Author: Jalatian Sonya

Connecticut will remember Armenian genocide with virtual event Saturday.

Jalatian Sonya
Hartford Courant, CT



By Jessika Harkay
Hartford Courant |
Apr 22, 2021

More than a century after the Armenian genocide that claimed more than a million lives in a series of massacres by the Ottoman government in the shadow of World War I, the Armenian Genocide Commemoration Committee of Connecticut will mark the event with a virtual ceremony Saturday.

Although Connecticut doesn’t have any more direct living survivors of the genocide, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will honor the 106th anniversary of the atrocity on April 24, as the state has done for decades.

“One would ask, what difference does it make if it was 106 years ago? It’s so far away. The victims who are the survivors are all gone,” Harry Mazadoorian, a member of the committee, said. “We have no more [survivors in Connecticut]. And so what difference does it make? Of course the answer, I think is self evident, is that a genocide denied is still a genocide, which is continued.”

This Saturday, President Biden will declare the Armenian atrocities were an act of genocide, the New York Times reported this week.

Mazadoorian, who called himself “a survivor of the survivors,” is the son to two Armenian immigrants who escaped the genocide. His mother, who lost both of her parents, was taken into an orphanage that moved her around Europe. His father, on the other hand, had to travel through the desert in Syria, before being taken in by a Danish missionary.

The annual remembrance is not only a way to honor his loved ones and their personal experiences, but also is an avenue to educate, Mazadoorian said.

Young girls that were part of the Near East Relief Orphanage in Corinth, Greece, spell out 2 Corinthians 1:8-11 as a remembrance of the Armenian genocide that occurred between 1915-1923. Harry Mazadoorian’s mother was pictured in the photograph. (Provided by Harry Mazadoorian)

“There’s just a humanitarian effort of recognizing what happened, but it also has consequences for the future,” he said. “Some have said that the Armenian genocide recognition is not about the past, but it’s all about the future, ensuring that that’s where the thing never happens again.”

The Turkish government never officially recognized the historic genocide, going as far to deny its existence and call it a “necessary war measure.” Alongside this, the United States, an ally to Turkey, hasn’t officially declared the events a genocide either.

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“The United States is a remarkable, well-respected world power and I think it has an obligation to use the moral imperative and moral authority it has to speak on this,” Mazadoorian said. “In 2019, both houses of the U.S. Congress announced that it would be the official policy of the United States to recognize the genocide, and to distance ourselves from any denial of the genocide, and to promote genocide education.”

Those plans for recognition were derailed with the pandemic, Mazadoorian added. For now, the community is still looking for presidential recognition, he said.

“We are hopeful that President Biden this year is going to break with precedent from various presidents and recognize the genocide for what it was,” Mazadoorian said. “They use euphemisms and legerdemains, and say they recognize the atrocities, but they just won’t use the ‘G word’, the genocide word.”

The Armenian Genocide Commemoration Committee of Connecticut’s event Saturday will be accessible through registering at News] Gas leak on Park Street in Hartford spurred evacuations »

The virtual program will open with a “martyrs service,” hosted by clergy from Connecticut’s four Armenian churches.

“In 2015, which was a remarkable religious happening, the Armenian church decided after a long period of consideration and consultation, that it was going to canonize, the 1.5 million victims of the genocide,” Mazadoorian said. “So it’s different from the service we’ve done in the past. In the past we’ve prayed for the souls of the victims who have died but since they have been canonized as martyrs, we’re now praying to them.”

Following the prayer service, the program will consist of two speakers talking about a 44-day war that Armenians engaged in last fall.

“That’s a little different from the focus that we’ve had in the past,” Mazadoorian said. “We also have expanded our focus to the education factors, so that we can reach out to a broader part of the community, and tell the story of these massive killings that have taken place, whether with Armenians, or with others.”

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The event will not have its typical “social time afterwards,” where the group would gather in the Hall of Flags at the state Capitol for refreshments, but interested individuals can find the Armenian flag that’s been raised outside the building throughout the month of April.

Ukraine may take part in restoration of Azerbaijan’s liberated lands

Jalatian Sonya 
(MENAFN - Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 13
By Fidan Babayeva - Trend:
Ukraine is interested in participating in the reconstruction of the
territories of Azerbaijan, previously liberated from the Armenian
occupation, Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladislav Krikli
said, Trend reports citing the Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy.
Krikli made the remark at a meeting with the Minister of Energy of
Azerbaijan Parviz Shahbazov.
During the meeting, the ministers exchanged views on issues arising
from cooperation in the energy sector.
Noting the contribution of the intergovernmental commission to the
development of cooperation and strengthening of relations between the
two countries in various fields, Shahbazov stressed that mutual trade
and investments are developing with a growing trend.
The officials focused on the activities of the working group, created
with the aim of developing Azerbaijani-Ukrainian bilateral energy ties
and implementing joint projects, and issues to be discussed at the
next meeting, which is planned to be held in the near future.
In the course of the meeting, Krikli said that with the victory of
Azerbaijan, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict had been ended, and thus
peace was established in the region.
The Ukrainian minister expressed interest in the participation of
Ukrainian companies in the reconstruction work carried out in the
liberated Azerbaijani territories.
Having informed about the infrastructure projects being implemented in
Ukraine at present, Krikli noted the broad investment opportunities
for representatives of Azerbaijani business in Ukraine.
Krikli expressed confidence that the dynamic development of trade and
economic relations will continue in the future.
At the meeting, the information was provided on the activities of the
Trade House of Ukraine in Azerbaijan.
The ministers discussed the possibilities of expanding partnership
between the two countries in various fields and holding the next
meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation.

Armenia PM to step down at end of April to clear way for early elections – Ifax

Jalatian Sonya

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday he would step down from his post in the last ten days of April to clear the way for early parliamentary elections, the Interfax news agency reported.

Pashinyan has faced calls to resign since last November when he agreed to a Russian-brokered ceasefire that halted six weeks of fighting in which ethnic Armenians lost territory to Azeri forces in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region. (Writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Polina Ivanova)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs call on NK conflicting parties to resume high-level political dialogue

Jalatian Sonya

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 09:58,

YEREVAN, APRIL 14, ARMENPRESS. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, Stephane Visconti of France, and Andrew Schofer of the United States of America) released the following statement on April 13, Armenpress reports citing the OSCE website.

“The Co-Chairs note with satisfaction the consolidation of the ceasefire, and are closely monitoring the implementation of the agreement reached by the parties on 9 November 2020.  The Co-Chairs welcome the significant achievements with regard to the return of the remains of the deceased, and the ongoing progress with regard to the resettlement of those displaced by the conflict, provision of humanitarian assistance and adequate living conditions, as well as constructive discussions aimed at unblocking transportation and communication lines throughout the region.

The Co-Chairs remind the sides that additional efforts are required to resolve remaining areas of concern and to create an atmosphere of mutual trust conducive to long-lasting peace.  These include issues related to, inter alia:  the return of all POWs and other detainees in accordance with the provisions of international humanitarian law, the exchange of all data necessary to conduct effective demining of conflict regions; the lifting of restrictions on access to Nagorno Karabakh, including for representatives of international humanitarian organizations; the preservation and protection of religious and cultural heritage; and the fostering of direct contacts and cooperation between communities affected by the conflict as well as other people-to-people confidence building measures.

Having in mind the terms of their OSCE mandate and the aspirations of all the people of the region for a stable, peaceful, and prosperous future, the Co-Chairs stress that special attention should be paid to the achievement of a final comprehensive and sustainable settlement on the basis of the elements and principles well-known to the sides.

In this respect, the Co-Chairs call on the parties to resume high-level political dialogue under the auspices of the Co-Chairs at the earliest opportunity. They reiterate their proposal to organize direct bilateral consultations under their auspices, in order for the sides to review and agree jointly upon a structured agenda, reflecting their priorities, without preconditions.

The Co-Chairs also express their strong support for the continuing activities and possible expansion of the mission of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chair-in-Office (PRCiO) and call on the sides to provide full access and support to its efforts. The Co-Chairs underscore their readiness to resume working visits to the region, including Nagorno Karabakh and surrounding areas, to carry out their assessment and mediation roles. In this regard, the Co-Chairs remind the sides of the requirement to provide unimpeded access and maximum flexibility of movement with regard to the Co-Chairs’ travel itineraries, in accordance with their mandate and previous practice”, the statement says.

Armenian historians expect Biden to utter the word “genocide” on April 24

Jalatian Sonya
Public Radio of Armenia

Armenian historians have penned a letter to US President Joe Biden, urging him to use the word “genocide” in his April 24th address on the 106th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The letter has been signed by the Union of Historians of Armenia, the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences, Yerevan State University’s Faculty of History, Yerevan State University’s Institute of Armenian Studies and the Armenian State Pedagogical University’s Faculty of History. The letter reads:

Honorable Mr. President,

This application addressed to you by the historians of Armenia does not seek to prove the obvious fact of the Armenian Genocide once again scientifically. Evidence of this has long been known to the entire civilized world, including the scientific community in the United States. The anxiety that gripped us on the eve of April 24 is connected with the persistent denial by Turkey, which serves as a carte blanche for it to commit new genocidal acts.

The latest of those was carried out against the self-determined civilian population of Nagorno-Karabakh through the extensive involvement of international terrorist organizations. The NATO member state, by combining the modern technical means and capabilities of such a powerful security system with the capabilities of terrorist organizations, once again behaved like a serial killer in Nagorno-Karabakh because it did not answer for its previous crimes against humanity and civilization.

Turkey’s actions, which now combine Western technology and medieval methods of assassination by terrorists, remind us once again of the crimes against humanity and civilization in the joint statement of the three Entente powers, Britain, France and Russia, on May 24, 1915. The accusation is still relevant today.

Thus, the grave accusations leveled at Turkey by the Entente countries in 1915 and the United States shortly afterwards in World War I, on the part of its president, the well-known Woodrow Wilson, remain legally vague and suspended, giving rise to new crimes. Turkey, the unpunished perpetrator of the first genocide of the 20th century, the Armenian Genocide, has been cleverly maneuvering between the world’s poles of power for more than a hundred years to evade responsibility and carry out new genocidal acts against not only Armenians but also Greeks, Assyrians, Yezidis, Kurds and Arabs.

Moreover, today the Turkish leadership, which is de facto out of the control of the international community and carried away by the tyrannical wind, like the leaders of Nazi Germany, which was not punished at the time, poses a threat not only to Armenia but to all its neighbors and the entire civilized world.

The Turkish phenomenon of the unpunished criminal is now also manifested in the systematic work of a huge propaganda machine aimed at the destruction of the material and spiritual culture created by its victims and the consistent and systematic falsification of the historical memory of the peoples of the region.

We, the historians of Armenia, have written complete volumes over the years about all the Machiavellian tricks that Turkey is trying to use to mislead the international community and to exclude the word “Genocide” in your April 24 message. The latest batch of such falsifications is connected with the allegedly baseless assertion about the absence of a court decision confirming the Armenian Genocide and the distorted interpretation of the fact that the Genocide Convention was adopted only in 1948.

Meanwhile, the fact of the Armenian Genocide was first recognized by the courts of the Ottoman Empire with their decisions made during 1919-1920. Moreover, although the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Genocide was adopted in 1948, a few years after the Holocaust, its author, Rafael Lemkin, defined the main features of the concept of genocide, including not only the Holocaust but also the Armenian Genocide. Of those, the forcible transfer of children from one group to another under Article 2, Point E of the Convention did not occur during the Jewish Holocaust.

This was one of the peculiarities of the Armenian Genocide, that is, the Convention of December 9, 1948 was created with the inclusion of the crime of the Armenian Genocide, so it cannot but apply to the historical fact that was its basis, just as it applied to the Holocaust, also perpetrated before 1948. The two greatest crimes against humanity and civilization during World War I and World War II, the Armenian Genocide and the Jewish Holocaust, delineated the red lines that defined the 20th century, the red lines guaranteeing peaceful coexistence on planet Earth, which became an integral part of all human consciousness. Protecting them and preventing new genocides depends first and foremost on the will of the United States, the most powerful guarantor of freedom and human rights in the world.

Only by calling this crime by its clear legal name – genocide – will it be possible to possible to overcome the current Munich policy of ignoring and even encouraging Erdogan’s genocidal aspirations by some irresponsible representatives of the international community. All other solutions, instead of confronting the perpetrator and the victim and real reconciliation, will continue to serve to further expand Erdogan’s dangerous ambitions, consistently playing the role of Eastern Hitler, through the systematic concealment of truth and justice.

At this historic moment, not only the innocent victims of the Armenian Genocide, but also the souls of millions of martyrs who have gone through the paths of violence and suffering, pray to see the concept of GENOCIDE clearly in your April 24 annual message.

Parents of missing servicemen open Armenia’s MOD entrances

Jalatian Sonya
Aysor, Armenia
April 9 2021

The relatives of the missing servicemen opened the entrances of Ministry of Defense of Armenia.

The decision was made following the meeting with the Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces and generals.

Though the parents stated that they are not satisfied with the meeting results.

No other details are reported yet.

Armenian PM hails talks with Putin as very productive

Jalatian Sonya
TASS, Russia
April 8 2021
They discussed lots of agreements, including the implementation of inked agreements

YEREVAN, April 8. /TASS/. The talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin were very intensive and productive, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a meeting with members of the Association of Armenian Lawyers in Russia on Wednesday.

“We were discussing lots of issues with Vladimir Putin for 3.5 hours. The meeting was productive in spite of the fact that no agreements were signed,” Pashinyan said. “We discussed lots of agreements, including the implementation of inked agreements,” he said.

“We have agreements on a joint Armenian-Russian military grouping and on a joint regional air defense system,” Pashinyan noted. “The Russian president and I discussed a specific plan and mechanisms for implementation of those agreements in this new situation in the region.”

According to the head of government, one of the crucial issues brought up after the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was the reform of the Armenian Armed Forces, which is being conducted with the support of Russian partners.

“It was one of the key issues during our discussion,” he added.

Pashinyan has arrived in Moscow on an official visit.

CivilNet: Robert Kocharyan: Unjust Peace in Karabakh Will Not Last

Jalatian Sonya
CIVILNET.AM

08 Apr, 2021 09:04

By Emil Sanamyan

Asked if he would seek to overturn the outcome of last year’s war with Azerbaijan, Robert Kocharyan responded that “the Armenian army is currently in such a state that no person in sound mind will be thinking of revanche.” The former president was interviewed by Vladimir Pozner in the program that aired on Russia’s Channel 1 on April 5.

At the same time, Kocharyan believes it is possible to seek the return of some of the areas that were part of the Soviet-era Karabakh autonomous borders, and now controlled by Azerbaijan and ethnically cleansed of Armenians, through negotiations.

“If we want to end this conflict, we have to have a solution that is just,” Kocharyan said without specifying what that means; otherwise, unjust peace will not last long, he added.

Echoing the rhetoric of the Armenian government, Kocharyan praised the role of Russia and its leader Vladimir Putin in putting an end to the fighting last November.

Kocharyan led Nagorno Karabakh during the Armenian victory in the 1992-94 war and subsequently served as president of the Republic of Armenia from 1998 to 2008. According to opinion polls, he is the leading challenger to the incumbent prime minister Nikol Pashinyan in the early election expected on June 20.

Soviet-Era Maps Being Used to Mark Armenia-Azerbaijan Border

Jalatian Sonya

March 29, 2021



The Soviet Armenia and Azerbaijan borders

YEREVAN (Azatutyun.am)—Armenia and Azerbaijan are not engaged in the formal delimitation of their borders, while border guards are being temporarily deployed according to 1975-1976 military maps, Armenia’s Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan said.

In an interview with RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Friday, Avinyan said that a process of border delimitation and demarcation would require at least the establishment of bilateral relations between the two neighboring nations that waged a war over Nagorno-Karabakh last fall.

“These are legal processes. As such we do not have legally fixed borders with Azerbaijan. For such processes, I think, we first need to have bilateral relations, because these processes presuppose the establishment of at least bilateral relations,” he said, adding that border delimitation and demarcation are a long process requiring much effort.

The need for specifying borders between Armenia and Azerbaijan arose after the two countries signed a Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement last November putting an end to a six-week war in which more than 6,000 people were killed.

Under the terms of the document called a trilateral statement, a chunk of Nagorno-Karabakh and all seven districts around it were placed under Azerbaijani administration after almost 30 years of control by ethnic Armenian forces.

The agreement also led to the deployment of around 2,000 Russian peacekeepers along frontline areas and a land corridor connecting the disputed territory with Armenia.

As Armenians withdrew from several districts it created an additional border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The matter, in particular, concerns Armenia’s southern Syunik province and eastern Gegharkunik province.

In the interview Avinyan again insisted that Armenia and Azerbaijan have signed no other document besides the November 9 ceasefire agreement and the trilateral statement signed in Moscow on January 11 this year.

“In any case, I am not aware of any such document. As for the agreements on the Goris-Davit Bek section [of the road in Syunik], these agreements are with the Russian side, and Russian border guards are stationed there on the basis of these agreements,” the deputy prime minister explained.

Addressing the issue of Armenian captives in Azerbaijan, the official expressed confidence that Armenia will achieve results in getting them released by Baku.

“The Russian Federation unequivocally shares our approach that all prisoners of war and detained persons must be returned… And I am definitely convinced that we will achieve results. I also want to emphasize that international pressure on Azerbaijan in this regard is growing and will continue to grow,” Avinyan said.

Turkish press: Erdoğan appoints new A-team following convention – Turkey News

Jalatian Sonya
  • March 25 2021 12:19:00

 

President and Chairman of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has renewed his A-team in the party following the general convention, appointing his closest aides Binali Yıldırım and Numan Kurtulmuş as the deputy leaders and four new figures to his executive board.

Yıldırım, a former prime minister and parliament speaker, has returned to the party management after he lost his race against the opposition candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu, for the Istanbul Municipality.

Erdoğan has increased the number of executive board members from 50 to 75 and decided to appoint 47 new figures to the board. Among them are former Parliament Speaker and Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ, Metin Külünk, former Antalya Mayor Menderes Türel and former deputy parliamentary group leader Özlem Zengin.

Abdurrahim Fırat, a leading Kurdish politician; Abdurrahman Kurt, a former lawmaker from Diyarbakır; Metin Tarhan, a prominent Alevi leader; Sevan Sıvacıoğlu, a prominent member of the Turkish Armenian community; and former journalist Şamil Tayyar are included in the 75-member board. 2006 Miss Turkey Seda Sarıbaş who was serving as the head of the AKP women branch in the province of Aydın is also going to serve at the board.

Erdoğan picked up his 16-member central executive board out of the executive board and appointed four new names as deputy leaders. Hamza Dağ will serve as the responsible for media, Jülide Sarıeroğlu for civil society, Mustafa Şen for research and development and Ömer İleri for information and technology. Hayati Yazıcı will continue his charge with political and legal affairs, Efkan Ala for external relations and Nurettin Canikli for the economy.

Erdoğan also renewed his team at the parliament. Mahir Ünal and Mustafa Elitaş are appointed as deputy parliamentary group leaders along with Bülent Turan, Emin Akbaşoğlu and Cahit Özkan who were already doing this job.