15:01,
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 22, ARMENPRESS. Armenian President Armen Sarkissian congratulated Kim Kardashian on her birthday.
“Happy Birthday, dear Kim Kardashian,” the Armenian president tweeted, sharing a photo with the Armenian-American showbiz star and entrepreneur from 2019.
“So glad that even from so far away you feel and understand so well that Armenia is our Homeland: your one, mine…, Homeland all of us. Wishing you good health, happiness and all the best to you!”
Azerbaijan denied the allegations made at the ICJ and accused Armenia of ‘decades-long ethnic cleansing’.
The International Court of Justice is the United Nations’ court for resolving disputes between countries [File: Yves Herman/Reuters]
Armenia has told judges at the International Court of Justice in The Hague that Azerbaijan promotes ethnic hatred against Armenians and asked the court to stop what its lawyers call a cycle of violence and hatred.
Armenia’s assertions, which Azerbaijan has denied, are part of a case it filed at the United Nation’s highest court last month that says Azerbaijan has violated the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, to which both states are signatories.
Thursday’s hearing does not go into the merits of the case but instead deals with Armenia’s request for emergency measures to stop the alleged violations, while the court considers the claim.
Both of the former Soviet republics, who battled for six weeks late last year over Azerbaijan’s breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, have lodged separate cases at the ICJ.
After Armenia’s claim was made public, Azerbaijan filed a counterclaim accusing Armenia of violating the anti-discrimination treaty. Azerbaijan is also seeking that the court order protective measures while the case is ongoing.
Lawyers for Armenia accused Azerbaijan’s authorities of fostering ethnic hatred and a culture where murder and torture of ethnic Armenians were “systematic”.
“With this application, Armenia instead seeks to prevent and remedy the cycle of violence and hatred perpetrated against ethnic Armenians,” said Yeghishe Kirakosyan, Armenia’s representative.
“And in its request for provisional measures, Armenia urgently seeks to protect the rights of ethnic Armenians from imminent irreparable harm.”
Kirakosyan said the six-week war that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev “has openly admitted Azerbaijan started in September 2020 is the most recent link to this chain of ethnic violence and hate.
“We fear that it will not be the last until the roots of this conflict are addressed.
“Generations upon generations are indoctrinated into this culture of fear and hate of anything and everything Armenian,” Kirakosyan said.
‘Obviously hopeless’
Azerbaijan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Elnur Mammadov told the court via video link later on Thursday that it was actually Armenia that was involved in “decades-long ethnic cleansing”.
Lawyers for Azerbaijan dismissed Armenia’s complaint as “obviously hopeless” and accused it of using the UN court to score political points.
In fighting late last year, Azeri troops drove ethnic Armenian forces out of swaths of territory they had controlled since the 1990s in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region, before Russia brokered a ceasefire.
The conflict claimed more than 6,500 lives.
Both sides have long traded accusations of rights abuses, including in last year’s war.
The ICJ, also known as the World Court, is the UN court for resolving disputes between countries.
The court has yet to determine whether it has jurisdiction in this case. It will take years before judges reach a final ruling in the Armenia versus Azerbaijan case, but they could rule on possible emergency measures in just weeks.
Yerevan [Armenia], October 15 (ANI/Sputnik): The Defense Ministry of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic said on Friday that Azerbaijani soldiers opened fire at an ambulance vehicle belonging to the Karabakh defense army.
11:58,
STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 15, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani military opened fire at a medical ambulance of the Artsakh Defense Army in the north-eastern direction.
The Defense Army said the incident took place around 09:00, October 15.
No one was injured in the attack, the Artsakh authorities said.
The Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh were notified.
“The Defense Ministry of the Republic of Artsakh is announcing that it continues to adhere to the ceasefire regime and is calling on the Azerbaijani side to refrain from de-stabilizing actions,” the Defense Ministry said.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced on Wednesday that Moscow suggests the establishment of a new format in the Caucasus, comprising three Caucasian states — Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia — and their three “big neighbors” — Russia, Turkey, and Iran.
The format will address the issues of security, unblocking economic and transport ties, Lavrov said at a news conference following a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Moscow.
“The joint statement (by Russian, Armenian, and Azerbaijani leaders that put an end to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh) contained the principles that define joint steps to advance the settlement, including work on unblocking all transport communications, unblocking all economic ties in this region, from which not only Armenia and Azerbaijan but also Georgia will benefit.
“Iran, Russia, and Turkey, as the closest neighbors of these three republics, will also benefit from this,” the minister said.
According to Lavrov, Iran already expressed its positive attitude to the initiative, the same reaction Russia met from Turkey and Azerbaijan.
“We work with our Armenian colleagues. We hope that Georgia, despite all problems it is experiencing, will be able to see its fundamental interest in creating such a mechanism for consultations and coordination of solutions for the accelerated development of this region, which has been holding back its development for a long time due to the ongoing conflicts here,” he said.
Lavrov then urged Abdollohian to ratify the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, insisting it will ensure non-interference of foreign states in regional affairs.
“The Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea directly prohibits the presence of military forces of any non-Caspian states on the Caspian Sea. The Convention will enter into force as soon as the last instrument of ratification is received,” Lavrov said.
The issue is currently being considered in the Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran, he added.
“I hope that the decision on ratification will be made quickly, and then the convention will fully become an international legal document ensuring the appropriate regime in the Caspian Sea,” he said.
For his part, Abdollohian said Iran is concerned over the military drills held by Azerbaijan.
“As for the South Caucasus, we have concerns. We are dissatisfied with the statement of one neighbor, we think that the neighbors of Iran should respond positively to our policy aimed at developing good neighborly relations. We will not tolerate geopolitical and map changes in the Caucasus. And we have serious concerns about the presence of terrorists and Zionists in this region.
“Azerbaijan has held six military exercises with foreign countries, I think these are provocative actions. Such a volume of exercises does not cause positive emotions. Iran held only one exercise inside its own territory and informed all countries of the region through diplomatic channels,” he said.
Iran is for dialogue with the countries of the region as a tool to avoid outside interference, Abdollohian noted.
“I hope that in the near future we will reach a point where there will be no misunderstandings and tensions, conflicts in the region,” he said.
– Russia, Iran mull separate meetings on Afghanistan
Addressing the situation in Afghanistan, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Iran supports the formation of an inclusive Afghan government that includes all ethnic groups and is concerned about the development of terrorism and drug trafficking.
The two ministers paid special attention to facilitating the deliveries of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, he said.
Iran is going to summon a meeting of countries — neighbors of Afghanistan — in the near future at the level of foreign ministers and will invite Russia, he said.
“We will hold a meeting of Afghanistan’s neighbor countries at the level of foreign ministers in the near future, plus Russia. We want to hold it in Tehran. Russia also wants to hold a Moscow-format conference to provide assistance to the settlement in Afghanistan. We view Iran’s participation (in the conference of the Moscow format) positively,” he said.
Lavrov confirmed that the two ministers spoke about prospects for regional and international cooperation to promote the post-conflict reconstruction of Afghanistan.
“Both the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran have relevant initiatives in this regard. We talked today about how to optimally coordinate efforts to implement them,” the minister also noted.
https://www.yenisafak.com/en/world/russia-suggests-3-3-format-with-turkey-iran-azerbaijan-armenia-georgia-in-caucasus-3581716
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu holds a joint press conference with the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs after their meeting in Ankara, Sept. 2, 2021. (AFP File Photo)
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu criticized French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent remarks on Turkey and Algeria, as he slammed the French leader for adopting populist rhetoric ahead of elections.
“We have seen time and again that such cheap approaches do not benefit anyone in elections,” Çavuşoğlu said in a joint news conference with his Ukrainian counterpart in Ankara.
He continued by saying that it is extremely wrong for Macron to try to pull Turkey, which has no involvement in colonialism, into such debates.
Last week, Macron added more fuel to the fire through a series of controversial remarks over the political situation in Algiers, minimizing his country’s role in brutal colonization of the country and attempts to rewrite history.
He accused the country of “disinformation” and “propaganda” that apparently worked for Algerians.
“I am fascinated to see Turkey’s ability to make people completely forget the role it has played in Algeria and the domination it has exercised, and to explain that we are the only colonizers, that’s great. Algerians believe in it,” Macron quipped.
Throughout their 300 years of influence in Algeria, Ottoman Turks greatly shaped Algerian society and culture.
Following decades of French support for Armenian claims and recognition of 1915 events as “genocide,” Turkey became more vocal about the French humanitarian record in history, accusing Paris of genocidal acts throughout its colonial rule.
Ankara and Paris are at odds over a number of issues, including Libya and Syria, French backing of initiatives targeting Turkey in the Mediterranean, active French support for Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration and Macron’s policies that have received criticism as being Islamophobic.
13:50, 1 October, 2021
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 1, ARMENPRESS. The government of Armenia has accepted 25% of shares of the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine as a donation from the shareholder.
According to the document on accepting the donation, the 25% shares of ZCMC were held by a joint-stock company called “Industrial Company”
n Armenia border patrol soldier in Gegharkunik
As world leaders gathered at the United Nations for the annual General Assembly, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, addressing the session in a pre-recorded video, highlighted Azerbaijan’s continued threats against Armenia and Artsakh, accusing Baku of disrupting regional peace and security.
Enumerating the continued ceasefire violations by Azerbaijan, as well as highlighting that official Baku continues to hold and torture Armenian prisoners of war and civilians in captivity, Pashinyan blamed Azerbaijan for deepening “the atmosphere of hostility.”
“The ceasefire violations, the aggressive and insulting statements addressed to Armenia and the Armenian people continuously escalate the situation,’’ said Pashinyan in his speech, the transcript of which was released by his press office.
Pashinyan pointed to Article 8 of the November 9 statement saying, “Azerbaijan not only still holds several dozen citizens of the Republic of Armenia in captivity, but it also has sentenced many of them to 6 to 20 years prison terms on trumped-up charges.”
“There are citizens whose captivity has not yet been confirmed by Azerbaijan, although there is clear evidence that they are being held captive. This becomes even more unacceptable against the backdrop of Azerbaijanis posting videos last fall of the capture of Armenian soldiers, whose decapitated or mutilated remains were discovered later. We have irrefutable evidence about the torture of our captives,’’ Pashinyan emphasized.
Armenia’s prime minister cited the opening of the so-called “trophy park” in Baku, “where Azerbaijani schoolchildren are taken on excursions to interact the wax models of captured, killed or bleeding Armenian soldiers.”
Saying such deliberate actions by Baku, make it impossible to achieve peace in the region, pledging to create “new opportunities to open an era of peace for our region.’’
In recounting the numerous violations of international norms by Azerbaijan during last fall’s 44-Day War, Pashinyan lamented that the international community did not prevent mass atrocities—ethnic cleansing—against Armenians
“Today, no Armenian lives or practically can live in the territories under the control of Azerbaijan,’’ added Pashinyan.
In his remarks to the U.N. General Assembly, Pashinyan said that Armenia is ready for constructive dialogue, which should lead to the establishment of sustainable and lasting peace in the region.
“To this end, we propose to complete the process of returning prisoners of war, hostages and other captives without delay. It is also necessary to resume the peace process for the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs,’’ Pashinyan said, pointing out that the use of force, which continues by Azerbaijan, cannot become gain legitimacy from an international legal perspective.
“The right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination cannot be suspended through the use of force; the conflict cannot be considered resolved through the use of force. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is awaiting its just settlement. This is evidenced by the statements of the Co-Chair countries, which have emphasized the need to resume the negotiation process based on the well-known principles,” added Pashinyan, saying that the Co-chairs would “enable the parties to find common ground, and to open avenues for addressing many difficult issues.’’
In discussing the issue of demarcation and delimitation of the borders, Pashinyan pointed to Azerbaijan’s breach of Armenia’s sovereign borders since May and reiterated his government position for resolving the matter, which includes the simultaneous retreat of Armenia and Azerbaijani forces to Soviet-era borders and deployment of international observers, who would monitor the delimitation and demarcation of the borders.
He also continued to advance the notion of the so-called “opening of regional infrastructures,” which essentially means the opening of common borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey.
The Standing Committee on Defense and Security of the Armenian parliament on Wednesday refused to appoint lawmaker Artur Ghazinyan from the opposition Armenia faction as its deputy chairman for the fourth time. The ruling faction MPs of the committee again voted against his candidacy.
Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the committee, said that within five days the committee will again hold a special meeting, not forgetting about other issues on the agenda.
It’s worth noting that the voting was held without the participation of the opposition lawmakers, since they had earlier left the hall, considering the discussion “pointless”.
“The authorities cannot force the opposition to change its decision. It is not appropriate, to say the least. Questions have been asked, answers have been given, speeches have been made and the candidate has been introduced three times. I have nothing new to say,” Ghazinyan said before leaving the room.
“Accordingly, all the responsibility lies with you, make your decision and announce it. Thank you, I’m leaving,” he noted.
The other opposition MPs also followed suit.
CULTURAL CENTER OF THE EMBASSY OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN IN RA and On the initiative of the ARMENIAN NATIONAL CINEMA CENTER, "CONTEMPORARY OF IRAN" will be held CINEMA DAYS IN ARMENIA" three-day screening. Iranian films will be shown on September 23-25. The beginning: h. at 19:00. The films "The Bodyguard", "The Villa Dwellers" and "The Night Shift" will be shown. All movies are with Armenian subtitles. ENTRY IS FREE. We are waiting for you with love. Hrachya Kochar Ave., 7/3 Yerevan Republic of Armenia Tel. (374 10) 229053, 229054, 229766 [email protected]: