Azerbaijani troops fire at Armenian positions in fresh ceasefire violation

Panorama
Armenia –

The Armenian Defense Ministry has denied Azerbaijan’s accusations of cross-border shooting. Also, it says Azerbaijan itself violated the ceasefire in the border area last night.

“The statement of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry alleging that the Armenian army units opened fire on Azerbaijani combat positions deployed in the eastern section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border on the night of 15-16 July is disinformation,” the ministry said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Azerbaijani military fired at Armenian positions in the border area, also using large-caliber firearms.

“The Azerbaijani fire was suppressed after Armenia’s retaliatory measures,” the statement said.

Opposition says it is preparing declaration recognizing all Pashinyan’s agreements as null and void

NEWS.am
Armenia –

The issue of Artsakh was on the agenda of my meetings in Strasbourg, we also talked about the issue of prisoners of war, Ishkhan Saghatelyan, the coordinator of the Resistance movement said.

His remarks came during a rally in France square, listing several minutes he made from his European visit.

Saghatelyan said that Nikol Pashinyan’s claim that there is a demand formed by the international community to lower the bar in the status of Artsakh is a lie.  “There was a demand for a common peace agenda and to achieve peace, but when I explained to international partners that this peace cannot be at the cost of  repatriation of the Armenian people, depopulation of Artsakh and ethnic cleansing, those justifications and arguments had no objection, which is very understandable,” he said.

The second record, according to him, is that the Armenian authorities, like in all other areas, have completely failed here.  The defense of Armenia and Artsakh on the international platforms is in an absolute state of disrepair, our interests are not protected.

Saghatelyan said that Turkish-Azerbaijani delegations on international platforms present the Resistance movement as revanchists who want to destabilize the situation in the region.  “Our struggle is not only against Nikol’s government, but also against its owners.  In fact, we must realize that today we are fighting not only against the government of the day, but also against Turkey, Azerbaijan and their money-financed agencies, “fakers” and agents,” he said.

The coordinator of the Resistance movement also informed that now they are preparing a declaration of denunciation, cancellation, the content of which is as follows, which the next authorities should consider null and void any agreement reached by Nikol Pashinyan, whether written or verbal.

“Given that Pashinyan has nothing to do with the interests and will of our people, he promised the people one thing with his  government program during the pre-election period, and now he is doing something completely different, he is serving the interests of Azerbaijan and Turkey, putting aside the vital interests of the Armenian people. We will take the initiative that the next government should as a matter of urgency declare null and void any verbal and written agreement reached by Nikol.

And after the final development of this document, we will propose that all political forces and figures of Armenia sign it and the whole world, including Aliyev and Erdogan, and all understand that any agreement reached with Nikol is null and has no legal significance for the Armenian people,” he said.

Simonyan to Serbia envoy: Armenia is advancing agenda of opening era of peace in region

NEWS.am
Armenia –

YEREVAN. – Speaker Alen Simonyan of the Republic of Armenia National Assembly (RA NA) on Thursday received Serbian Ambassador Tatjana Panajotovic Cvetkovic, the NA informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

Welcoming the guest, the RA NA President noted that he is happy that he accepted her credentials while standing in for the President of Armenia, adding that the establishment of a permanent diplomatic representation in Yerevan is the best stimulus for the development of Armenian-Serbian relations and cooperation. The sides referred to the importance of parliamentary diplomacy, considering the exchange of experience and mutual visits as a starting point.

Alen Simonyan pointed to the active contacts of the friendship groups, giving key importance to the development of close cooperation with Serbia within the framework of international organizations: UN, OSCE, CoE, and BSEC.

Reference was made to the issues of the establishment of peace and security in the region. Alen Simonyan noted that Armenia is advancing the agenda of opening an era of peace in the region.

The prospects for the development of Armenian-Serbian multi-sectoral cooperation were discussed.

CivilNet: Parliament proposes to strip most opposition deputies of mandates

CIVILNET.AM

13 Jul, 2022 10:07

  • The conditions for obtaining Armenian citizenship may be tightened. Applicants will be required to spend at least 60 days in the country during a period of two years.
  • The United States fully supports the normalization process between Armenia and Turkey, the State Department said in a statement.
    And the leadership council of Armenia’s parliament will convene a special session to discuss depriving certain opposition deputies of their mandates.

Draft national strategy in fighting disinformation put into public debate

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 14:19, 6 July 2022

YEREVAN, JULY 6, ARMENPRESS. The Freedom of Information Center of Armenia and the Center of Public Relations and Information of the Office of the Prime Minister jointly organized a public discussion today over the draft national strategy of the fight against disinformation.

The strategy aims at ensuring the government’s proper response to disinformation, by preventing, reducing and eliminating the disinformation risks.

President of the Freedom of Information Center of Armenia Shushan Doydoyan said they have identified three main priority directions for this purpose. The first direction is to strengthen the capacity of the institutes of Armenia to prevent, find, respond to and analyze disinformation.

The second direction is to improve the mutual partnership and mobilize the private sector.

“We gave a big role to the private business, especially the companies operating in IT industry which could play a major role in using artificial intelligence and creating innovative tools. These could help both the government and the citizens to quickly find fake news and resist them”, she said.

And the third direction is to raise the level of education on media freedoms and media literacy.

“This draft has been developed for a two-year period, and we are confident that when we sum up the results in two years, we will be able to proudly record that it really left some impact in our country”, Shushan Doydoyan said.

Chief of Staff at the Prime Minister’s Office Arayik Harutyunyan said that nowadays disinformation is a biggest challenge, and all countries are facing this problem. “I welcome the creation of the single platform and I think that engagement of civil society in all reforms and all strategies only gives benefit and further improves the strategy”, he said.

Director of the Center of Public Relations and Information at the PM’s Office Gor Tsarukyan thanked everyone for joining this initiative. “I am sure that together we can develop practical and effective tools, strategy that will help to register progress in this field in the next 1-2 years”, he said.

German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development to visit Armenia

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 16:51, 29 June 2022

YEREVAN, JUNE 29, ARMENPRESS. German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Svenja Schulze will arrive in Armenia on a two-day visit on June 30, the German Embassy in Armenia said.

She will also visit Georgia.

In Armenia, Svenja Schulze will meet with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan.

According to the German Embassy’s statement, the Federal Minister will propose the Armenian side to raise the cooperation on development policy to a level of bilateral firm partnership. The visit will greatly contribute to strengthening and expanding the cooperation between Germany and Armenia over development policy.

“This year Germany and Armenia are celebrating the 30th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. The visit of the Federal Minister is an important step to mark this occasion. Through the contacts with our partners I would like to know how Germany could at best assist Armenia”, the Federal Minister said as quoted by the Embassy.

Pensioners in Armenia to get 10% cashback for non-cash transactions

Public Radio of Armenia
Armenia – July 1 2022

The program of 10% cashback for non-cash transactions for pensioners and pension who receive benefits, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs informs.

From now on, citizens who receive their pension or benefits in a non-cash way and make non-cash purchases will receive a 10% refund next month, but not more than 5,000 drams.

The refund also applies to utility payments. The mechanism applies not only to ATMs, but also to utility payments made through mobile banking applications.

The VTB Armenia Bank, Ardshinbank, and Armenian Business Bank have already joined the program. All citizens who wish to change the organization providing their pension or benefit can apply to the regional center of the Unified Social Service.

Armenia FM: OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs play key role in Karabakh conflict settlement

NEWS.am
Armenia –

There is a great potential for strengthening economic cooperation between Armenia and Greece, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said after his meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.

 “Armenian-Greek relations are developing not only within bilateral but also on multilateral important platforms. In this regard, I would like to highlight three important dimensions.

First of all, the cooperation within the framework of the Armenia-Greece-Cyprus trilateral format was at the centre of our discussions. We consider this important initiative an effective tool for establishing stability, security and peace in the region, and are hopeful that through joint efforts it will serve the vital interests of our three countries and peoples. As Minister Dendias noted we have very important and concrete agreements regarding this format.

Of course, today we referred to the issues related to international and regional security and stability.

I presented to my colleague in detail the situation created around the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the position of Armenia on the processes aimed at establishing regional peace and stability, the negotiations on the normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

I also touched upon issues related to the processes of the unblocking of the regional economic communications and transport infrastructure, the works within the Commission of delimitation and border security and overall the process on peace agreement.

I stressed the key role of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship in promoting the peace process for the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Armenia appreciates the position of Greece in support of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the mandate and within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship.

I would also like to seize the opportunity and thank my good friend Nikos, who visited Yerevan during the 44-day war and expressed the sympathy of Greece and the Greek people to us in that crucial period. We will never forget that gesture of a strategic partner.

Unfortunately, more than a year and a half after the ceasefire, Azerbaijan continues its provocative actions against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, while the warmongering and expansionist rhetoric has become an integral part of the daily discourse of the leadership of Azerbaijan.

Violating international humanitarian law and the obligations undertaken with the Trilateral Statement of November 9, 2020, Azerbaijan continues to hold the Armenian PoWs and civilians in captivity, while the fate of hundreds of missing persons, including dozens of enforced disappeared, remains unresolved. All the civilized countries of the world, I repeat, all the civilized countries, using all possible opportunities, should contribute, call and insist Azerbaijan to return our prisoners.

Throughout the millennia-long history, the Armenian people have created wonderful churches and monuments that are an integral part of the global cultural heritage. Today, unfortunately, part of this heritage is in danger of imminent destruction. As a result of the state-sponsored, official policy of the Azerbaijani authorities, we have desecrated churches, shattered monuments annihilated of their Armenian trace in the territories fallen under the control of Azerbaijan. Unlike many other such unacceptable cases, we can not say that the world is silent. The world, indeed, talks, and has expressed itself very clearly. One bright example of that is the the decision of the UN Court of Justice to apply provisional measures in 2021, which obliges Azerbaijan to end this policy.

We expect a clear, targeted and continuous response of the international community to this behaviour of Azerbaijan and emphasize the urgency of the involvement of relevant international organizations in Nagorno-Karabakh, especially the implementation of the UNESCO fact-finding mission, which will be a significant step towards preserving this heritage.

And, of course, today I want to emphasize once again that peace is our principle, our policy and strategy. We are really aiming to build a peaceful, secure, stable South Caucasus, we hope that our neighbour will restrain from its expansionist aspirations, and will demonstrate a more constructive position on all issues,” the statement reads.

AW: Parliamentary Elections and the Future of the Armenian Community in Lebanon

Yeghia Tashjian is a regional analyst and researcher. He has graduated from the American University of Beirut in Public Policy and International Affairs. He pursued his BA at Haigazian University in political science in 2013. In 2010, he founded the New Eastern Politics forum/blog. He was a research assistant at the Armenian Diaspora Research Center at Haigazian University. Currently, he is the regional officer of Women in War, a gender-based think tank. He has participated in international conferences in Frankfurt, Vienna, Uppsala, New Delhi and Yerevan. He has presented various topics from minority rights to regional security issues. His thesis topic was on China’s geopolitical and energy security interests in Iran and the Persian Gulf. He is a contributor to various local and regional newspapers and a presenter of the “Turkey Today” program for Radio Voice of Van. Recently he has been appointed as associate fellow at the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut and Middle East-South Caucasus expert in the European Geopolitical Forum.