CIVILNET.AM
18:34
Fred Tatlyan speaks to CivilNet from Los Angeles about the cyber war and Azerbaijan’s use of bot armies and other online tactics. Fred also gives his take on how Diasporans should approach the situation.
Author: Jhanna Virabian
Turkey’s religious authority denounces ‘evil-eye’ charms
Al Jazeera By Andrew Wilks Jan. 23, 2021 [The state-run body says the eye-shaped blue amulets – believed to date back to at least 3,300 BCE – are incompatible with Islam.] Ankara, Turkey – The state-run religious authority has caused alarm by proclaiming the use of talismans to ward off “the evil eye” prohibited under Islam. The proliferation of the eye-shaped blue glass amulets in Turkey is widespread, as is the belief in their ability to ward off malevolent or jealous intentions. In a recently published fatwa – a legal or general decree by a religious authority or court – the Diyanet, which governs all matters relating to Islam in Turkey, denounced the use of the ornaments, known locally as nazarlik or nazar boncugu, as forbidden. “Although the nature and condition of the evil eye are not known precisely, it is accepted by religion that some people can create negative effects with their gaze,” the Diyanet said in an advisory published on its website. “In our religion, attitudes, behaviours and beliefs that attribute the ultimate influence on anything other than Allah are forbidden. For this reason, it is not permissible to wear evil eye amulets and similar things around the neck or anywhere for the purpose of benefiting from them.” Ancient talisman Belief in the power of the evil eye to cause harm dates back to ancient times and is widespread across the Mediterranean and parts of Asia. The logic behind this conviction is that success or admirable objects inspire envy, which can be transmitted in a harmful gaze. Amulets are used to intercept the curse and protect the wearer. The tradition is believed to date back to at least 3300 BCE and has become widely adopted in Turkey. Nese Yildiran, professor of art history at Istanbul’s Bahcesehir University, said the blue colour of the beads relates to the sky god of the Central Asian Seljuk Turks. “The Great Seljuks who accepted Islam continued the use of this colour in architectural decoration,” she said. The use of two shades of blue, cobalt and turquoise in Muslim art “was also the result of expression with the understanding of Islam”, which incorporated the name of God and Arabic calligraphy, Yildiran added. The charms are given to newborn babies – as new additions to the family are thought to be especially susceptible to the evil eye – and are also worn as jewellery. More commonly though, they adorn homes, workplaces, cars and buses – more or less any place where they can be hung. In a sign of the digital era catching up with ancient folklore, a nazarlik emoji was created in 2018. “Many people believe in the power of the evil eye,” said Cansu Polat, a 35-year-old construction engineer who wears a small nazarlik around her neck. “I’ve known many cases where people are complimented on something, like a new pair of shoes and shortly after they trip and scuff them. This is the evil eye, or so a lot of people think. Either way, it can’t hurt to have some protection.” A harmless tradition Given the pervasive nature of the symbols, many Turks have questioned why the Diyanet decided to issue a denouncement of a harmless tradition. “They’re just for decoration really,” said Aysegul Aytekin, who runs a small gift shop in Ankara. “They’re probably the best-selling product here, but I don’t think people really believe in the power of them. It’s just a nice tradition and they make good decorations.” However, there are plenty who attest to the influence of the totems. Mahmut Sur, 58, has been making the symbols in his workshop in the village of Nazarkoy, near the western city of Izmir, since boyhood. “This is a belief,” he said. “They are blue because it’s thought that the colour blue distracts evil energy. Of course, I believe in them. It’s part of a culture that goes back 3,000 years. “When you wear an amulet, if someone with bad energy looks at you the amulet averts the bad energy and protects you,” he added. The Diyanet, or Directorate of Religious Affairs, did not respond to a request for comment. Criticised, ridiculed In the past, it has been criticised and ridiculed for issuing fatwas against other practices, such as men dying their moustaches and beards, feeding dogs at home, tattoos and playing the national lottery. “For Anatolians, it is cultural and traditional to believe in the protective power of blue beads,” Yildiran said. “The misconception of the Diyanet is in thinking it can abolish this traditional belief after ages.” Instead, such pronouncements further alienated people from the directorate, “which has caused a huge social reaction with the enormous expenditures and waste they have made in recent years”. The Diyanet has also been criticised for previous proclamations that appeared to condone or belittle child abuse and violence against women. In such cases, the body has said its statements were misconstrued. It has also come under fire for lavish spending on items such as luxury cars for its officials, as well as its growing budget, which at about $1.75bn outstrips those of both the foreign and interior ministries.
Armenian opposition: recent Karabakh, transit corridor talks in Moscow ‘another shameful defeat’
JAM News
Jan 14 2021
Armenian opposition: recent Karabakh, transit corridor talks in Moscow ‘another shameful defeat’
JAMnews, Yerevan
Members of the united opposition bloc in Armenia consider the trilateral negotiations which took place in Moscow on January 11 another failure.
Vazgen Manukyan, a candidate for prime minister from the opposition Movement to Save the Motherland, referred to the statement signed by the heads of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia as “another shameful defeat for Armenia.”
“Armenia did not gain anything from this meeting and was left with nothing on the issue of prisoners. Azerbaijan has once again secured what it wanted,” Manukyan posted on Facebook.
Prior to their visit to Moscow, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his press secretary Mane Gevorgyan announced that the return of prisoners is a priority issue for Armenia.
“If it can be resolved, then it is possible for us to sign a joint statement,” Manukyan wrote in a Facebook post before the meeting.
In the aftermath of the Moscow negotiations, the newly achieved agreement had to be further clarified by the head of the ruling My Step faction, Lilit Makunts. Makunts reaffirmed that the question of returning Armenian prisoners of war is still on the agenda, and that the issue is one of the main priorities for the Armenian side.
How did the opposition respond
Politicians from the country’s opposition bloc believe that with the ceasefire agreement of November 9, 2020, Azerbaijan has already received more than it could ever dream of. The united opposition demands the resignation of Prime Minister Pashinyan who signed this ‘act of surrender’ along with the presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia.
The candidate for PM from the Salvation of the Homeland united opposition bloc, Vazgen Manukyan, said that Baku periodically violates the provisions set forth in this document. He specifically pointed out
– clause one – the parties stop and remain in the positions that they currently occupy, and
– clause eight – exchange of prisoners of war, hostages, and other detained persons as well as bodies of the deceased.
“All this is happening with the help of Nikol Pashinyan and as a result of his failure to act where necessary. On January 11, in Moscow, Aliyev managed to lay the foundation for the implementation of the ninth clause [ed – on unblocking economic and transport links in the region and providing Armenia with transportation links between Azerbaijan and its exclave, the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic], which is strategically important to Azerbaijan.
There is no doubt that the results of further negotiations on the implementation of this item under Pashinyan’s premiership will only fully satisfactory to Azerbaijan”, Vazgen Manukyan said.
Manukyan insists that during the trilateral negotiations on January 11, Prime Minister Pashinyan should have noted the violation of the first paragraph of the statement on Karabakh, since it poses a real threat to the areas near Armenia’s southern border – specifically the Syunik region, where the border is now being redrawn.
In addition, Manukyan is not happy with the fact that the new document does not say anything about the settlement of the conflict within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group and the status of NK, which ‘was also a great defeat’:
“And, of course, the issue of detained persons had to be raised and resolved. The trilateral meeting on January 11 and the joint statement that followed it reaffirmed our concerns and proved that Nikol Pashinyan is unable to advance the interests of Armenia and the Armenian people”.
How did the authorities respond
Lilit Makunts, head of the My Step alliance faction, responded to the opposition’s accusations regarding the failure to negotiate the returning of Armenian prisoners of war. Makunts stated that this issue “is and will be a priority for the Armenian side”.
While talking about the trilateral statement signed on January 11, Makunts stressed that it had nothing to do with humanitarian issues and “there is no need to link one to the other”:
“The recently signed agreement is a statement of intent with a specific time frame, and humanitarian actions are aimed at returning the prisoners of war. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our parliament are doing their best. We have to utilise all the mechanisms at our disposal.”
Armenian Prosecutor General raises issue of POWs meeting with his Azerbaijani, Russian counterparts
18:46,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 12, ARMENPRESS. By the initiative of the Russian Prosecutor General, a trilateral meeting took place between the Prosecutor Generals of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia on January 12.
As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia, the goal of the meeting was to establish further contacts in the field of international law, to discuss necessary conditions for that, as well as discussing a number of pressing issues.
Prosecutor General of Armenia Artur Davtyan highlighted the speedy implementation of the 8th point of the trilateral declaration signed on November 9, 2020, which is about returning Armenian POWs and other persons kept in Azerbaijan to Armenia.
The Armenian Prosecutor General emphasized that the return of POWs and civilians kept in detention will become an important guarantee for the implementation of the other agreements provided by the trilateral agreement and strengthening peace in the region.
In this context, Artur Davtyan also raised the issue of preventing the spread of international terrorism in the region and taking joint actions against it.
Families of missing soldiers protest outside Armenian government
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 5 2021
Families of Armenian soldiers who went missing during the recent Artsakh war on Tuesday staged a protest outside the government building to again call the authorities’ attention to the problem and to learn about the search efforts.
“My son joined the military two months before the war. He went missing in the Hadrut region. One of his fellow soldiers says that he saw my son killed, another says that he saw him wounded. Now I have no news of him, neither his body has been found, nor his name is on the list of prisoners,” a missing soldier’s mother told reporters.
The mother of another missing serviceman noted that she has not heard from her son for 80 days.
The father of one of the missing soldiers, Roman Gevorgyan, said: “There are parents who have seen photos of their children in intensive care units. They were transported to Yerevan, but cannot be found anywhere, not in a single hospital. The children have gone missing for a week. They are not needles to get lost without a trace.”
He showed a photograph of one of the wounded soldiers taken in the Goris hospital, adding they had not been able to find him for a week. He stated the health minister should be held to account for the failed efforts to find those soldiers, demanding a meeting with Arsen Torosyan.
According to the father, the government does not know that more than 800 Armenian soldiers are being held in a Baku prison. “We talked to 44 repatriated POWs, they say that there were three floors and two buildings, with 6 people kept in each cell. The children got a blood test with their eyes closed, but they saw the numbers. We add up and it turns out to be more than 800,” he said.
He presented the parents’ demand: “There is a site where Azerbaijanis buried the dead soldiers. They must find out where they are buried so that we can find and retrieve the remains. In addition, we must be provided with the specific names of the prisoners. I am convinced that there are over 800 children in the Baku prison.
“I don’t know what they are doing: what New Year, what Snow Maiden? It’s a shame, they are not at work. Everyone must work. I haven’t seen my son for three months.”
He also said Azerbaijanis do not allow search operations for the surviving soldiers in some places.
The parent added there will be no meeting with Nikol Pashinyan, as the premier is preparing for a trilateral meeting and avoids contacts not to catch coronavirus.
“We can hold a phone call. We will present our concerns to him over the phone, but the health minister must come here, if he does not come, we will find him,” Gevorgyan said.
Turkey arrests two ex-civil servants in Hrant Dink murder case
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 7 2021
An Istanbul court on Wednesday ordered that two former intelligence officers be remanded in custody over the 2007 killing of prominent Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, Anadolu Agency reported, citing a judicial source.
Heavy Penal Court no.14 in Istanbul issued interlocutory order and found Volkan Sahin and Veysal Sahin guilty of knowing the murder of Hrant Dink beforehand, said the source on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.
Citing evidence against the two, the court ordered that arrest warrants be issued to nab Volkan Sahin and Veysal Sahin as “they spent short time under detention,” the source added.
Dink, then editor-in-chief of the Armenian newspaper Agos, was shot dead outside his office on January 19, 2007.
The judicial control order for Ali Oz, former gendarmerie command, and Ecevit Emir were lifted by the court, while they are still banned from leaving the country.
Emre Cingoz, another defendant in the case, was banned to leave Istanbul, while his judicial control was released and his ban on leaving the country continues.
The next hearing of the case will be held on January 8.
Armenian winemakers hope to maintain ancient tradition following Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
PRI.org – Boston
Dec 28 2020
“We managed to collect 1,700 tons of grapes before the war and then everything shut down,” Alibabayan explained. “Some of our fields near the frontlines where we grew grapes and pomegranates are now under the control of Azerbaijani forces, so we don’t know what will happen next. The loss for the industry will be significant.”
It could have been worse.
A shaft of sunlight beams through a small hole in the roof of a warehouse next door to the brandy factory. Underneath, protruding from the bottom of a cylindrical tank is a gigantic unexploded rocket, one of the thousands that rained down on the city during Armenia’s 44-day war with Azerbaijan.
The rocket hit an empty tank, narrowly missing a vat full of 15-year-old Madatoff cognac. A lucky escape for the factory but for the country’s nascent wine industry in general, the war has been a huge setback. The latest conflict flared up in the middle of the harvest season.
As the country mobilized for war, grapes wilted on the vine.
But some people were able to adapt. At a small farm on the other side of the city, artisan winemaker David Astsatryan makes brandy from grape residue on a rattling homemade stove.
On the first day of shelling on the city of Stepanakert, Astsatryan’s son headed for the frontline. Astsatryan joined him days later with a few hundred bottles from the cellar to boost the troops’ morale.
Astsatryan produces tangy, orange-colored wines in clay amphoras submerged in soil, and full-bodied, inky reds using khndoghni — a grape native to the Nagorno-Karabakh area.
“Khndoghni is our local grape, there’s no sense to use any others,” Astsatryan said, holding up a bottle to the light. “…This is a trademark of Karabakh, and it’s been growing here for centuries with this soil, air and sunshine. If you grow the same grape in Armenia, it tastes totally different.”
Khndoghni is derived from the word “laughter” in Armenian, though there has been little to laugh about this year. Astsatryan’s land, bathed in early December sunshine, looks out across the valley and up to the mountaintop city of Shushi.
As the highest and most strategic settlement in Karabakh, the war was effectively finished when Azerbaijan captured it, ending over three decades of Armenian control. And now, though people displaced during the war are coming back home to Stepanakert, many feel vulnerable to attack from the new Azerbaijani positions above them.
“I see the people coming back,” he said cautiously, casting an eye up to the hills, “but I don’t see life returning to normal. We’ll have to wait and see.”
Vahe Keushguerian is one of the top winemakers and entrepreneurs in Armenia. For him, encouraging investment in the vineyards of an unrecognized country in a warzone has never been easy. Under most international law, Nagorno-Karabakh is considered part of Azerbaijan.
“Institutions, by their charter, would not touch Karabakh, because of the status. And vineyards are a very long-term investment, it’s at least 10 years until you can even see something let alone get a return.”
Vahe Keushguerian, winemaker and entrepeneur, Armenia
“Institutions, by their charter, would not touch Karabakh, because of the status. And vineyards are a very long-term investment, it’s at least 10 years until you can even see something let alone get a return.” Keushguerian explained. “So, I see two ways out for Karabakh; it is formally acknowledged as a region of Armenia, or as an independent country, then there might be funding opportunities available.”
International recognition of the territory seems like a pipe dream but, despite the ruins of war, Keushguerian said he wants to start a cooperative winery, “as a symbol.” “Regardless of whatever calamity happened, we need to go on forward,” he said.
Armenia has one of the world’s oldest wine industries — archaeologists have unearthed fragments of jugs and presses dating back more than 6,000 years. But the country’s turbulent history has held it back from becoming a Napa Valley of the Caucasus.
For 70 years, the Soviet economy demanded that Armenia prioritize brandy production instead of wine, and occasionally experimented with prohibition. Poverty in the 1980s and conflict with Azerbaijan also stymied business.
But in the last decade, Armenia has experienced a wine-drinking renaissance. In Vino, on Yerevan’s Martiros Saryan street, was the city’s first modern wine bar. Opening in 2012, with just 10 Armenian wines, it now sells over 180, with numbers from the Nagorno-Karabakh among the bestselling.
“By drinking wine from Karabakh I feel that people are connecting with the situation. … You feel the ‘terroir’ in your glass — especially now.”
Mariam Saghatelyan, In Vino, Yerevan, Armenia
“By drinking wine from Karabakh I feel that people are connecting with the situation,” said Mariam Saghatelyan, a partner at the business. “Every single bottle of wine has the philosophy and ideology of that certain producer and the region. You feel the terroir in your glass — especially now.”
Just as the business was in full bloom, the war came to Armenia once again and some of the country’s most notable vineyards had to be urgently evacuated and are now behind enemy lines. Within days, bottles from the lost territories flew off the shelves to be resold by speculators and, Saghatelyan said, decades-old family businesses evaporated overnight.
“The industry is just about to bloom, then this happens. It’s heart-breaking and there are all these unanswered questions. What will be the fate of those wineries?”
Saghatelyan hopes that the conflict will encourage outsiders, including Armenia’s huge global diaspora, to support the struggling region even more.
“We have to treasure what we have, and then other people might be interested, as well. … Making wine here, you always wonder what if another war breaks out? But if you keep thinking ‘what if,’ you never really do anything. Life is short, it really is.”
War and the COVID-19 pandemic have wrecked the Armenian economy. The same attachment to the land of Nagorno-Karabakh that has produced such fine wines has also cost thousands of lives.
But against all the odds, Armenia’s winemakers are defiant and hope that by invigorating the country’s ancient tradition and boosting local businesses, the region one day might have something to celebrate.
Situation in Karabakh conflict one tends to normalize – Lavrov
Public Radio of Armenia
Dec 30 2020
The situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone tends to normalize, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says.
“We note with satisfaction the disposition of Baku and Yerevan to fulfill their obligations and to work towards a general stabilization of the situation,” Lavrov said in an interview with TASS.
He hailed the high degree of cooperation shown by the parties in resolving issues that arise on the ground.
“Russia, in turn, continues to responsibly and effectively fulfill its function as the guarantor of the ceasefire. No provocative actions against the Russian peacekeepers have been observed so far,” the Foreign Minister said.
According to him, the only “noticeable violation” occurred on December 13 on the contact line where the Russian peacekeepers were not present.
“Vigorous steps taken by the command of our peacekeeping contingent in cooperation with Azerbaijani and Armenian partners helped to avoid the escalation of the incident. We will continue to make every effort to prevent breakdowns of the truce,” Lavrov said.
“On the agenda is preventing any violations of the ceasefire regime, as well as clearing the area of explosive objects, exchanging prisoners of war and bodies of the dead, ensuring the safe return of refugees and internally displaced persons, resolving urgent humanitarian issues, preserving historical monuments, regardless of their confessional affiliation, unblocking transport and economic routes,” Russia’s top diplomat added.
He noted progress in all above-mentioned areas, but added that “there are also problems that are inevitable given the extraordinary situation.”
“As for the discussion of the still unresolved political issues, I can reaffirm our readiness both in our national capacity and through the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to assist in organizing such meetings as soon as the parties are ready for it,” Sergey Lavrov stated.
RFE/RL Armenian Report – 12/30/2020
Wednesday,
Armenian Parliament Delays Anti-Tobacco Measures
• Narine Ghalechian
Armenia -- Deputies from the ruling My Step alliance attend a parliament session
in Yerevan, June 28, 2019.
Ignoring strong objections from health experts, the National Assembly has
delayed by one year the entry into force of several provisions of a law designed
to curb widespread smoking in Armenia.
The law enacted in February 2020 among other things banned supermarkets, smaller
shops and kiosks from displaying cigarette packs on their shelves and
advertising e-cigarettes and vaporizers in any way. It also required tobacco
manufacturers to put starker health warnings on cigarette packs starting from
January 2021.
Several pro-government lawmakers, including the chairman of the Armenian
parliament committee on healthcare, proposed earlier this month that these
anti-smoking measures be delayed until January 2022 for economic reasons. The
parliament unanimously passed on Tuesday a relevant amendment to the law drafted
by them and strongly opposed by the Ministry of Health.
The main sponsor of the legislation, Babken Tunian, has cited the need to shore
up the Armenian economy which plunged into a deep recession following the
outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Tunian, who represents Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian’s My Step bloc and heads a parliament committee on economic
issues, has claimed the ban on promoting cigarette substitutes alone would cost
local retailers at least $15 million in annual revenue.
“Nobody has a problem with the fight against smoking,” he said during a
parliament debate on the issue. “We just need to achieve that [public health]
goal in a maximally balanced way, without creating further risks for the
economy.”
Deputy Health Minister Lena Nanushian dismissed these arguments. She insisted
that the economic cost of enforcing the restrictions would be minimal and that
Armenian businesses were ready to comply with them.
“The amendment submitted by the deputies will lead to an increase in the number
of smokers at the expense of our children,” Nanushian told the parliament. She
claimed that the one-year delay would cause 310 additional tobacco-related
deaths in Armenia.
The anti-smoking law drafted by the Ministry of Health already underwent some
changes before being passed by the National Assembly in February. In particular,
the parliament decided to postpone until March 2022 a ban on smoking in cafes,
restaurants and all other indoor public places.
Armenia is a nation of heavy smokers with few restrictions on tobacco sales and
use enforced to date. According to Ministry of Health estimates, 52 percent of
Armenian men are regular smokers. Medics blame this for a high incidence of lung
cancer among them. The smoking rate among women is much lower.
Armenian, Azeri Security Chiefs Meet In Moscow
Russia -- Alexander Bortnikov (R), the head of Russia's Federal Security
Service, hosts a meeting of his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts, Moscow,
December 28, 2020.
The heads of Armenia’s and Azerbaijan’s main security services have met in
Moscow to discuss the implementation of the Russian-brokered agreement to stop
the war in Nagorno-Karabakh, it emerged on Wednesday.
Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) reported that the head of Russia’s
Federal Security Service (FSB), Alexander Bortnikov, hosted a trilateral meeting
with his Armenian and Azerbaijani opposite numbers on Monday.
An NSS statement said the three men discussed “a number of pressing issues,
including the exchange of prisoners and the search for missing persons.”
The statement added that NSS Director Armen Abazian and the chief of
Azerbaijan’s State Security Service, Ali Naghiyev, reached “understandings on
works to be carried out in various directions.” It did not elaborate.
The FSB issued no statement on the meeting. Bortnikov visited Yerevan and Baku
earlier in December.
The Moscow meeting took place amid Baku’s claims that Armenian troops attacked
on Sunday an Azerbaijani army unit in Karabakh’s southern Hadrut district that
was occupied by Azerbaijani forces during the six-week war. Azerbaijan’s Defense
Ministry said one Azerbaijani and six Armenian soldiers were killed in the
firefight.
Armenia’s Defense Ministry strongly denied the allegations, saying that
Karabakh’s Armenian-backed Defense Army did not conduct any military operations
or violate the ceasefire otherwise.
The Defense Army likewise insisted on Wednesday that “not a single gunshot” was
fired by its troops in recent days. In a statement, it also argued that the
scene of the alleged incident is located dozens of kilometers from the nearest
section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani “line of contact.”
The Karabakh Armenian army said it is now examining videos posted on Azerbaijani
social media accounts purportedly showing the six Armenians allegedly killed on
Monday. It suggested that they may have been captured and executed earlier.
Pashinian To Continue Talks On Snap Elections
• Naira Nalbandian
Armenia -- Amenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian addresses the nation, Yerevan,
November 14, 2020.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian will continue political consultations on his
proposal to hold fresh parliamentary elections despite being rebuffed by the two
opposition parties represented in Armenia’s parliament.
The leaders of the opposition Prosperous Armenia (BHK) and Bright Armenia (LHK)
parties, Gagik Tsarukian and Edmon Marukian, insisted on Pashinian’s resignation
when they separately met with him on Tuesday. They said the elections must be
held by a new, interim government.
“I cannot say that yesterday’s meetings were failed ones,” Pashinian’s press
secretary, Mane Gevorgian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Wednesday. “There
was a discussion, the interested parties listened to each other, and discussions
are continuing at this stage.”
Gevorgian said Pashinian will also meet with a nominally independent
parliamentarian leading a recently formed party as well as the heads of other
political groups that hold no seats in the National Assembly. She could not say
whether he plans further talks with the BHK and the LHK.
Pashinian declined to talk to reporters after meeting with Tsarukian and
Marukian in the parliament. Senior lawmakers from his My Step bloc could not be
reached for comment on Wednesday.
Tsarukian’s BHK is part of a coalition of more than a dozen opposition parties
that have been holding anti-government demonstrations since the Russian-brokered
ceasefire that stopped the war in Nagorno-Karabakh on November 10. In a weekend
statement, the Homeland Salvation Movement again demanded that Pashinian hand
over power to an interim government that would hold fresh elections within a
year.
The prime minister has repeatedly rejected the opposition demands.
Putin Looks To Strengthen Russian-Armenian Ties
RUSSIA -- Russian President Vladimir Putin holds an end of the year meeting with
members of the government via a videoconference call at the Novo-Ogaryovo state
residence outside Moscow on December 24, 2020.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has called for a further deepening of
Russian-Armenian relations in New Year and Christmas messages sent to Armenia’s
leaders.
“The outgoing year was not an easy one, but we hope that the challenges it
brought along will be left behind,” Putin wrote to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian. “Importantly, we became fully convinced of the significance of
friendly, allied relations between our countries.”
“I am convinced that the further development of multifaceted Russian-Armenian
ties meets the fundamental interests of our two brotherly peoples and goes in
the mainstream of ensuring peace, security and stability in the South Caucasus
region,” he said.
“I would like to confirm the commitment to the further development of
Russian-Armenian allied cooperation,” read a separate message sent by Putin to
President Armen Sarkissian on Wednesday.
Russia already has close political, economic and military ties with Armenia. Its
strong geopolitical influence in the South Caucasus was highlighted by the
recent war in Nagorno-Karabakh. Moscow helped to stop the six-week war with an
Armenian-Azerbaijani ceasefire agreement which was brokered by Putin on November
9.
The agreement led to the deployment of 2,000 Russian peacekeeping troops in
Karabakh. Russia also deployed soldiers and border guards to Armenia’s Syunik
region southwest of Karabakh to help the Armenian military defend it against
possible Azerbaijani attacks.
Putin also praised Russia’s relationship with Azerbaijan. In a New Year message
to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev reported by the Kremlin, he said Moscow
and Baku should deepen their “mutually beneficial relations in all directions.”
The Russian leader also sent a congratulatory message to Robert Kocharian, a
former Armenian president facing coup and corruption charges rejected by him as
politically motivated. He has previously described Kocharian as a “remarkable
statesman who has done a great deal for the development of modern Armenia.”
Earlier this month Kocharian joined the Armenian opposition in blaming Pashinian
for the Armenian side’s defeat in the Karabakh war and demanding his
resignation. He visited Moscow later in December on what his office described as
a private trip.
Pashinian’s resignation has also been demanded by some prominent members of
Russia’s large Armenian community. They include billionaire businessman Samvel
Karapetian and Ara Abrahamian, the pro-Kremlin head of the Union of Armenians of
Russia.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2020 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
Armenia Prosecutor General’s Office sending publications about disclosed CSTO documents to Special Investigation Service
News.am, Armenia
Dec 27 2020
Armenia Prosecutor General’s Office sending publications about disclosed CSTO documents to Special Investigation Service
14:40, 27.12.2020
Advisor to the Prosecutor General of Armenia Gor Abrahamyan posted the following on his Facebook page:
“Since there are many questions, I have to inform that the Prosecutor General’s Office is sending the news and publications about the disclosed documents of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to the Special Investigation Service of Armenia so that the latter investigates the news and articles within the scope of the criminal case that the Service is investigating.”