRESS. At the initiative of the Dutch Embassy in Armenia, business days that aimed at bringing together the business communities of the Netherlands and Armenia were held in Yerevan, the Embassy said.
“Dutch-Armenian Business Days 2022” first time ever held in Armenia gathered businessmen and state officials to discuss the prospects of mutually beneficial cooperation between the Dutch-Armenian business circles. The opportunities in the fields of construction, agriculture, and information technology, existing issues, and proposed smart solutions, possible financing mechanisms, the attractiveness of the Armenian market for attracting Dutch investments were introduced during the two-day event.
“The potential for economic cooperation between the Netherlands and Armenia definitely exists, and we, during the two years of the Embassy’s activity, saw the need for such an event. We hope to see a higher level of cooperation in the near future, both in the areas identified by us and in other fields of economy,” said Nico Schermers, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Armenia.
As part of the business days, held on July 6-7, the official opening ceremony of the Dutch-Armenian Chamber of Commerce was also held. A memorandum was signed between the Embassy of the Netherlands in Armenia and the Dutch-Armenian Chamber of Commerce with a joint constructive approach for closer cooperation between the business community of the two countries and the implementation of prospective projects.
“The idea of founding the Dutch-Armenian Chamber of Commerce has existed for a long time, having contacts with the markets of both countries due to work, I saw the need. The idea is a reality now thanks to the close cooperation with the newly opened Netherlands Embassy in Armenia over the last year. The mission of the Chamber is the development and strengthening of Armenian-Dutch economic and educational ties, due to the realization of all the unused potential between the two countries,” noted Levon Hayrapetyan, the president of the Chamber.
Shamkhani arrived in Yerevan on Thursday morning as part of a tour of the Caucasus.
The top Iranian security official is going to hold meetings with Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to discuss bilateral, regional and international issues and the plans for cooperation between Tehran and Yerevan to ensure regional security and stability.
Speaking to reporters upon his arrival, Shamkhani highlighted the Iranian administration’s policy of expansion of relations with the neighboring and regional countries.
Stressing the need for the efforts to establish peace and stability in the region through intra-regional cooperation, he said Iran supports formats such as the 3+3 South Caucasus Platform to that end.
He also expressed hope that the negotiations between Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan would lead to sustainable peace with the protection of territorial integrity of the both nations, adding, “The Islamic Republic of Iran is opposed to any measure resulting in changes to the geopolitics of the region.”
After the trip to Armenia, Shamkhani will travel to a number of other Caucasus countries.
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2022/07/07/2740087/iran-opposed-to-geopolitical-changes-in-region-shamkhani
16:38, 29 June 2022
YEREVAN, JUNE 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian deputy minister of education, science, culture and sport Zhanna Andreasyan met today with representatives of the Fund for Assistance to Housing and Communal Services Reform of Russia, the ministry said.
The meeting aimed at expanding and deepening the cooperation between Russian and Armenian secondary professional institutions, as well as developing new joint projects.
“A working cooperation exists between our countries in a number of areas, especially in construction field. I think the common approaches on determining qualification level of personnel, as well as the joint requirements for training specialists are highly demanded. The close contact between Armenian and Russian young specialists could become a good example in terms of acquiring new skills and abilities, especially in the field of construction and operation of residential buildings”, Zhanna Andreasyan said.
The joint programs envisage trying and introducing latest Russian practices, methods and technologies in Armenian educational facilities.
“In order to have professional specialists in the most demanded professions in the field of housing and communal services, we propose cooperation as representatives of the Russian state corporation thanks to which Armenia’s high schools and colleges will be able to cooperate with hundreds of Russian colleges where the youth is trained on professional criteria in these areas, especially in operation of civil buildings, management, operation and servicing of multi-apartment building and other professions”, one of the representatives of the Fund said.
The sides agreed to develop a cooperation roadmap for gradually implementing the joint programs.
A Turkish Cargo plane seen in air in this undated file photo. (AA Photo)
Turkey and Armenia agreed Friday in normalization talks between the special representatives of each country that the neighbors would start direct air cargo trade between the countries at the earliest possible date, as they work to mend ties after decades of animosity.
The envoys for the normalization process between Ankara and Yerevan “agreed to enable the crossing of the land border between Turkey and Armenia by third-country citizens visiting Turkey and Armenia, respectively at the earliest date possible and decided to initiate the necessary process to that end,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Turkish Ambassador Serdar Kılıç and Armenian National Assembly Deputy Speaker Ruben Rubinyan, the special representatives for the normalization, held their fourth meeting in Vienna, Austria’s capital.
“They also agreed on commencing direct air cargo trade between Turkey and Armenia at the earliest possible date and decided to initiate the necessary process to that effect,” the statement also said.
The Turkish and Armenian officials also “discussed other possible concrete steps that can be undertaken toward achieving the ultimate goal of full normalization between their respective countries,” it added.
“Finally, they reemphasized their agreement to continue the normalization process without preconditions,” the statement said.
The first round of normalization talks was held in Moscow on Jan. 14, where both parties agreed to continue negotiations without any preconditions, according to a statement released after that meeting.
The Turkish and Armenian envoys met for the second time in Vienna on Feb. 24, and the third meeting was held on May 3, also in the Austrian capital.
Also, a historic bilateral meeting took place between the foreign ministers of Turkey and Armenia on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on March 12.
As part of the efforts, Turkey and Armenia have also resumed commercial flights as of Feb. 2 after a two-year hiatus.
The two countries have been divided on a range of issues, including Armenia’s occupation of Karabakh and the 1915 events during the Ottoman Empire era, and the border between the two neighboring countries has been closed since 1993.
Turkey has been working to normalize relations with Armenia in coordination with Azerbaijan since December.
Erfan Falahi
A four-month stay in Armenia and experience life like the locals: this was the initial intention of Erfan Falahi when he came to Armenia. Similarities between Armenian and Iranian cultures, the war in Artsakh, kind-hearted locals and new ventures are some of the reasons that turned the four-month stay into an indefinite one.
Born to Persian parents in Iran, Falahi grew up in Isfahan where the juxtaposition of Persian and Armenian culture created a rich historical narrative. He made many Armenian friends growing up and became acquainted with Armenian culture. He studied graphic design in high school in his hometown and then industrial design at the University of Berlin, Germany.
When the borders shut down with the outbreak of the global pandemic in 2020, Falahi’s friends compelled him to consider visiting Armenia. Armenia was one of the destinations that had open borders with Iran at that time. Falahi was amazed by the similarities between Armenians and Iranians at once. Their genuine hospitality, liveliness and love for life, which were so resonant in Armenia before the 44-day war in 2020, left a deep impression on him. “It was friendlier than what I had thought. There is an affectionate heart hidden behind their seriousness and cold appearance. Armenia feels like home yet without all the restrictions that we face in Iran,” he said.
The war broke out 10 days after his arrival—an incident that came as no surprise to him as he had always been aware of the geopolitical changes in the region. He joined his Armenian friends and helped in any way he could throughout the war. He followed the news, posted information on social media and wrote articles to raise awareness. Trained in first aid, he tried, and unfortunately failed, to obtain permission to treat the wounded. That setback did not stop him from collecting humanitarian aid. He donated blood for the very first time and built strong bonds with many families impacted by the war.
“One might be aware of the atrocities happening in different parts of the world and send humanitarian aid, but witnessing what war did was the reason that made me stay in Armenia,” he said.
Challenging at the start, he learned the language quickly and now he has satisfactory verbal and written skills in Armenian. The industrial designer has had different jobs since his first day in the country. He regrets that there is little demand for industrial designers in Armenia. However, he appreciates the opportunities to learn new skills. After working as a tour guide, a foreign language teacher and a dispatcher, he decided to join Armenian Volunteers Corps to focus more on charity work. Founded in 2000, Armenian Volunteer Corps offers volunteering and internship opportunities in a variety of sectors in Armenia. Moreover, it provides homestays and logistical support so that participants of different nationalities can have seamless integration into Armenian society. Since the start of his volunteering program, Falahi has designed logos for the Embassy of Artsakh, taught English at Armath and photographed for Birthright Armenia and the Armenian Volunteer Corps. He cherishes the time he has had to connect more with the Armenian culture as much as the chance to meet volunteers who join the program from different countries.
During an excursion with Birthright Armenia while capturing random moments, his attention was drawn to an elderly local. The tatik was enjoying the presence of the visitors in her village when Falahi took a picture of her. Never missing a chance to have conversations with locals, he approached her. After a few minutes of small talk, the tatik’s son appeared with a wooden box for Falahi. He was overwhelmed with emotion when he noticed the original carvings by the young man. “It’s all about the people I meet. Locals are the strings that will forever attach me to Armenia,” he said.
Falahi plans to stay in Armenia indefinitely. “I believe Armenia can be a potential country where you can build your future despite all the economic and geopolitical issues. I do not know where my life will take me in the future and where I will eventually settle someday. But I definitely know I want to do more in this country.” Surprised by how little Armenians and Iranians know about each other, he wishes to build a strong bridge between Iran and Armenia in the future. The locals’ image of Iran surprises him. “I would really like to… show them how beautiful my country is. They can experience the unexpected there: history, culture, modernity and more.”