Author: Jane Topchian

How Augmented Reality Is Helping Raise Awareness About One of Armenia’s Most Endangered Species

Jane Topchian
The Smithsonian Magazine
Dec 31 2017

<img src=”“https://thumbs-prod.si-cdn.com/ePfuSteTw7pgT0BHhq5fZcCREaA=/800×600/filters:no_upscale()/https://public-media.smithsonianmag.com/filer/1c/1b/1c1be224-6926-4275-bdff-65b40bcd5c25/19025215_1366527680095831_6775332096175927222_o.jpg” alt=“Leopard” itemprop=“image”>

(Argishti Mkrtchyan)
By Laura Kiniry
smithsonian.com
December 29, 2017
354620377

In the early summer of 2017, visitors to Yerevan Botanical Garden in Armenia’s capital were likely to come across an unusual sight: one of the country’s last remaining Caucasian leopards, patiently awaiting guests on his outdoor perch. Often he’d sit, occasionally he’d pace, and once in a while he’d roar. Despite the animal’s sharp teeth and fearsome claws, people stopped to pose with him, pat his back and even challenge him to a game of chess.

Yerevan’s ‘urban wildcat’ was actually a part of an environmental campaign called “Take a Photo with the Leopard,” a collaboration between the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)’s Armenia and ARLOOPA, a Yerevan-based augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) app and game development company. Although the original AR markers—in which people could pose beside a life-size virtual leopard—have since been removed, anyone can still download a free pocket-size version and snaps pics with the animal wherever they go.

Caucasian leopards are the world’s largest leopard subspecies by size, and one of the most endangered. Once common in the mountainous regions of the Caucasus, habitat loss and hunting decimated populations. During the Soviet era, the government considered them a threat to farms and livestock, offering a reward of 70 RUB per head for their removal. Today, less than 1,300 individuals are estimated to inhabit a territory stretching across Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Fewer than a dozen remain in Armenia. 

“The Caucasian leopard is an extremely cautious animal, and also one that’s verging on extinction,” says Arsen Gasparyan, WWF-Armenia’s National Coordinator of the Conservation of Leopard in the Southern Caucasus project, “so seeing one in the wild is rare. We wanted to increase public awareness about this threatened species [in a new and inventive way].”

WWF-Armenia first began discussing the idea for a campaign integrating AR technology back in February 2017, commissioning ARLOOPA soon after to bring it to life. “We are known in Armenia as digital magicians,” says Arman Atoyan, ARLOOPA’s Co-Founder and CEO, “because of our use of cutting-edge tech.” After a few brainstorming sessions together they came up with the idea to have a life-size, computer generated leopard accessible in different spots throughout Yerevan. 

In addition the botanical garden, AR markers were placed at other heavily foot-trafficked spots throughout Yerevan, including Yerevan City Center, Tumo Park, the Hilton Doubletree hotel and outside the vegan-friendly Green Bean coffee shop. After downloading the ARLOOPA app onto their smart phones, users could scan the marker and a virtual 3D leopard would appear on their respective screens. The campaign also asked participants to post their results on Facebook, along with a conservation message or interesting details about the animal, in order to be entered into a juried contest. The user who shared the most creative and informative post, as judged by a panel including members of Armenia’s Ministry of Nature Protection, ARLOOPA, WWF-Armenia, local journalists and comedians, received a brand new mountain bike.

This app is one of a small, but growing number of augmented reality experiences that conservation groups are hoping will grab the public’s attention, increasing awareness for issues threatening species’ survival. National Geographic launched a series of installations in shopping malls around the world that brought rhinos to life (among other creatures), and just this month the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF), working with app developers Neo-Pangea and Element X, released a new app that allows visitors to interact with the world’s fastest land animal. (Just don’t get too close or the cheetah will growl.)

For WWF-Armenia, the results of the “Take a Photo with the Leopard” campaign were significant. The campaign reached more than 100,000 people worldwide and generated more than 20,000 scans—results that Gasparyan was extremely happy with, “not only because of the high numbers,” he says, “but also because we received very positive feedback over a wide age range. It was one of the most successful awareness raising campaigns WWF-Aremenia has carried out.” 

WWF-Armenia first launched its overall Caucasian leopard conservation project in 2002 to help raise awareness for and protect the handful of individual leopards still remaining in southern Armenia. The Caucasian leopard is considered an “umbrella species” by conservationists, meaning that projection of the leopard indirectly also protects the health of the many other species that live in the Caucasus eco-region, including bezoar goats and mouflon, a type of wild sheep.

Together with other conservation groups, WWF-Armenia has helped to strengthen management of the leopard’s existing known habits, such as Khosrov Forest—with its dense trees and deep canyons—and establish new protected areas, including Zangezur Sanctuary and Arevik National Park. They also launched an initiative establishing a network of leopard caretakers in five communities adjacent to leopard habitats, such as Syunik Province’s Vorotan Canyon. “The caretakers are people from these communities,” says Gasparyan, “that make regular visits to the adjacent areas, performing research, observing, installing and gathering data from trap cameras, etc.” The project hopes to expand participation through another mobile app, currently in development, that will allow rangers, environmental inspectors, community members and even visiting hikers to anonymously record and report signs of illegal logging and poaching. WWF-Armenia hopes some of the people who experienced the wildcat in virtual form might pitch in.

Encouraged by the success of the Yerevan-based campaign, the United Nations Development Programme Kyrgyzstan commissioned ARLOOPA to create an AR snow leopard for the International Snow Leopard & Ecosystems Forum held in Kyrgyzstan last August, and WWF-Adria, which works to protect biodiversity in Albania, Serbia and Croatia, commissioned a similar AR visualization of a great white shark, a species that many people don’t know inhabits the waters of the Mediterranean. Other WWF offices around the world are looking to follow suit with other threatened species ranging from brown bears to Siberian tigers.

Using this type of technology to raise conservation awareness is a relatively new approach, Gasparyan says, “and—like anything new—it’s helpful in attracting public interest.” So to keep pushing the bar forward, WWF-Armenia and ARLOOPA have come up with the next iteration: “magical” augmented reality T-shirts, each one sporting a leopard that—like its predecessor—can be brought to 3D life through your phone. These types of applications, Gasparyan says, “allow people to connect with information in an interactive way that makes the wildlife feel much more real.”

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/how-augmented-reality-helping-raise-awareness-about-one-armenias-most-endangered-species-1-180967670/

Arménie : Quand Bruxelles et Moscou tirent les leçons du Maïdan

Jane Topchian
Le Courrier de Russie–
29 déc. 2017
Arménie : Quand Bruxelles et Moscou tirent les leçons du Maïdan
Guevorg Mirzayan | 29 décembre 2017

Le 24 novembre dernier, l’Union européenne (UE) signait avec Erevan un accord de partenariat complet et renforcé. Pour Guevorg Mirzayan, chercheur en sciences politiques et contributeur de la revue Expert, cet accord, à la différence de ceux conclus auparavant avec la Géorgie et l’Ukraine, prend en compte les intérêts stratégiques de la Russie.

En quoi cet accord est-il si crucial ? Avec lui, l’UE court plusieurs lièvres à la fois. Et la plupart de ces lièvres ne sont pas arméniens, mais russes.
En incorporant davantage l’Arménie à son Partenariat oriental, Bruxelles voulait prouver à tous les sceptiques que (…) l’intégration européenne pouvait encore être attractive, même pour des pays impliqués dans des processus d’intégration alternatifs tel que l’Union eurasiatique. Cet objectif a été atteint. Lors de la signature, les responsables arméniens ont fait un éloge appuyé de l’Europe et de son projet : « Ce document est une base juridique solide pour le renforcement du dialogue politique et l’élargissement de la coopération économique, a ainsi déclaré le ministre arménien des Affaires étrangères, Édouard Nalbandian. Le diplomate souhaite par ailleurs un approfondissement des relations avec l’UE dans tous les domaines. »

Avant une réunion du conseil suprême de l’Union eurasiatique, constitué des 5 présidents des pays membres. Crédits : kremlin.ru

Mais Bruxelles n’était pas venue chercher que des compliments. Par cet accord, l’UE marque aussi son soutien à ses partisans à l’intérieur de l’Arménie. Il n’est un secret pour personne que l’Europe souhaite depuis longtemps arracher Erevan aux griffes de la Russie et priver cette dernière de son dernier allié dans le Caucase du Sud. Les conditions actuelles sont idéales pour y parvenir, les relations russo-arméniennes n’étant pas au beau fixe. Et, pour le bonheur de l’UE, cette brouille n’est pas de circonstance, mais liée au refus d’une partie de la société arménienne d’accepter les réalités de l’alliance avec la Russie.
Si, d’un point de vue juridique, les relations entre la Russie et l’Arménie s’établissent sur un pied d’égalité, elles ne le seront jamais sur le plan politique. Tout simplement parce que les deux pays et leurs dirigeants n’ont absolument pas le même poids, la même dimension. Par ailleurs, une partie des Arméniens – encouragés par des activistes trop avides de financements européens – ne comprennent sincèrement pas comment la Russie, leur alliée stratégique, peut encore entretenir des relations avec l’Azerbaïdjan, leur ennemi juré.

Dmitry Medvedev pendant une visite officielle en Azerbaïdjan, avec le président Ilham Aliyev. Crédits : kremlin.ru

Ils ne comprennent pas non plus comment Moscou peut continuer à vendre à Bakou des armes qui, à leurs yeux, ne serviront qu’à tuer des petits gars arméniens. Ce que ces gens oublient toutefois, c’est qu’il n’existe aucun embargo sur les ventes d’armes à l’Azerbaïdjan. Le fait que Bakou achète des armes russes – plutôt que turques [autre ennemi juré] – réduit en réalité, de façon significative, le risque de reprise d’une guerre ouverte entre les deux pays. Une guerre qui tuerait incomparablement plus de petits gars arméniens. Mais c’est bien connu : le cœur a ses raisons…
Ce nouvel accord de partenariat renforcé vise donc à consolider la position des arméniens pro-européens, mais aussi à donner à la population arménienne dans son ensemble l’espoir que l’UE parviendra – elle au moins – à changer les choses. Concrètement, il oblige Erevan à mener les réformes systémiques nécessaires et à transformer ce qui est aujourd’hui une oligarchie en un pays au développement démocratique normal.
L’opposition arménienne (notamment celle qui appelle à sortir de l’intégration eurasiatique) promet d’ailleurs de veiller attentivement à ce que le pouvoir respecte ses obligations contractées dans le cadre de l’accord, et en particulier, la conduite d’une réforme du système judiciaire.

Les ambitions européennes de l’Arménie ne réjouissent évidemment pas la Russie. Mais le Kremlin sait que la signature de cet accord – à la différence de ce qui s’est passé en Ukraine – n’entraînera ni une réorientation de la politique étrangère arménienne ni l’engagement d’Erevan dans le camp européen antirusse. L’Arménie ne peut tout simplement pas se permettre une telle lubie. L’Europe n’est pas en mesure de garantir sa sécurité face aux États turciques voisins [Azerbaïdjan et Turquie], alors que la Russie en est capable. À vrai dire, elle seule le peut, et elle le fait, autant sur le plan militaire, par le biais de ses bases implantées en Arménie, que sur le plan politique, en faisant comprendre à l’Azerbaïdjan les conséquences potentielles d’une reprise de la guerre.
C’est ce qui explique qu’Erevan, de son côté, fasse tout son possible pour que l’accord avec l’UE ne nuise ni aux intérêts de la Russie ni à ceux de l’Union eurasiatique. Par exemple, à la différence du projet d’accord soumis par Bruxelles à l’Arménie en 2013, le document signé en novembre ne contient aucune allusion à une Zone de libre-échange avec l’UE.
Par cet accord, l’Arménie veut simplement diversifier ses relations politiques à l’étranger et les développer selon le principe du « et-et » plutôt que du « ou-ou ». Erevan veut être en mesure de développer des relations fortes avec l’Europe et son marché (qui, au premier semestre 2017, représentait un tiers de ses exportations et environ la moitié de ses importations) tout en préservant son alliance stratégique avec Moscou. Un scénario qui n’a rien de terrible ni de séditieux, et qui ne présente, au contraire, que des avantages et des opportunités.
L’avantage le plus évident est la possibilité de laisser croire aux quelques fières têtes brûlées arméniennes que leur pays est libre de choisir ses partenaires politiques étrangers. Les Arméniens se sentiront moins déshonorés et offenses.

Sports: Armenian gymnastics team wins bronze at int’l tournament

Jane Topchian
Panorama, Armenia
Dec 30 2017
Sport 12:38 20/12/2017 Armenia

The Armenian gymnasts team has claimed medals at the 24th Mikhail Voronin Cup, an international artistic gymnastics tournament hosted by Moscow, Russia.

Armenian representatives Artur Davtyan and Vigen Khachatryan finished third in the team competition with a total of 161,550 points, the National Olympic Committee reported.

Russian club Dinamo Moscow became the winner with 166,750 points.

Armenian athlete Artur Davtyan also grabbed a bronze medal in the men’s all-round event, collecting 82,200 points.

This year, Mikhail Voronin Cup brought together more than 160 gymnasts from 26 countries. 

Armenia starts active cooperation with Greece and Cyprus

Jane Topchian 
Armenpress News Agency , Armenia
 Thursday
Armenia starts active cooperation with Greece and Cyprus
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 14, ARMENPRESS. Cooperation between Diaspora
communities of Armenia, Greece and Cyprus is further strengthened,
reports Armenpress.
A trilateral meeting between the delegations led by Armenian diaspora
minister Hranush Hakobyan, Commissioner for Humanitarian and Foreign
Affairs of the President of Cyprus Fotiu Fotis and deputy foreign
minister of Greece Terens – Nikolaos Quick was held in the Armenian
Diaspora ministry on December 14.
The Armenian minister said active cooperation has been established
between the Armenian-Greek and the Armenian-Cypriot Diaspora
communities.
“This cooperation launched by the memorandum of understanding signed
between Armenia and Cyprus. Our trilateral meeting between Greece,
Armenia and Cyprus is taking place for already the second time. Our
cooperation especially between the Diaspora of the countries will
continue. The friendship of Armenian, Greek and Cypriot peoples
started in 5-6th centuries. We all know that a very well-organized and
interesting Armenian community lives both in Greece and Cyprus”, the
minister said and thanked the Greek and Cypriot governments for
enabling the Armenian communities to conduct an active work in these
countries.
“Our main goal as a result of negotiations is to actively work with
the youth, organize youth meetings in different countries”, she said.
There are plans to organize educational and cultural events in three countries.
Hranush Hakobyan expressed her deepest gratitude to the two states for
adopting a law against the denialism of the Armenian Genocide.
Commissioner for Humanitarian and Foreign Affairs of the President of
Cyprus Fotiu Fotis said it is necessary to continue the trilateral
cooperation by such meetings and negotiations. He noted that the three
countries have a historically formed friendship in all spheres,
cultural, political, religious and etc.
“We have developed the cooperation strategy on Diaspora affairs in
Nicosia setting two important goals. Firstly, we need to promote our
Diaspora to cooperate, know each other, actively work in cultural,
educational and other spheres. The Diaspora of the two countries is
successfully cooperating in several countries, like in US, France and
UK. The cooperation in the US is more active, a memorandum has been
signed which is encouraging. The second goal is the cooperation
between the governments of these countries”, he said.
Greek deputy FM Terens – Nikolaos Quick said the most important is
that the governments of the three countries are able to work with the
Diaspora youth. According to him, they have a vision, power and can
greatly help solving the most important issues.
“Yesterday Armenian foreign minister Edward Nalbandian met with his
Greek counterpart. During the meeting the Greek FM proposed that our
countries cooperate at the Diaspora level. We are here and ready to
cooperate with Armenia, and we look forward to 2018 to be full of
programs”, the Greek deputy FM noted.
Armenian Diaspora ministry and the foreign ministry of Greece will
sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation over Diaspora
affairs on December 15.

PHOTOS: People Think The Twins Of Abidjan Can Make A Wish Come True

Jane Topchian
NPR.org
Nov 25 2017
7:00 AM ET

Maanvi Singh

Fousseni and Foussena, age 4 Anush Babajanyan hide caption

toggle caption

Anush Babajanyan

Fousseni and Foussena, age 4

Anush Babajanyan

As Armenian photographer Anush Babajanyan wandered through the streets of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, she encountered something she found a bit strange. “I was walking with a friend of mine in the city’s central district,” she says. “And we started to see twins everywhere.”

Asana and Alasan, age 4 Anush Babajanyan hide caption

toggle caption

Anush Babajanyan

As they approached the big mosque in town, she saw more and more of them — congregations of twins, milling about the streets. Most of them were very young children, accompanied by their mothers. “And they were playing — with each other and their mothers.”

Every now and then, passers-by would stop to give the kids some money.

“I started to ask around to try to understand,” Babajanyan says. “And that’s when I found out the twins were giving a blessing to those who gave them money.”

Rasidatou and Latifatou, age 4 Anush Babajanyan hide caption

toggle caption

Anush Babajanyan

Rasidatou and Latifatou, age 4

Anush Babajanyan

In parts of West Africa, people believe that twins have mystical powers. “It is believed that they can make a wish come true,” Babajanyan explains. Intrigued, she hired a French-speaking fixer and went back to find the twins and their mothers. “I just talked with them for a long time, and I made portraits of those who agreed,” she says.

The resulting series is a bit of a departure from her other work. Babajan has dedicated most of her career to documenting life in the Caucasus — and recently, she’s been dedicated to documenting the peace-building processes between Armenia and Turkey.

We spoke with the 34-year-old freelance photographer about what attracts her lens, and drives her as a photographer. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Tell us a more about your Twins project. Were the young twins shy around the camera, or were they used to being the center of attention?

I would not say the children were used to cameras. In a couple of cases, they would start to cry as soon as they saw me take it out. Of course, to them, I’m a total stranger — so before I even asked to take their photo, I would spend a lot of time just hanging out with them and their mothers. I would play around with them. And then, after a while, if they were comfortable, I would take some pictures.

Did the kids think they possessed magical powers?

It’s hard to really understand to what extend the children think of themselves as mystical beings. For them, all of this was something ordinary and natural — they’d been coming out to the street for a long time.

As for the people giving them money, I think different people approached with different ideas in mind. But for most of them, they maybe hoped for the best, but more than anything I think they were just honoring this old tradition. Best case, their wish comes true. But even if it doesn’t, there’s nothing bad to come out of this — and at the least they’re helping the children.

Did you feel the kids were being exploited at all?

The children weren’t working as such, they were just playing around. And they weren’t there for the whole day — so it wasn’t necessarily that this affected their education at all. Actually, many of the kids I saw out there were too young for school. Ultimately, this activity fed them — and twins actually will be able to earn a living for the whole family. So I cannot judge these mothers for bringing them to the street.

Have you been back to Abidjan since taking these portraits last year?

No, but I really want to go back and visit the children!

There was a small exhibition I set up in Abidjan before I left, and I told the families where it was, and that they should go and see their portraits. I hope at least some of them went.

For most of your career, you’ve had your lens trained on the Caucasus — highlighting the aftermath of territorial conflict and war. How does this series fit with the rest of your work?

Armenia is very poor country. Many countries in Africa — too many, including Ivory Coast — are also poor, But Armenia is also one of those countries where people are very warm, and they are never reserved. And so is the Ivory Coast.

I always thought, there are enough issues in my region to focus on. But another reality is that we are all connected, as humans, no matter how far we live from each other.

More Photos at the link:

Armenian Genocide vid presented at Amsterdam’s KLIK festival

Jane Topchian
Pan Armenian, Armenia
Nov 16 2017
– 11:09 AMT
Armenian Genocide vid presented at Amsterdam’s KLIK festival

A video prepared by the Union of Armenians of Ukraine was presented at the international animation festival KLIK in Amsterdam.

Titled “Thank you for the chance to blossom again. Armenians”, the video was directed by Andranik Berberyan and Andrew Lidagovsky and was timed to coincide with the 102nd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

The video was presented in several festivals, including Ukraine’s Molodiya Festival, KLIK in Amsterdam, as well as the international festival ReAnimania in the Armenian capital of Yerevan, and was well-received everywhere.

“This shows that the world is loyal to our new communication message and is ready to join it, becoming closer to the Armenian people, understanding of its culture,” Berberyan said.

The video took the third spot at the Molodiya Festival in Kiev.

Herald House holds night of remembrance for victims of genocide

Jane Topchian 
The Chronicle: Quinnipiac University, Connecticut
 Tuesday
Herald House holds night of remembrance for victims of genocide
by Stephen MacLeod
Stephen MacLeod | The Quinnipiac ChronicleThe Peter C. Herald House
hosted remembrance services and a genocide awareness talk for the 78th
anniversary of Kristallnacht, also known as the start of the
Holocaust.
Rabbi Reena Judd held the event to bring awareness on genocide and the
dangers of allowing history to repeat itself.
"The Holocaust is something that has unfortunately been repeated,"
Judd said. "As a Jewish people, we tend to cling onto the Holocaust,
but we have to be aware of the horrible damages caused in other
cultures where they are not allowed to heal."
The night began with a short Jewish prayer ceremony. First, there was
a Schma, which is the strongest prayer in the Jewish faith, similar to
the Lord's Prayer in Christianity or the Salah in Islam.
A mourner's kaddish followed, which is a prayer in honor of the dead.
Participants prayed for specific lost friends and family, as well as
all victims of genocide over the years. A toast was raised in memory
of the lost.
Lastly, the Sabbath candles were lit as a way of remembering the day
of rest. Hallah, a loaf of bread, was passed around to help enhance
the prayer service.
"In Jewish prayer, we honor the Sabbath with prayer," Judd said. "We
welcome it with candles, sanctify it with the drinking of wine,
indulge in it with bread."
Judd invited Dr. Armen Marsoobian, chairperson of the Southern
Connecticut State University philosophy department and the child of
survivors of the Armenian genocide, to speak on his experiences.
The Armenian genocide was the Ottoman Turk's systematic extermination
of about 1.5 million Christian Armenians. Unlike the Holocaust or
other genocides in history, this genocide has never been officially
recognized by an international body or even the nation it took place
in.
To this day, the Turkish government claims that the killings do not
constitute genocide and that the death toll is greatly inflated.
"It's hard to heal (from genocide) as it is, but when you are ignored
or silenced it is even harder," Judd said. "As Jews, the world has
embraced our trauma and helped us heal with love. Even the Germans beg
for Jewish forgiveness and help heal. The Armenians do not have such a
lucky break."
Stephen MacLeod | The Quinnipiac ChronicleMarsoobian has spent the
past 10 years talking about his family's experience during the
Armenian genocide. His grandfather was able to survive due to his
skills as a photographer. The Turks offered Marsoobian's grandfather a
job as a propaganda photographer for World War I. He would be allowed
to survive if he and his family renounced their Christian faith and
converted to Islam.
They agreed, although they continued to practice their Christianity in
secret. While his grandfather spent the next two years in the army
taking photos, he also spent a lot of that time trying to hide other
Armenians. Over the course of the war, Marsoobian estimates they saved
between 25 and 30 people, as well as the 10 children in the family.
Amongst those 10 kids was Marsoobian's 4-year-old mother.
He encourages anyone interested in his family's story to read his
book, Fragments of the Lost Homeland. For more information on the
Armenian Genocide, he suggests the book Black Dog of Fate by Peter
Balakian.
Marsoobian passed out pamphlets from The Genocide Education Project.
The pamphlets gave 10 stages of genocide and how to recognize and stop
them in a society.
"Genocide begins with hate, regarding people as the other, and begin
the process of dehumanizing them," Marsoobian said. "When we see that
kind of bigotry go on, we need to say no. We get this feeling of how
evil people can be, but we also see these people that resisted and
said no. We have to be the people who say no to hatred."

Sports: Mkhitaryan’s Misery – Is it Time for Mourinho to Drop the Armenian?

Jane Topchian
The Football Faithful
Nov 15 2017


Uzair Madhani 15/11/2017 Opinion

Manchester United have endured a largely miserable month in the Premier League. One key factor has been the form of Henrikh Mkhitaryan. Jose Mourinho may need to take action before this run of poor performances weighs his team down further.

Mkhitaryan started the season in stunning form. In Manchester United’s first six Premier League games, the Armenian attacking midfielder bagged one goal and five assists.

Since then, the well has run dry. As United were brought back down to earth in October, Mkhitaryan has come crashing down with them.

Since the 1-0 win against Southampton, on the 23rd of September, Mkhitaryan has not played more than 75 minutes in a Premier League game. This seems to insinuate that Mourinho believes that the Armenian is not the player he needs to close out tight games.

His performances in the games since have taken a noticeable downturn. Up to and including the Southampton game, Mkhitaryan averaged 1.67 shots, 3.17 key passes, and 1.5 successful dribbles per game.

Since then, all these numbers have dropped. In the five games since, he has averaged 0.6 shots, 0.8 key passes, and 0.6 successful dribbles per game. The total passes per game and accurate crosses have also decreased in this time.

Mkhitaryan’s loss of form has coincided with a dip for Romelu Lukaku as well. With the Armenian serving as the main conduit for United’ attacks, his stuttering autumn has led to a lean spell for the Belgian striker.

In the games against Chelsea, Huddersfield and Liverpool, United needed more thrust from their attacking midfield. The energy and drive to get to goal just was not there, and counter-attacks lacked speed and sharpness.

United’s attacks have been rendered stagnant by Mkhitaryan’s reduced effectiveness, as his errant passes and touches allow defences to reorganise and close up any open space.

The absence of Paul Pogba has not helped, as the Frenchman provides another element for opposing sides to cope with, drawing markers and freeing up the space that Mkhitaryan needs.

Once the November international break is over, United are in action against Newcastle, who have reacclimatised themselves well in their return to the top flight.

It might be time for Mourinho to drop Mkhitaryan to the bench, give him a rest and allow him to shake off this slump.

He does not lack options, with Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard both capable of playing behind the striker. Additionally, either one of Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial might also relish the chance to play more centrally.

If United want to stand any chance of reeling in an imperious Manchester City team, they cannot afford to drop more points before the Manchester Derby in December.

To do that, they may need to make a tough call regarding their talented Armenian.

Should Mourinho drop Mkhitaryan? Will his form return when Pogba does? Who should replace the Armenian? Leave a comment below.

The patience cup of the Armenian government is overflowing: It threatens to realize the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway bypassing RACIA FZE

Jane Topchian 
ARMINFO News Agency, Armenia
November 9, 2017 Thursday
The patience cup of the Armenian government is overflowing: It
threatens to realize the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway
bypassing RACIA FZE
November 09
Yerevan
Naira Badalyan. The Armenian Ministry of Transport, Communications and
IT accuses RACIA FZE, a concessionaire for the construction of the
Iran-Armenia railway, in violation of the deadlines stipulated by the
agreement and the implementation of other obligations.
According to the press service of the Ministry, the Armenian
government is making efforts to implement the project of building a
railway to Iran, bypassing the "RACIA FZE". As the agency reminds, in
2012 the Armenian government signed a concession agreement on the
southern railway from Armenia with the company Racia FZE. The
agreement provides for the construction of a 316 km long railway from
the Armenian city of Gavar to the southern border of Armenia near
Meghri, which, according to the project, will be connected to the
central railway system in the country. The document stipulates
specific deadlines for carrying out studies on the implementation of
the program, as well as the stages of program financing, construction
and commissioning.
"The government of Armenia was patient with Racia FZE, but the company
regularly violated the deadlines and other obligations stipulated by
the agreement, taking into account this and the strategic importance
of the project for Armenia, the government is making efforts to
implement the construction of the railway bypassing" RACIA FZE
"According to the report, with new information, the ministry promised
to share it. Earlier, on Sept. 26 at a press conference, the Minister
of Transport, Communications and Information Technologies Vahan
Martirosyan stated that Armenia might revise the agreement with the
only company that committed to attract investments in the construction
of the Armenia-Iran railway. The Minister noted that, in accordance
with an agreement with a private foreign company, it must attract an
investor for the construction of a railway. "I met with the director
of the company twice, suggested speeding up the process, otherwise,
Armenia is ready to revise the points of the agreement," Martirosyan
said. He pointed out that the matter was about the company "Racia FZE"
and its director Joseph Borkowski. The last meeting with him, the
minister said, took place in July this year.
It should be noted that the project for the construction of the
Iran-Armenia railway does not appear to be among the priority ones -
there are no plans for its implementation in the program of the
government for 2017-2022. Nevertheless, as earlier, Vahan Martirosyan
stated when answering ArmInfo's question, this does not mean that the
authorities refused to implement it. At the same time, according to
him, for today there is nothing that would be optimistic. "At this
stage, there are problems with the implementation of the project,
deciding which, we will be able to move forward," - said the head of
the Ministry of Transport. These problems, as pointed out by
Martirosyan, are related both to investors and the implementation of a
number of obligations, and to the study of the state of roads. As
recognized by the head of the Ministry of Transport, Armenia is
already lagging behind the earlier deadlines. According to him, there
are certain limitations that, before they are eliminated, do not allow
talking about progress. Martirosyan avoided stating which exactly. The
fact that the railway project "Iran-Armenia", recognized according to
the assurances of the Ministry of Transport of Armenia, economically
justified, ordered to live for a long time, became clear already at
the beginning of this year, when the government decree of January 12
eliminated CJSC "Railroad Construction Directorate "under the Ministry
of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies of Armenia.
Then the minister of transport, communications and IT of Armenia Vahan
Martirosyan tried to calm the media representatives, noting that this
will not in any way affect the implementation of the program for the
construction of the Iran-Armenia railway. "As part of the Ministry
operates the" Railway Management ", which can carry out the relevant
functions," - he said. However, saying that negotiations in the
direction of attracting potential investors in construction continue,
the minister did not name the names and countries - possible
participants in the project. "We are working in this direction, but we
all realize that the project is not an easy one and requires
individual work with each individual investor," he said. It is
noteworthy that the project, which was announced as early as in 2012,
is not completely formed for today. "We are discussing the routes of
connection with the operating railway via the Sevan coast (Sevan
station), the other via the Ararat valley (Yeraskh station). At the
moment, the route through Sevan is preferable," explained Minister
Martirosyan. As he said, all for the same rough estimates, the payback
period of the project is estimated at 22 years. The cost of the
project was estimated at $ 3.5 billion. The total length of the road
on the territory of Armenia will be 305 km. It will have 86 bridges, a
total length of 19.6 km and 60 tunnels with a total length of 102 km.
Construction according to the submitted program, it will be completed
in 2022. It is assumed that the volume of cargo transportation by rail
from Gagarin station (Gegharkunik region) to Agarak (Syunik region)
will be 25 million tons per year. This road, which is 44 km shorter
than the planned site of Gavar-Agarak, will be connected to the
existing railway network. The launch of the projects "South Railway of
Armenia" and "Southern Highway of Armenia" (Iran-Armenia) was
announced in January 2013. At the same time, a trilateral Memorandum
of Understanding on regional cooperation aimed at the development of
the Southern Railway of Armenia was signed between the South Caucasus
Railway, the Ministry of Transport and Communication of Armenia and
the Racia FZE company, registered in the United Arab Emirates by the
company. After that, nothing more substantive about "Racia FZE" and
negotiations with it was not announced.-v -

Serzh Sargsyan receives Second All-Armenian Scientific Conference participants

Jane Topchian
  • 19:01 | November 8,2017 | Official
  • Armenian:

Today, Serzh Sargsyan received a group of participants of the 2nd All-Armenian Scientific Conference held in Yerevan on November 5-8. The delegation consisted of prominent Armenian scientists and scholars from the United States, Russia, France, Ireland, Denmark and other countries.

Welcoming the scientists to Homeland, Serzh Sargsyan highlighted the holding of this already traditional conference in capital Yerevan.

“It is crucial for young people to have the opportunity of communicating with individuals who have already achieved great success in science and technology, but I believe that this forum is also important from another perspective: it is not only a chance for young people to get familiar with new scientific ideas, but it is also a good opportunity to see how successful people can be of service to our country. We have no other way but to build a knowledge-based economy,” Mr. Sargsyan emphasized, presenting Armenia’s consistent policy of encouraging and promoting successful scientists and the individuals with great aspirations amid the financial constraints faced in the country.

The scientists in attendance talked about their impressions of the President-supported All-Armenian Scientific Conference, dwelling on the achievements recorded since the first forum. They evoked those substantive discussions held with many young Armenian researchers that are supposed to combine the scientific potential of Armenia and the Diaspora, exchange know-how, as well as to discuss issues relevant research and education and the ways of dealing with them in a bid to promote Armenia’s development.

The guests exchanged ideas with Mr. Sargsyan on further cooperation for the promotion of science and education in Armenia. During the meeting, Serzh Sargsyan answered the scientists’ questions.