Author: Jane Topchian

Opposition activists heading for Armenian government’s building

Jane Topchian
TASS, Russia
Dec 1 2020
 
 
 
 
WorldDecember 01, 19:03
 
They earlier blocked Yerevan’s central avenue
 
YEREVAN, December 1. /TASS/. The opposition activists who blocked Yerevan’s central avenue on Tuesday evening are heading for the Armenian government’s building on Republic Square, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, a TASS correspondent reported from the scene.
 
“Nikol, the traitor, Nikol, go away!” the activists are chanting, singing patriotic songs.
 
As representative of the youth wing of the Dashnaktsutyun party Christine Vardanyan told journalists, the police had detained hundreds of activists. “There are hundreds of our detained friends at the police station of Nork [a Yerevan neighborhood] alone,” she said.
 
The government building has now been sealed off by special police forces but the law enforcers are not detaining the remaining participants in the protest rally.
 
The Armenian opposition demands Pashinyan’s resignation. The opposition politicians think that the November 9 joint statement he signed with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh is essentially a capitulation. They also hold the prime minister responsible for internal economic and social problems of the republic.
 
Pashinyan stated that after Shusha fell the fight became senseless for the Armenian side because from that moment on Yerevan wouldn’t have been able to reach a breakthrough in military action. Armenian President Armen Sarkisyan called for conducting early parliamentary elections, transferring power to the government of national accord until then.
 
 
 

NK conflict settlement important also for Russia’s internal security – Putin

Jane Topchian

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 20:06,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated the importance of the settlement of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh for the internal security of the Russian Federation, ARMENPRESS reports, citing TASS, Putin said in a consultation on the Russian peacekeeping mission in Nagorno Karabakh.

“For us, for Russia, conflicts of this kind and their settlement are of particular importance, for us these are not empty words, bearing in mind that millions of Armenians and Azerbaijanis live in Russia,” Putin said.

He noted that Armenia and Azerbaijan are linked with Russia by centuries-old ties. “This also has an internal political dimension for us, and is of great importance from the point of view of ensuring internal security’’, the Russian President said.

TURKISH press: Germany follows France’s example banning nonexistent Turkish group

Jane Topchian
 ISTANBUL EU AFFAIRS 
NOV 19, 2020 10:09 AM GMT+3
AfD parliament members hold placards as German Health Minister Jens Spahn addresses the parliament during a session of the German lower house of parliament Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany, Nov.18, 2020. (Reuters Photo)

The German federal parliament has approved a motion that proposes the prohibition of Turkish organizations linked to the so-called Grey Wolves movement, following the precedent set in France, reports said Thursday.

The Bundestag passed the motion titled “Opposing nationalism and racism, suppressing the effect of the Grey Wolves movement” prepared by the union parties of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), as well as the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Greens.

The motion includes taking action to prevent and suppress the spread of the Grey Wolves movement in Europe, the German government keeping track of its activities, prohibiting linked associations and opposing online propaganda to allegedly inform the public and institutions about the goals of the movement.

Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry, which has the prerogative to shut down organizations and associations, has not commented on the issue.

Earlier this month, the Turkish Foreign Ministry criticized France’s controversial move to ban the group, saying that no such organization or movement exists.

France’s “imaginary decision,” as if such a movement exists, is the “final manifestation of the contradictory psychology of the country,” the ministry said.

However, it added, it is unacceptable to ban cultural symbols used in many countries around the world, which are extremely common and have no illegal dimensions.

Germany, a country of over 82 million people, has the second-largest Muslim population in Western Europe after France. Among the country’s nearly 4.7 million Muslims, 3 million are of Turkish origin. Germans of Turkish origin have been part of German society for nearly three decades. In 1961, Turkey and Germany signed a recruitment agreement, which allowed Turkish citizens to work in Germany as guest workers.

This Turkish population, largely descending from the country’s “guest workers” who arrived to aid the post-World War II development boom, often complain of the racist attacks and lack of follow-up in police investigations for such incidents.

Germany has witnessed growing anti-Muslim hate crimes in recent years sparked by hate propaganda by far-right parties.

The number of attacks targeting the Turkish minority in France has also increased recently. Last month, members of the Armenian community wounded four Turkish citizens who were demonstrating on the A7 motorway connecting Lyon and Marseille.

Rising Islamophobia, racism and xenophobia in Europe threaten the safety of approximately 6 million Turkish citizens living in European countries, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim Kıran.

Armenpress: Moscow persuaded Ankara not to send peacekeepers to NK, given difficult legacy of the past– Putin

Jane Topchian

Moscow persuaded Ankara not to send peacekeepers to NK, given difficult legacy of the past– Putin

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 23:06,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. Moscow has been able to persuade Azerbaijan and Turkey that conditions that can thwart the agreements on Nagorno Karabakh should not be created, ARMENPRESS reports Russian President Vladimir Putin told Russia-24.

”As refers to the peacekeeping mission, Azerbaijan and Turkey always talked about the possibility of Turkey’s participation in peacekeeping efforts. Anyway, I think that we have been able to persuade our Turkish partners and our colleagues in Azerbaijan that conditions that can thwart our agreements should not be created, conditions that can push one of the parties of the agreement to some extreme methods and extreme actions”, Putin said, clarifying that he means the very heavy legacy of the past years and the tragic and bloody incidents and the genocide that took place during the years of the World War I.

”It’s a factor that can be recognized or not recognized. Someone recognizes it, someone does not recognize it. But there are no issues for Russia here. We recognized it long ago. So why to provoke Armenia with the presence of Turkish soldiers on the contact line? I think President Erdoğan also admitted this andunderstood. We encountered no problems here”, the Russian President said.

“I am the number one official who bears entire responsibility for this all” – Pashinyan

Jane Topchian

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 11:39,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 16, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan reiterated that he personally bears entire responsibility for the latest developments in Artsakh, but at the same time he highlighted the need to explain all circumstances to the society.

“There is no doubt that I am the number one official who bears responsibility for what happened. I realize that due to this fact – perhaps this will sound harsh – I will stand before our people’s trial, but in this case the people must be able to make conclusions, they must know all circumstances of the case. Hearing out the very troops, the opposition and the government is an inseparable part of this process. I find it important that the developments that took place should be understandable,” Pashinyan said during an online news conference.

The PM also elaborated on the past negotiations process. He said that as of May 2018, the NK negotiations process had crossed the point of no-return when the issue had entered the “territories in exchange for nothing” logic. Pashinyan reminded that during those days, many Republicans where voicing their predictions, claiming that difficulties and surrender of territories will happen in Artsakh.

“There are three options in this case: Either these people are prophets, or the government and I are conspirators, or they knew back then on what point the negotiations process on Karabakh had stopped and where it had reached. My policy in this context was the following – to try and not agree to this all and to attempt to change the logic. And essentially, we can say that unfortunately we didn’t succeed, because we were facing a situation when there was an international consensus that the territories must be returned to Azerbaijan without preconditions. And we, indeed, we were unable to change this logic, and perhaps we didn’t accurately assess the possibilities for changing them. On the other hand, if we didn’t accurately assess it, then what should we had done? Adapt with that reality? I couldn’t adapt with that and I tried to increase Armenia’s resistibility regarding this issue. I tried to do everything in order to increase the level of capabilities of the Armenian military,” he said.

Pashinyan said the accusations in his address are contradicting one another. He said on one hand there are accusations for signing a document on surrendering territories, and on the other hand there are accusations on why it wasn’t done earlier.

“Our army, our military fought and resisted for as long as it had a concrete strategic and tactical purpose and meaning. On the other hand we are again accused in contradicting things. We are accused for the victims of war, we are accused that we took that step in order to avoid victims and not allow the blockade of 20-35 thousand people. I bear entire responsibility for this all, but to bear it fully I find it necessary for all circumstances to be explained to the public,” Pashinyan said.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Russian, Turkish military representatives discuss future steps following the war

Jane Topchian

 

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 20:44, 13 November, 2020

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The Russian and Turkish military delegations discussed in Ankara the decision on ending the war in Nagorno Karabakh and future steps, ARMENPRESS reports, citing TASS, the Turkish Defense Ministry informed.

‘’The technical part of the negotiations between the Turkish and Russian military delegations has ended at the Ministry of National Defense of Turkey. During the consultations the upcoming works following the declaration of the ceasefire in Nagorno Karabakh were discussed, as well as the situation in Syria, including in Idlib. The negotiations will continue tomorrow’’, the Turkish Defense Ministry said.

Azeri missile kills 80-year-old woman and her visiting grandchildren in Stepanakert City

Jane Topchian

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 12:34, 6 November, 2020

STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The three victims of the latest intense Azeri bombardment of Stepanakert City are an 80-year-old woman and her two grandsons.

Arkadi and Arsen Hakhumyan were visiting their bedridden grandmother, Svetlana, when the Azeri missile struck directly at their home, destroying it completely, ARMENPRESS correspondent reported. 

The missile strike happened around 02:00 AM November 6. 

The Azeri forces continue bombarding Stepanakert with cluster munitions. 

Photos by Van Novikov
[see video]
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Building of Armenia’s Consulate General in Lyon vandalized by Turks​

Jane Topchian
Public Radio of Armenia
Nov 2 2020
Building of Armenia’s Consulate General in Lyon vandalized by Turks

The building of Armenia’s Consulate General in Lyon has been vandalized by Turks.

“New anti-Armenian inscription on the Consulate of Armenia in Lyon-reference to the Genocide of 1915 and the loyalty of the ‘’Grey Wolves” organization to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” France 24 reporter Achren Verdian informs on Facebook.

This comes a day after the Armenian Genocide Memorial and the National Armenian Memorial Centre in Décines, France, were desecrated, with yellow spray paint inscription of the initials of Turkish President Recap Tayyip Erdogan and signed by the Turkish far-right militant group Grey Wolves.

French Minister of Interior Gérald Darmanin announced today that the Grey Wolves ultranationalist group would be banned in France.

https://en.armradio.am/2020/11/02/building-of-armenias-consulate-general-in-lyon-vandalized-by-turks/

Armenian memorial centre in France defaced with pro-Turkish slogans

Jane Topchian
RTL, Luxembourg
Nov 1 2020
 
 
 
Author: AFP|Update: 01.11.2020 15:44
 
The National Armenian Memorial Centre was daubed with the giant letters “RTE” in reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and with the words “Grey Wolves”, a prominent Turkish nationalist movement, in French / © AFP
 
 
An Armenian association in France expressed outrage Sunday after a memorial centre to the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire was defaced with pro-Turkish slogans.
 
The incident in the town of Decines-Charpieu outside Lyon comes against a background of intense communal tensions in France between its Armenian minority and the Turkish community over the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.
 
Turkey has strongly backed its ally Azerbaijan in the conflict during the last weeks over Nagorno-Karabakh, part of Azerbaijan but controlled by Armenian separatists since a 1990s war as the Soviet Union broke up.
 
The National Armenian Memorial Centre was daubed with the giant letters “RTE” in yellow paint in reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the words “Grey Wolves”, a prominent Turkish nationalist movement, in French.
 
A nearby memorial to the killings was also smeared with an expletive against Armenia.
 
“This intolerable desecration.. is one of a series of events aimed at terrorising and intimidating French citizens of Armenian origin,” the Committee for the Defence of the Armenian Cause (CDCA) said in a statement.
 
The Lyon region is home to one of France’s largest communities of Armenians, centred around Decines-Charpieu.
 
Four people had been wounded on Wednesday in clashes between suspected Turkish nationalists and Armenians who had been protesting against Azerbaijan’s military offensive.
 
The CDCA accused the French state of “passivity” in the face of the threat and the mayor of Decines-Charpieu, Laurence Fautra, said its Armenian community needed physical protection.
 
The region’s top local official, prefect Pascal Mailhos, wrote on Twitter that he “strongly condemned” the damage to the memorial centre and vowed everything would be done to find those behind it.
 
Armenians have long campaigned for the mass killings of their ancestors in the Ottoman Empire during World War I to be recognised as genocide.
 
France is one of several countries to have recognised it as such.
 
Modern Turkey strongly rejects the use of the term, saying lives were lost on both sides during a time of war.
 
 
 
 
 
 

U.S. Embassy in Armenia Issues Travel Warning

Jane Topchian

October 29,  2020



The U.S. Embassy building in Yerevan

The United States Embassy in Yerevan issued a travel warning urging U.S. citizens to keep away from “all of Ararat, Vayots Dzor and Syunik provinces,” and not to travel to Nagorno-Karabakh.

Below is the statement.

The U.S. Embassy in Armenia urges U.S. citizens to exercise caution when traveling within Armenia. The U.S. Embassy has instructed Embassy employees and their families not to travel to the areas listed below and urges U.S. citizens to avoid travel to:

Tavush province east of the M4 and M16 Highways north of the Dilijan National Park and up to the border with Georgia.

Gegharkunik province east and south of Lake Sevan and east of the M10 Highway.
All of Ararat, Vayots Dzor, and Syunik provinces.

The U.S. Embassy will continue to monitor the security situation and provide additional information as needed.