Author: Kajoyan Gevork

UN Official Calls For Immediate Relief In Nagorno-Karabakh

Kajoyan Gevork
Aug 17 2023
By RFE/RL staff – Aug 17, 2023, 11:00 AM CDT

  • Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh accuse Azerbaijan of enforcing a blockade since December, leading to critical shortages of essentials.
  • A man reportedly died from malnutrition, with concerns growing about a potential “genocide” of the local Armenian population.
  • Despite tensions, Azerbaijan proposes an alternative supply route, while Armenia emphasizes the violation of the 2020 Moscow-brokered ceasefire.

??A senior UN official told the United Nations Security Council on August 16 that the delivery of humanitarian relief to Nagorno-Karabakh by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) must be allowed to resume through any available routes.

Edem Wosornu said the ICRC is doing everything it can but can only cover the most urgent needs.

“Other impartial humanitarian relief must also be allowed to reach civilians who need it, and a sustainable solution for safe and regular transit of people and goods must be found,” Wosornu said.

Wosornu spoke at an emergency meeting regarding the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Azerbaijan’s mostly Armenian-populated breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The meeting at the UN headquarters in New York City came after the Armenian UN Ambassador Mher Margarian said in a letter to the Security Council that the people of Nagorno-Karabakh are “on the verge of a full-fledged humanitarian catastrophe.”

Both Armenia and separatist authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh have said that Azerbaijan has blockaded the region since December, resulting in shortages of food, medicines, and energy.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan discussed the situation with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, and stressed the need to avert a “humanitarian disaster,” TASS reported.

The situation has deteriorated to such a point that Armenia’s Human Rights Defender’s Office said on August 15 that a man around the age of 40 had died as a result of chronic malnutrition, protein and energy deficiency.

The claim has not been independently verified but a former International Criminal Court prosecutor said earlier in August that the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, the only link between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, may amount to a “genocide” of the local Armenian population. Baku has rejected such an assertion.

Tensions sparked by the blockade escalated further after Azerbaijan in June tightened a checkpoint installed in April on the road known as the Lachin Corridor, claiming that “various types of contraband” had been discovered in the Red Cross vehicles coming from Armenia.

Referring to the blockade, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said on August 11 that Azerbaijan’s moves could result in “nullifying a historic opportunity for peace” between the two South Caucasus nation.

Azerbaijan denies blockading Nagorno-Karabakh and offers an alternative route for supplies via the town of Agdam, which is situated east of the region and is controlled by Baku.

However, Nagorno-Karabakh’s separatist government has rejected that offer, saying Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin Corridor is a violation of the Moscow-brokered 2020 cease-fire agreement that placed the 5-kilometer-wide strip of land under the control of Russian peacekeepers.

A group of UN experts issued a statement on August 7, expressing alarm over the ongoing blockade of the Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan, which they said had led to a dire humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“By lifting the blockade, the [Azerbaijani] authorities can alleviate the suffering of thousands of people in Nagorno-Karabakh and allow for the unimpeded flow of humanitarian assistance to the civilian population,” the experts said. “It is essential to ensure the safety, dignity, and well-being of all individuals during this critical time.”

Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars over Nagorno-Karabakh, a predominantly Armenian-populated mountainous enclave that is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. The most recent war lasted six weeks in late 2020 and left 7,000 soldiers dead on both sides.

As a result of the war, Azerbaijan regained control over a part of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts. The war ended with a Russian-brokered cease-fire under which Moscow deployed about 2,000 troops to serve as peacekeepers.

By RFE/RL


Truck driver suspected of entering opposite lane – Investigative Committee

Kajoyan Gevork

 13:26,

YEREVAN, AUGUST 14, ARMENPRESS. Investigators have revealed new details about the deadly August 14 minibus-truck collision in Shirak Province.

According to the Investigative Committee, the driver of the ZIL truck had entered the wrong side of the road when the head-on collision took place.

11 people died Monday in a car crash involving a minibus and a truck in Shirak Province. The Volkswagen van carrying passengers collided with a ZIL truck near the village of Lanjik.




Azerbaijan is perpetrating genocide in Nagorno-Karabakh, says ex-prosecutor

Kajoyan Gevork
California18
Aug 9 2023
AUGUST 10, 2023 CALIFORNIA18

The report by Luis Moreno Ocampo issued on Tuesday says that the blockade applied by Azerbaijan to the only road that links Armenia with Nagorno-Karabakh prevents the shipment of food, medical supplies and other basic items to the region of some 120,000 inhabitants.

“There are reasons to believe that genocide is being perpetrated,” the Ocampo report says, noting that a UN convention defines genocide as “the intentional imposition of living conditions against a group calculated to bring about their physical destruction.”

“There are no crematoriums or machete attacks. The invisible weapon for genocide in this case is famine. Without immediate drastic change, this group of Armenians will be destroyed within a few weeks,” the report says.

Nagorno-Karabakh is a region within Azerbaijan that fell under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenian forces in a separatist conflict that ended in 1994. Armenian forces also gained control of substantial territory around the region.

Azerbaijan regained control of the surrounding territory in a six-week war against Armenia in 2020. A Russian-brokered armistice left the regional capital, Stepanakert, linked to Armenia by a single pathway known as the Lachin Corridor, in which the forces allegedly Russian companies had to guarantee free transit.

A government representative in Azerbaijan rejected the report by Ocampo, who was the ICC’s first prosecutor, stating that it “contains unfounded allegations and accusations.”

“He is biased and distorts the truth situation on the ground, and has serious factual, legal and substantive errors,” Hikmet Hajiyev, an aide to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

In December, crowds claiming to be environmental activists clogged the Lachin Corridor. Azerbaijan then set up a military checkpoint on the road, saying it was necessary to block traffic to prevent the smuggling of weapons and other goods.

Film: Wonderful US Trailer for Armenian Story ‘Amerikatsi’ About Resilience

Kajoyan Gevork
Aug 9 2023

by Alex Billington
August 9, 2023
Source: YouTube

“I can see you better than you.” Variance has revealed the trailer for an Armenian film titled Amerikatsi, made by filmmaker Michael A. Goorjian. This premiered at last year’s Woodstock Film Festival, and it also played at the Hamburg, Glasgow, Fargo, and RiverRun Fests recently. The comedy-drama film was shot in Armenia by People of Ar Productions. Amerikatsi is about hope and the art of survival in the worse of conditions. Armenian-American repatriate, Charlie Bakhchinyan, is arrested for the absurd crime of wearing a tie in Soviet Armenia. Alone in solitary confinement, he soon discovers that he can see into an apartment building near the prison from his cell window. By always watching the native Armenian couple living in the apartment, day in and day out, Charlie soon discovers everything he came back to Armenia for. The film stars Goorjian as Charlie, also with Hovik Keuchkerian, Nelli Uvarova, Mikhail Trukin, and Narine Grigoryan. This looks extraordinary! How have we missed this until now?! This is absolutely worth a look.

Here’s the official US trailer (+ two posters) for Michael A. Goorjian’s Amerikatsi, direct from YouTube:



In 1948, decades after fleeing Armenia to the US as a young child, Charlie (Michael A. Goorjian) returns in the hopes of finding a connection to his roots, but what he finds instead is a country crushed under Soviet rule. After being unjustly imprisoned, Charlie falls into despair, until he discovers that he can see into a nearby apartment from his cell window – the home of a prison guard. As his life unexpectedly becomes entwined with the man’s, he begins to see that the true spirit of his homeland is alive in its passionate people. Filled with warmth and humor, Goorjian’s Amerikatsi film celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the bonds that unite us all. Amerikatsi is both written and directed by Armenian-American actor / filmmaker Michael A. Goorjian, director of many films including Oakland Underground, Illusion, The Shift, The Magic Hand of Chance, Tales of Everyday Magic, My Greatest Teacher, and Entanglement previously. It’s produced by Robert Patrick Malkassian, Michael A. Goorjian, Arman Nshanian, and Sol Tryon. This initially premiered at the 2022 Woodstock Film Festival last year. Variance Films will debut Amerikatsi in select US theaters (NY & LA) starting September 8th, 2023 coming soon. Want to watch?


https://www.firstshowing.net/2023/wonderful-us-trailer-for-armenian-story-amerikatsi-about-resilience/




In joint letter to European Union, CEC and the World Council of Churches urge lifting blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh

Kajoyan Gevork

 12:22, 7 August 2023

YEREVAN, AUGUST 7, ARMENPRESS. The World Council of Churches (WCC) and Conference of European Churches (CEC) have sent an open letter to the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, expressing deep concern about the current situation in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh). 

The WCC and the CEC urge the European Union and the whole international community to step up immediately their efforts and act without delay to bring the blockade to an end in order to save the lives of the Artsakh residents and to restore and respect their fundamental rights and freedoms.

Below is the full letter:

“We at the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Conference of European Churches (CEC) are deeply concerned about the current situation in Nagorno – Karabagh. The plight of Armenian citizens, call on us all to exert in our relevant spheres of responsibilities the maximum effort at persuading Azerbaijan to respect the orders of the International Court of Justice to immediately lift the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh by reopening the Lachin Corridor. The humanitarian crisis in the blockaded enclave of Nagorno-Karabagh (Artsakh) is escalating into tragic levels of experiences with the prolonged deprivations and sufferings of civilians. We are, thus, prompted to stress the urgency of finding solutions to the ongoing crisis. We reiterate our previous statements and positions on the need for urgent and immediate action by the international community. The Lachin corridor is the only road that links the region to Armenia and it has been blocked for more than seven months, seriously affecting the lives and living conditions of 120,000 people, including children. They are lacking food, medication, electricity, and fuel supply. Their fundamental human rights are increasing violated on a daily basis. We have urged Azerbaijan and other actors to be involved in the process of establishing stability to put new efforts into the immediate lifting of the blockade by reopening the Lachin corridor to enable the free and safe passage of civilians, unimpeded transport, and H.E. Josep Borrell Fontelles High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy European Union Geneva and Brussels flow of goods along it to guarantee the accessibility of humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering of the Armenian population of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh). The ever-tightening blockade continues to put the people of Nagorno Karabakh into seriously deteriorating circumstances. It prevents furthering the progress toward settlement of outstanding issues between Azerbaijan and Armenia from their November 9, 2020, agreement as well facing in full the legal, political and ethical consequences of the atrocious 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war. The WCC and the CEC urges the European Union and the whole international community to step up immediately their efforts and act without delay to bring the blockade to an end in order to save the lives of the Artsakh residents and to restore and respect their fundamental rights and freedoms. In this regard, we believe that a step in the direction to normalize relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan through the sustained dialogue between Baku and Stepanakert/Khankendi is most necessary. We reiterate our firm conviction that lasting peace could be built only on the genuine commitment of all interested parties in negotiations who take seriously the full observance of all human rights and the fundamental freedom of all people based on mutual trust and respect. We continue to hope and pray for the ending of this blockade so that peace, harmony and justice may prevail.”

"The humanitarian crisis in NK will be presented in the UN Security Council" – Armenian Foreign Ministry

Kajoyan Gevork
Aug 4 2023
  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

Armenia demands Lachin corridor be opened

“Armenia will present the humanitarian crisis in NK during open discussions in the UN Security Council,” David Knyazyan, head of the multilateral policy department of the Armenian Foreign Ministry, told reporters.

He also said that Armenia will be represented at the hearings by one of the Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs, and the topic of discussion will be “ensuring food security in the context of conflict and eliminating hunger.” According to Knyazyan, official Yerevan is using all available tools to achieve the unblocking of the Lachin corridor. For this, steps are being taken to “increase pressure on Azerbaijan, which is already happening.”

The Prime Minister of Armenia also touched upon the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh and the deepening humanitarian crisis during the government meeting. Nikol Pashinyan called on Azerbaijan “as a step of commitment to the peace agenda to let through the humanitarian cargo of Armenia sent to NK.” We are talking about assistance from the government of Armenia, which has been idle at the border since July 26.

Employees of the UN Office in Armenia visited the border village of Kornidzor, where trucks with humanitarian aid are stationed. However, a targeted and specific assessment of the situation based on the results of the visit has not yet been made.

In Armenia, indignation over the inaction of international structures that are limited to appeals is growing. People do not expect statements, but actions to overcome the crisis. Comments of Armenian users of social networks are at the end of the article.

  • A positive impetus to the negotiations? Baku and Yerevan on the Moscow meeting of foreign ministers
  • “It is useless to discuss illusory solutions” – Armenian analyst on the situation in NK
  • “Azerbaijan is creating a ghetto in NK” and other statements from Pashinyan interview

The Armenian government has sent about 400 tons of humanitarian aid to Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been blocked since December last year. 19 trucks have been near the village of Kornidzor, near the Lachin corridor, for more than a week. On August 2, they were joined by two trucks from the Grand Candy company with sweets for the children of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Yerevan says it has asked Russian peacekeepers to deliver aid through the Lachin corridor, but has not yet received a response. Baku did not allow the humanitarian cargo to pass, declaring the initiative of the Armenian side a “provocation against the territorial integrity” of Azerbaijan.”

Since June 15, the unrecognized NKR has been under a strict blockade, Azerbaijan does not allow the supply of either food or medicines. Until recently, the International Committee of the Red Cross was allowed to transport patients in need of specialized care to Armenia.

However, since July 29, the movement of ICRC vehicles has also been restricted. On this day, 68-year-old NK resident Vagif Khachatryan, who needs urgent heart surgery, was detained at an Azerbaijani checkpoint located near the Khakari bridge. Baku accuses him “of an attack on the village of Meshali in December 1991, as a result of which civilians were killed.” Khachatryan’s daughters claim that their father worked as a driver in Soviet times and could not be the “organizer of the genocide.” Armenia declared that “detaining a person under the protection of the ICRC is a war crime.”

Euronews interview with Pashinyan, who talked about the situation in NK and explained in detail what the “humanitarian crisis” means

“At the moment, I can’t say anything more than what was said in the statement that was made last night and published this morning at five o’clock in the morning. We expect the published statement to lead to positive results.”

These are the words of Nanna Skau, Acting UN Resident Coordinator in Armenia, in response to questions from Armenian journalists about her opinion regarding the unblocking of the Lachin corridor and the delivery of aid to NK.

Near the village of Kornidzor, where trucks with food, baby food and medicines are idle, she only quoted the statement of the UN Secretary General.

Earlier it was reported that António Guterres was “deeply concerned about reports of problems related to freedom of movement along the Lachin corridor” and the aggravation of the humanitarian situation. The UN Secretary General called for “immediate steps to deliver humanitarian assistance to people in need.”

“The Secretary General calls on the parties to intensify their efforts for a long-term settlement of relations in the interests of security and peace in the region,” the statement said.

Armenia demands Lachin corridor be opened

This opinion was expressed in an interview with journalists by Vardan Sargsyan, a representative of the working group on the settlement of the humanitarian crisis in NK, created under the Armenian government.

“Children are actually deprived not only of these sweets [in trucks idle near the village of Kornidzor], but also of daily food, not to mention the right to health care and education,” he said.

Sargsyan expects that the sweets intended for them would still be delivered in the near future, along with the rest of the cargo.

He said that trucks transporting humanitarian cargo to NK are equipped with cooling systems.

Diplomats and representatives of international structures accredited in Armenia got acquainted with the situation on the ground in Kornidzor, where a convoy with humanitarian cargo has been standing since the evening of July 26

The Prime Minister of Armenia, during a live government meeting, once again stressed that Azerbaijan is illegally blocking the import of humanitarian goods to Nagorno-Karabakh:

“Obstructing the passage of goods is a flagrant violation of the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020 and the decisions of the International Court of Justice.”

Pashinyan also mentioned the interview of the President of Azerbaijan to the Euronews TV channel, in which Aliyev said that the Lachin corridor was not blocked.

“In this regard, it is necessary to listen to the explanation of the Russian peacekeeping contingent stationed in NK, why they do not provide humanitarian aid to Nagorno-Karabakh, if Azerbaijan claims that it does not block the Lachin corridor,” the prime minister said.

He believes that the clarification of this issue is extremely important, and the relevant authorities should receive an answer to it.

On the Armenian-Azerbaijani talks, he said that, despite all difficulties, there is a chance to achieve a long-term, stable and lasting peace. He called on Baku to refrain from steps that reduce the chances of achieving it. As an example of such a step, he cited the detention of a patient whom the ICRC was transporting to Armenia for treatment.

“The release of Vagif Khachatri, other prisoners, hostages and detainees would be an impressive signal of commitment to the peace agenda,” he stated.

All information about Armenia’s attempt to deliver humanitarian aid to compatriots, statements from Yerevan and Baku, the reaction of international partners

Recently, the following comments have been increasingly appearing in the Armenian segment of social networks:

Calls, calls again. You have been calling for 8 months now. Don’t feel sorry for people? What are you waiting for our children to starve to death?”

“The whole world values oil and gas more than human lives.”

“It turns out that all international structures are incapacitated. They can only make useless speeches.”

“If you think that Putin has become so helpless that he cannot get permission from Aliyev to send humanitarian supplies to Artsakh, then you are terribly mistaken. He needs this blockade. Karabakh Armenians are in fact hostages not so much of Aliyev as of Putin.


https://jam-news.net/armenia-demands-lachin-corridor-be-opened/

Armenian community call for Malta’s support in Azerbaijan crisis

Kajoyan Gevork
Malta – Aug 4 2023
Sean Montebello
August 4, 2023 17:24

The Armenian community in Malta organised a demonstration on Wednesday to raise awareness on the humanitarian crisis unfolding in an area of Azerbaijan known as Nagorno Karabakh, which has been blockaded by Azerbaijani military forces for half a year, preventing vital supplies from reaching ethnically Armenian civilians.

Members of the community organised in front of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, currently headed by Minister Ian Borg, urging the Maltese government to “use its diplomatic channels and international influence to address the urgent situation”.

Malta’s support for the cause would be especially influential as both a UN member state and a member of the UN Security Council, the local Armenian diaspora claimed in a press release issued on Friday.

The Maltese government has had close ties with the Azerbaijani government, being supplied liquefied natural gas from the country through the infamous SOCAR agreement with the Electrogas consortium.

Disgraced former prime minister Joseph Muscat similarly has close ties with the country, forming part of Azerbaijani dictator Ilham Aliyev’s Nizami Ganjavi International Centre (NGIC).

Muscat’s visit to the country last June included an NGIC video-watching session about Azerbaijani lands ‘liberated’ from occupation. Ostensibly, these lands would be those contested as part of the protracted Armenia-Azerbaijan war which has seen tens of thousands killed.

The local Armenian community also called upon the support of European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, asking for her support in raising awareness internationally and “mobilizing action to resolve the situation”.

The Azerbaijani government has blockaded the ethnic-Armenian enclave community in Azerbaijan for almost half a year, through a checkpoint on a mountainous road leading to it known as the Lachin corridor. In the press release, the community described how approximately 400 tonnes of vital humanitarian aid have been blocked in the last few days.

The International Committee of the Red Cross confirmed in a statement on Tuesday that they have been unable to deliver vital humanitarian aid such as food and medicine to tens of thousands of Armenians in Karabakh, stating that “despite persistent efforts, we are unable to deliver aid” in a Twitter post.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been ongoing since 2020, consisting largely of border disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan with near-constant violations of ceasefire agreements. The conflict has its origins in the late 80s in the years leading up to and following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Disney’s Decision to Cancel Ataturk Series Leaves Turks Angry

Kajoyan Gevork
Aug 3 2023
Hamdi Firat Buyuk
Sarajevo
BIRN

August 3, 202313:16

Disney’s decision to axe a series on Turkey’s founding father Mustafa Kemal Ataturk from its Disney+ streaming service after a campaign by Armenian diaspora groups in the US has been described as ‘shameful’ by Ankara.

Omer Celik, a spokesperson for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, AKP said on Wednesday that the Walt Disney Co’s axing of a series about former Turkish President Mustafa Kemal Ataturk from its Disney+ streaming service was “shameful”.

Celik alleged that the company caved in to “the Armenian lobby” in the US.

The Armenian National Committee of America had called for the cancellation of the series, describing Ataturk as a “dictator and genocide killer” and arguing that he should not get the “Disney treatment”.

The Turkish opposition shared the fury of the government.

“We see the Disney administrators’ decision is a hate crime against our founding father and great leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. We condemn the decision,” said Faik Oztrak, spokesperson for Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party.

The Walt Disney Company confirmed that it cancelled the series for Disney+ streaming but said it will be broadcast in Turkey.

“As a result of the changes made in our content strategy, a special TV version of ‘Ataturk’ will be broadcasted on our FOX channel [in Turkey]; two films will be in the movie theatres [in Turkey] and then on FOX TV screens,” Cenk Soner, the director for Turkey of the Walt Disney Company said on Wednesday.

The series was originally intended to be a six-part period drama be aired on the Disney+ platform for a global audience.

Ebubekir Sahin, head of the Turkish state agency that monitors and sanctions radio and television broadcasts, announced on Wednesday that an investigation has been launched into Disney+.

The Union of Armenian Foundations in Turkey urged the Armenian diaspora to be more reatrained.

“We call on Armenian institutions and organisations in the USA and international media organisations to support the normalisation process between Turkey and Armenia and to act more responsibly,” Bedros Sirinoglu, president of the Union of Armenian Foundations in Turkey, said in a statement.

The modern Turkish republic founded by Ataturk after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire is to celebrate its first 100th anniversary in 2023 and the Disney+ had designed the series to coincide with the centennial.

Armenian diaspora groups describe killings and deportations of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire during World War I as a genocide. They claimed the series would glorify Ataturk as an Ottoman army officer.

Turkey strongly rejects the genocide allegation.

https://balkaninsight.com/2023/08/03/disneys-decision-to-cancel-ataturk-series-leaves-turks-angry/

Yerevan to host IBA Junior World Boxing Championships 2023

Kajoyan Gevork

 15:04, 2 August 2023

YEREVAN, AUGUST 2, ARMENPRESS. Yerevan will host the IBA Junior World Boxing Championships in November-December 2023.

The upcoming event was announced by Arayik Harutyunyan, Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister’s Office.

“80-100 countries will send their teams to our capital. We have hopes of many medals from our young athletes given their excellent results at the European championships,” Harutyunyan said in a Facebook post.