Belarus News (BelTA)
July 8 2019
08.07.2019 | 12:56
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Armenia’s Anzhela Albertyan will open the Vitebsk Junior Song Contest according to the running order draw.
Pictured is Anzhela Albertyan
Author: Hambik Zargarian
Turkish press: US gets new archbishop from Istanbul’s Bakırköy – Turkey News
- 00:05:00
For the first time in history, a Turkish citizen has been chosen as the archbishop of the U.S. to lead the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
Elpidophoros Lambriniadis, who was born and raised in the Bakırköy district of Istanbul, is chosen to lead all the Orthodox and Greek congregation in the U.S.
A native of Istanbul, Lambriniadis had been serving as the principle of the closed Halki Seminary on Heybeliada, an island off Istanbul’s coast, and teaching as a professor at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. Lambriniadis said he was chosen by the council called “Holy Council’ (Synod) of the Greek Orthodox Church, which consisted of 12 members and led by the Patriarcht Bartholomeos in Istanbul.
“It is the first time in history that a Turkish citizen is chosen as the archbishop of the United States. This has a significant importance for Turkey because the archbishop of the U.S. is the religious leader of all the Greek foundations in the United States. It means he also has a political impact. Therefore this is great opportunity for Turkey because someone who knows Turkey, who understands Turkey and who speaks Turkish is going to lead the Greekcongregation in the U.S., the importance of this, is so obvious,” Lambriniadis told daily Hürriyet in a recent interview.
Lambriniadis said this situation could also serve to improve relations between Turkey, the U.S. and Greece.
“The archbishopric in the U.S. has an open line with the White House constantly. The U.S. government has many times expressed the problems of the Fener Greek Patriarchate in Istanbul in its human rights reports. Starting from the issue of the closed Halki Seminary in Heybeliada, it is not easy to find solutions to these problems in Ankara or Athens. However, there is a much higher possibility of finding a solution to these kind of problems by sitting around the same table in Washington. Especially re-opening the Halki Seminary in Heybeliada would have a very positive impact on U.S.-Turkey relations,” he added.
Lambriniadis said a big ceremony will be held in the Holy Trinity Cathedral in New York on June 22 before he takes on the post. Besides the diplomats of some other countries, he also invited Turkish diplomats to this significant ceremony.
Lambriniadis was born and raised in Bakırköy, recalling the formative days of his youth in the district which has been home to a diverse population.
“I had a very beautiful childhood in Istanbul. We used to play all together as Turkish, Greekand Armenian children. I had wonderful friendships, and we had very good relations with our neighbors. Our next door neighbor, who were a Muslim family, were sharing with us their meat every Feast of the Sacrifice Holiday [Eid al-Adha], and we were sharing with them our Yeast bread and Christmas meal every year. My best friends are still my friends from Bakırköy,” he said.
Lambriniadis said following the events in Cyprus in the 1970’s, they had to flee Greece in 1977 – when he was 10 years old — because of rising reactions toward the Greek population in Istanbul. “It was very hard for us to leave our motherland and move. The Greeks in Greece were mocking us because of our different Greek accent and the children at school were shouting and despising us, saying, ‘You are Turks!” he added.
Having completed his military service in the southern town of İskenderun in Turkey and graduating from the university in Thessaloniki in 1991, Lambriniadis moved to Germany for his master’s studies.
During that time, Patriarch Bartholomew was chosen as the patriarch of Istanbul, triggering a new wave of excitement among the young Greek religious community abroad. “He was the most loved metropolitan bishop, and after his election, I decided to return to Istanbulimmediately. I came back to Istanbul in 1994, I was already a Turkish citizen, therefore following my sanctification as a priest, I did my military service in Ankara and İskenderun,” he added.
When asked where he felt he belonged to the most, Lambriniadis said, “Istanbul, of course!”
“I think my father has had a huge impact on me about Istanbul. Because he never wanted to go to Greece, he never liked it there and he always wanted to return to Istanbul. In 2004, he had a stroke and had said, ‘I don’t want to die in Athens, take me to Istanbul with you.’ You won’t believe me but my paralyzed father started walking again one week after he returned to Istanbul! ‘Well! Bring me a Turkish newspaper and make me a cup of tea, I am going to do a crossword puzzle,’ he had said to me, because he could only solve the crossword puzzles in Turkish! I lost him two years ago, and I buried him in the Bakırköy GreekCemetery,” Lambriniadis said.
“I am moving to the U.S., but I will be visiting Istanbul often, because my heart remains in Istanbul.”
Bako Sahakyan and Caroline Cox discussed settlement of Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict
Arminfo, Armenia
Marianna Mkrtchyan
ArmInfo.On 13 June Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan received Baroness Caroline Cox and accompanying her individuals, the press service of NKR President reports.
Issues related to the Azerbaijani-Karabagh conflict settlement, Artsakh’s domestic and foreign policy and regional processes were discussed during the meeting. The Head of the State rated high the assistance of the Baroness to Artsakh considering it an exemplary demonstration of impartial friendship and sincere humanity.
Why are so many County Durham places named after foreign towns?
The Northern Echo , UK
June 2, 2019 Sunday
Why are so many County Durham places named after foreign towns?
by Chris Lloyd
NACKSHIVAN is the curious name of a farm to the north-west of Willington. We mentioned it last week as a 2,000-year-old Bronze Age axe was once found there.
“Nakhchivan is also a town and province in Azerbaijan,” says Emeritus Professor Alan Townsend of Durham university who lives in those parts. “The province today is one of the detached pieces of Azerbaijan wedged between parts of Armenia and Iran.
“I noticed this when travelling with a 1:1 million map in the area.”
Indeed, Nakhchivan is on the disputed border between Armenia and Azerbaijan – tensions between the two countries are such that Arsenal’s Armenian footballer Henrikh Mkhitaryan has pulled out of the Europa League final which his club are playing in the Azerbaijan capital of Baku over fears for his safety.
Tensions in Nakhchivan are long standing. For a few months in 1919 after the end of the First World War, a British commissioner and some British troops tried to bring peace to the civil war – but then the Russian army swept in and the British were forced out.
But even before this brush with the headlines, the corner of County Durham countryside near Crook already bore the name from the Azerbaijan border. It appears on an 1890s Ordnance Survey map, spelled as “Nackshavan”.
Perhaps the derivations of some of our other foreign place names can help explain its presence.
There’s Inkerman at Tow Law named after a battle in the Crimean War in the 1850s; there’s Philadelphia near Houghton-le-Spring named after a battle during the American War of Independence in the 1770s.
There’s Quebec near Langley Park where the fields were enclosed in 1759 just as the British had captured Quebec in Canada; there’s Toronto near Bishop Auckland named in 1859 as the landowner WC Stobart was in the Canadian city when he heard coal had been found on his estate. There’s Canada and Nova Scotia in Chester-le-Street, which must have similar derivations (there’s also a Durham in Nova Scotia which was named after Lord Durham who was Governor General of Canada in the 1830s).
For good measure, there’s California in Eston and there’s New York in North Shields, but none of this has shed any light on why there should be an Azerbaijanian farm between Crook and Willington. Can you help – are there any other foreign place names we’ve left out.
International Children’s Day celebrated in Orran Benevolent NGO
International Children’s Day celebrated in Orran Benevolent NGO
16:45, 1 June, 2019
YEREVAN, JUNE 1, ARMENPRESS. Human Rights Defender of Armenia Arman Tatoyan and the kids of the Orran (Haven) Benevolent NGO center celebrated the International Children’s Day on June 1.
Ombudsman Tatoyan told reporters that June 1 is very important day, adding that everything must be done for the children to grow up in happy families and have a careless childhood.
“As a human rights defender I want to state that such events are very important for the children’s psychological state”, he said.
Founder of the Orran Benevolent NGO Armine Hovannisian said the social problems of families greatly affect the psychology of children. “We must do everything for this social burden not to be put on them. Children’s concerns should be their studies, as well as their friends and games”, she said.
Orran, meaning “haven” in Armenian, was established in downtown Yerevan in April 2000. The center started with 16 children, but within six months, it had grown to embrace more than 26 at-risk elderly and 40 socially vulnerable children, some of whom were orphans. In 2009, another Orran center was established in the city of Vanadzor named after its major benefactors Krikor and Anna Krikorian. The number of our beneficiaries keeps increasing. Today, we have 100 elderly and 230 children, with ages ranging from five to sixteen years.
Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
Fitch affirms City of Yerevan at ‘B+’; Outlook Positive
Fitch affirms City of Yerevan at ‘B+’; Outlook Positive
17:59,
YEREVAN, MAY 28, ARMENPRESS. Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Armenian City of Yerevan’s Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at ‘B+’ with Positive Outlooks and Short-Term Foreign-Currency IDR at ‘B’.
“Yerevan’s IDRs are constrained by Armenia’s sovereign IDRs (B+/Positive) as the city’s standalone credit profile (SCP) is assessed at ‘bb+’. The city’s SCP reflects a combination of a ‘Vulnerable’ risk profile assessment and strong debt metrics leading to a ‘aaa’ debt sustainability assessment.
Yerevan is Armenia’s capital and its largest metropolitan area. It is the country’s largest market with a developed services sector and most populous community, with 1.1 million people. Yerevan’s wealth metrics remain relatively modest in the international context affecting the city’s overall financial profile. Yerevan remains debt free, although it can borrow on the domestic debt capital market, subject to certain restrictions. The city’s accounts are cash-based, while budget framework covers single year”, Fitch said in a news release.
The Armenian people have the wisdom to overcome problems. the president about the situation in RA
- 20.05.2019
- Armenia:
- arm
- rus
53
The President of the Republic of Armenia Armen Sarkissian met today with the Speaker of the Upper Chamber of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan Dariga Nazarbaeva. This was reported by the press service of the president.
During the meeting, issues related to the deepening of interaction between the parliaments of the two countries, as well as the development of relations in the economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres were discussed.
Dariga Nazarbaeva thanked President Armen Sarkissian for his participation in the Eurasian Media Forum in Almaty and support for the establishment of the forum: “You have done a lot for the promotion of this forum in the Western media community,” she noted.
Dariga Nazarbaeva said that they want to expand cooperation with the National Assembly of Armenia, to fully use the full potential of parliamentary friendly groups.
The interlocutors also talked about prospective directions of cooperation between the two countries. The President of the Republic Armen Sarkissian noted that there is a great potential for deepening bilateral relations and cooperation. “The volume of the current cooperation is very small and does not correspond to the existing potential and the relations of friendly countries in one economic zone,” he said. Նախագահը հատկապես կարևորել է համագործակցության զարգացումն այնպիսի ուղղություններով, ինչպիսիք են տեղեկատվական տեխնոլոգիաները, արհեստական բանականությունն ու սննդի անվտանգությունը:
At the request of Dariga Nazarbaeva, the President also addressed the internal political situation of Armenia. He emphasized that the Armenian people have the wisdom to overcome problems and move on to a new path of development without shocks.
President: The 21st century is the century of Armenians
Panorama, Armenia
On a working visit to Kazakhstan, President Armen Sarkissian of Armenia attended a penal discussion on the risks of the collapse of the global system of cooperation held on the sidelines of the 12th Astana Economic Forum.
The discussion focused on geopolitical shifts and challenges, the possible consequences of the technological revolution and the balance between seemingly contradictory concepts.
Responding to a participant’s question, Sarkissian said the world is changing rapidly, but people don’t have to be afraid of those change, since they open up new opportunities.
“Those who have a clear vision, who know what they are doing, those who are basically going in harmony with the time, I think, they will benefit. For me, it’s not a drama, but an opportunity and a wonderful world to live, challenging but interesting,” the president said.
The Armenian leader expressed conviction the 21st century is the century of Armenians. “We are global, we can change, we can adapt, and we are innovative,” Sarkissian said, observing he is highly optimistic about the future.
Music: Only Stage agency to present Armenian State Symphony Orchestra at international music platforms
Panorama, Armenia
Culture 20:30 15/05/2019 Armenia
The Armenian State Symphony Orchestra has started collaborating with Only Stage international music agency, the Orchestra press service reported, adding from now on, the agency will present the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra worldwide.
According to the source the growing international reputation of the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra, the substantial interest and demand acquired on prestigious classical music platforms and manifold invitations to perform abroad, have attracted the attention of numerous international agencies, and Only Stage has become one of the first to express the wish to present the orchestra to the world.
It is noted that prestigious musical agencies are working only with recognized, established and proficient performers and orchestras. The collaboration with the world famous agency Only Stage will help the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra to stretch out to a higher level in world music, gain new partners, work with the best soloists, capture new audiences, and, of course, present to the world the Armenian performing art and Armenian musical heritage at their best.
Armenia PM on Robert Kocharyan’s statement on fighting against new government
news.am, Armenia
May 8 2019
Armenia PM on Robert Kocharyan’s statement on fighting against new government Armenia PM on Robert Kocharyan’s statement on fighting against new government
15:35, 08.05.2019