Author: Karapet Navasardian

Armenia Central Bank issues new collector coin

Karapet Navasardian

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 11:01,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Two collector coins – “Arno Babajanyan – 100th anniversary of the birth” and “Grigor Tatevatsi – 675th anniversary of the birth”, have been issued, the Central Bank of Armenia told Armenpress.

Arno Babajanyan – 100th anniversary of the birth

 

Arno Babajanyan (1921-1983) is a famous Armenian composer, pianist, People’s Artist of the USSR (1970).

Babajanyan graduated from the Yerevan and the Moscow Conservatories. In 1950-1956 he taught at the Yerevan Conservatory. A celebrated piano virtuoso, Babajanyan was known for performing his own works. A. Khachatryan and S. Rachmaninoff had an influence on formation of Babajanyan’s creative style, which was mostly expressed in his early works: the piano concert (1944) and the violin concert (1949). The works “Vagharshapat Dance”, “Prelude” and “Impromptu” won the first prize at the 1st World Youth and Student Festival in Prague in 1947. The composer’s creative personality was obviously shown in the “Heroic Ballad” (1950) written for the piano and orchestra (USSR State Prize, 1951), then in the piano trio (1952).

Babajanyan composed in different styles – classical, pop, jazz. He was one of the prominent masters of song in the Soviet era. He wrote many lyrical songs, music for dramatic performances (W. Saroyan’s “My heart’s in the highlands”) and movies (“The first love song”, co-author Gh. Saryan, “On the path of thunder”, “The mechanics of happiness”).

As one of much-loved composers of the Soviet people, Babajanyan holds a special place in the history of Armenian and Soviet music thanks to his unique natural talent, deep sensitivity and musical _expression_.

Obverse: a wedding couple, a treble clef, as well as a stylized rose and vinyl.

Reverse: Arno Babajanyan’s portrait, stylized images of vinyl, piano keys, notes and pen.

Designer: Vardan Vardanyan.

The coin is minted in the Lithuanian Mint.

 

Technical specification

 

Face value                           1000

Metal/fineness                 silver 925

Weight                                 33,6

Diameter                             40,0

Quantity                              500

Edge                                      ribbed

Quality                                  proof

 

Grigor Tatevatsi – 675th anniversary of the birth

 

Grigor Tatevatsi (1346-1409) is the thrice greatest archimandrite of the Armenian Church, philosopher, theologian, philologist, pedagogue, miniature painter, musician.

Tatevatsi studied in the theological seminary of the monastery of Tatev, was mentored by a great theologian-philosopher Hovhan Vorotnetsi, after whose death he headed the higher clerical schools of Tatev and Aprakounis and taught theology, philosophy, grammar, music theory and other subjects. He also lectured at the clerical schools of Metsopavank and Saghmosavankchurches. In the meanwhile, he was dealing with national-ecclesiastical issues, confronting the Catholic preachers, i.e. unitarians, in his struggle to back the orthodox persuasions and independence of the Armenian Church.

Settled in Tatev in 1390, Tatevatsi brought around him people who came from Syunik and different parts of Armenia to study. He presented his pedagogical views in the work “Constitution of Education”, which was phenomenalto the medieval Armenian pedagogical literature. Under Tatevatsi’s governance the theological seminary of the monastery of Tatev became a university, reaching its peak of prosperity, turning into a center of science, culture, art, and spiritual life.

Tatevatsi wrote valuable theological, denominational and philosophical works. Most important of them are “The Book of Inquiries” and “Voskeporiq” encyclopedic works, which bring together the centuries-old achievements of the Armenian denominational thought, as well as “The Winter Volume” and “The Summer Volume” predicant books.

Tatevatsirewrote and illustrated the Gospels, which are kept in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and Matenadaran named after Mesrop Mashtots.

The Armenian Apostolic Saint Church has ordained Grigor Tatevatsi a saint, and commemorates him on the Saturday before the fourth Sunday of Lent.

Obverse: the Tatev Monastery.

Reverse: the bas-relief of Tatevatsi on the wall of the Armenian Church of the Holy Transfiguration of the Armenian Diocese in New Nakhijevan and Russia (architect: Artak Ghulyan) in Moscow.

Designers: Karapet Abrahamyan (obverse) and Lusine Lalayan (reverse).

The coin is minted in the Lithuanian Mint.

 

Technical specification

 

Face value                           1000

Metal/fineness                 silver 925

Weight                                 33,6

Diameter                             40,0

Quantity                              500

Edge                                      ribbed

Quality                                  proof

 

Notice

 

Collector coins are made of precious metals and are issued to present to the society the national, international, historical and cultural, spiritual and other values of the country, to immortalize these values in the metal and to meet the demands of the numismatic market.

Like any other currency the collector coins have face value which makes them the means of payment. However, the face value of these coins is much lower that their cost price which includes the cost of the precious metal used for manufacturing of the coin, mintage and other expenses. Low face value and high cost price allow these coins to be considered as the items of collection and not the means of payment used in money circulation. The collector coins have also the sale price set by the Central Bank of Armenia.

As the items of collection the collector coins are issued in very restricted quantities and are not reissued.

Numismatists, collectors and all interested persons can buy the Armenian collector coins in the sales salon “Numismatist” which is in the building of the Central Bank of Armenia and is open for everyone.

After Brutal War, Armenia’s Christians Say Birth of Christ Gives Them Hope for ‘Rebirth of Our Nation and Our Dreams’

Karapet Navasardian
Jan 8 2021
01-08-2021
Chuck Holton


ARMENIA – In October, fighting broke out between two former Soviet-held countries, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The short war resulted in more than 5,000 dead and 100,000 displaced. 

A cease-fire ended the fighting in November, but Armenia has been wracked by ongoing strife since then. 

Now it’s winter in Armenia. The cold weather might be brutal, but the citizens of this historically Christian nation make it through by drawing on warm traditions of faith and family. 

The first recorded celebration of Christmas was in the year 336 AD when the Roman emperor Constantine declared December 25th would be celebrated as the day of Christ’s birth. But more than 30 years earlier, Armenians were commemorating the birth of Christ on a different day – January 6th. And it’s still celebrated that way here today.

“We celebrate Christmas on the eve of Christmas, the night of January 5th, and that’s when we celebrate the candlelight liturgy and that’s when we announce the birth of the Christ,” said Armenian worshipper Seda Grigorian. “And the next day, in the morning January 6 again we have liturgies all over, at churches all over the world.”
 
More than 95% of Armenians claim Christianity, and so religious holidays like this one are very important here, following the traditions passed down by the Armenian Apostolic Church for millennia.

The Hagartsin Monastery is located in the northern part of Armenia in a town called Dilijan. And Christians here have been celebrating Christ’s birth in this spot for over 1,000 years. This year’s celebration is a little subdued, and there’s a reason for that. CBN News talked to one of the priests here to find out why. 

Bishop Bagrat Galstanyan, Primate of the Tavush Diocese, Armenian Apostolic Church noted, “It’s about our existence, our identity, everything.” 

Galstanyan is not talking about the Armenian church, though that is central to life here in Armenia. He’s talking about their homeland, part of which was just lost in a short but intense conflict with their eastern neighbor, Azerbaijan. Starting in September 2020, the Azeri army moved in to take over lands where Armenians have lived for thousands of years, and the loss is deeply felt among the people here.

“It’s traumatic, let’s say, and we still need time to truly analyze and understand what happened to us and why it happened, and make a strong commitment for revival,” Bishop Galstanyan said. 

“This year we are not celebrating the holidays, the New Years’ and Christmas, in a festive way because as you know Armenia was hit by a devastating war in 2020, which left us with heavy losses,” said Grigorian. “We lost our historic lands.”

Normally the capital city of Yerevan is heavily decorated with lights for the Christmas season, but this year between the COVID virus and the war, the mood is subdued. Nevertheless, these worshippers are putting their faith in God for the future.

“This is a moment of mourning. This is a moment of reflection,” Grigorian explained. “And this is a moment of also appreciating what we have, and also the birth of Christ is also allowing us to think about the rebirth of our nation and of our dreams, and hopefully being able to stand up again and protect our land.”

Aliyev’s speech included open threats against Armenia – Ombudsman

Karapet Navasardian
Public Radio of Armenia
Jan 8 2021

Yesterday, on January 7, 2021, the President of Azerbaijan, in his speech summarizing 2020, used statements, which are part of Azerbaijan’s anti-Armenian policy and organized propaganda of hostility towards the Armenian people, Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan says.

In particular, he says, the speech included open threats against Armenia and the Armenian society, expressions threatening the entire Armenian people and insulting their dignity.

“The speech also referred to the isolation of Artsakh, and to the disruption of humanitarian aid to Artsakh. This, as a matter of law, violates the internationally recognized principle that no one should be left behind and no human right ignored, regardless of the political status of the territory in which one is present or resides therein,” the Ombudsman said in a Facebook post.

The Ombudsman of Armenia says speech of the President of Azerbaijan should be viewed in the context that the entirety of the war of September-November 2020 was accompanied by the Azerbaijani armed forces’ onslaught onto internationally recognized rights to life, health, property, and other internationally protected rights of Armenians. These gross violations of rights were carried out and caused mass destruction of peaceful Armenian residential towns, villages and communities. Similar violations were also recorded at different times and instances which predated this war.

“The wording and emphasis of this speech should be viewed in the context of the condemnable actions committed by the Azerbaijani military in recent days against the border residents of our country and, in general, our people,” she said.

Here are just two such examples, which are based on alarming complaints addressed to Armenia’s Human Rights Defender from civilians of bordering regions, as well as on monitoring of the Defender’s Office:

1) placing a sign with “Welcome to Azerbaijan” and a map covering the territory of the Republic of Armenia in the middle of the road connecting the two communities of Syunik region of Armenia, Goris and Vorotan, and doing it in a way that intimidates civilians;

2) placing Azerbaijani flags on civilian houses in peaceful communities of Syunik region and posting videos that clearly offend civilians in order to blatantly intimidate them and much more.

And all these activities provoking civilians are done against the background of the crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by the Azerbaijani armed forces during this war.

“Therefore, I draw the attention of the international community to the fact that the distortions and emphases of the speech of the President of Azerbaijan on January 7, 2021 violate international humanitarian law and international human rights law in general,” Tatoyan said.

“These sentiments are absolutely reprehensible and continue to serve to encourage anti-Armenian policies and hostility towards the Armenian people at the highest state level,” the Ombudsman said.


‘This is our mission’: Catholic archbishop brings aid to suffering Armenians

Karapet Navasardian
Herald Malaysia
Jan 8 2021
Fr. Raphael has served as the bishop of Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe since 2011. He is responsible for an estimated 618,000 Armenian Rite Catholics in countries such as Ukraine, Georgia, Russia, and, of course, Armenia itself.

YEREVAN: Archbishop Raphael Minassian is a man of action who has little time for the formalities of ecclesiastical life. 

Speaking from the Armenian capital, Yerevan, on Jan. 5, he said that he felt uncomfortable being addressed as “Your Excellency.”

“I leave everything to divine providence because I’m a very simple clergy working for the Church,” he explained. “‘Excellency,’ etc., are for other people, not for me. I am Fr. Raphael.”

Fr. Raphael has served as the bishop of Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe since 2011. He is responsible for an estimated 618,000 Armenian Rite Catholics in countries such as Ukraine, Georgia, Russia, and, of course, Armenia itself. 

He said that as Armenia enters 2021 it is facing multiple crises that are driving many of its three million people into poverty.

He said: “Ex-Soviet countries, in general, are still unable to be self-sufficient. That’s why the poor class of society is high. There is no system that could help them to be comfortable in their daily life. Plus, we have the coronavirus. Plus we had the war.”

Fr. Raphael was referring to the recent conflict between Armenia and its neighbor Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The area lies within Azerbaijan but is home to ethnic Armenians who refer to the territory as Artsakh. 

The war raged from Sept. 27 to Nov. 10 at the cost of more than 6,000 soldiers’ lives. Ten of thousands of civilians fled to Yerevan, where they found refuge in schools, hotels, and private homes. 

“The whole situation is very complicated, very confusing for the people who emigrated from their country,” said Fr. Raphael. “They have to find an apartment to live, and also work and to feed their family members.” 

As president of Caritas Armenia, the 74-year-old archbishop is leading the Catholic outreach to the country’s most desperate people.

“This is our mission as a Catholic Church, without putting in any difference between the people. We are looking only for the person in need,” he said.

It’s an important point because Catholics are a tiny minority in Armenia, numbering around 160,000.

Most citizens belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church, one of the six ancient Oriental Orthodox Churches and Armenia’s national church.

Fr. Raphael emphasized that Caritas Armenia cares for orphans, refugees, and ill people with the help of benefactors from around the world. 

He noted that the group For the Martyrs, led by Gia Chacón, recently visited the country to deliver gifts to displaced children as part of its Operation Christmas for Armenia initiative.

He said that Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), as well as Aid to the Church in Need, were also making significant contributions.

But besides these organizations which have a long-term commitment to the country, the archbishop said there were others that would not remain in Armenia for long.

“At this moment, to tell you the truth, there are so many people coming from all over the world to help. They want to give it [aid] and then, after a few months, they want to leave. But the poor will remain poor,” he said.

He urged potential U.S. donors to support the work of CRS and the USCCB in Armenia.  

“Through them, we can take care of the people with certain projects that could be very useful for them. Because I am not from that character to feed the people and then the second day they are still hungry,” he said.

“What I’m trying to do is to find certain ways of helping the people to become self-sufficient.”

Fr. Raphael said he hoped that those who achieved self-sufficiency would in turn support those who are less privileged, creating a virtuous cycle.

He added that Armenians were often reluctant to receive aid because they have a proud tradition of supporting themselves through entrepreneurship amid the upheavals of Armenian history.

Fr. Raphael was born to an Armenian family in Lebanon on Oct. 24, 1946. He was ordained in 1973 in Beirut as a priest of the Patriarchal Congregation of Bzommar, an Armenian Catholic religious congregation of priests founded in 1750.

From 1990 to 2006, he served as a pastor in California, where he helped to create a foundation supporting humanitarian projects in Armenia. He also initiated the construction of St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Catholic Church in Glendale.

In 2005, he was appointed leader of the Armenian Catholic Patriarchal Exarchate of Jerusalem and Amman. His dynamism was evident there too. In 2009, he established perpetual Eucharistic adoration at the church marking the Fourth Station of the Way of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. 

When Fr. Raphael was appointed to his present role as bishop of Armenian Catholics in Eastern Europe nine years ago, he decided to prioritize the Catholic Church’s social and spiritual mission.

“As a Catholic Church, we are trying always to not get involved in the politics. Our assistance is more social and spiritual,” he said, stressing that Catholics showed the utmost respect for members of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

“There is no difference in the proclamation of the faith between the Armenian Catholic Church and the Armenian Apostolic Church. They have the same creed. They have the same liturgy. They have the same prayer.”

He added that, while some clergy emphasized the differences between the two communions, “we don’t have any difficulty or any problematic situation working with everybody and assisting everybody.” 

Meanwhile, Armenia faces an unsettled future. The country has a special place in Church history as it was the first to embrace Christianity as its state religion. But in the 21st century, Armenia appears isolated and vulnerable. 

On a map, the country looks like a small jigsaw piece inserted between the larger pieces of Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkey. Only one of its four neighboring countries — Georgia — is majority Christian. Religious differences were a factor in the war in Nagorno-Karabakh. 

“You have to take into consideration that we are surrounded by non-Christian countries. So practically we don’t have any window to run from it outside,” Fr. Raphael said.

“So that also is a very hard situation for people who don’t have any direct connection with the world.”

Fr. Raphael explained that he had spent the past nine years seeking to build up Caritas Armenia because he wanted the organization to continue to help the people long after he is gone.

“As you know, the Catholic charity is the tool of the Church, in the social teaching and in the social life. So practically I concentrated everything in the Caritas,” he said.

“Do not let them be attached to the priest, because today I’m here, tomorrow I am going to die. But an organization, that will never die.”––CNA

FP: Armenia Buries Its Dead but Can’t Put to Rest the Horrors of Recent War

Karapet Navasardian
Foreign Policy Magazine
Jan 6 2021


YEREVAN, Armenia—Beneath overcast skies on a desolate hillside, mourners passed each other shovels and took turns heaping earth onto the coffin of the dead soldier.

Leaving behind a wife and daughter, Avetis Avetisyan was 34 when he was killed by an artillery strike in the recent six-week war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Here in the Yerablur Military Memorial Cemetery late this past November, empty pits lay alongside his grave, awaiting more fallen from the battlefield. Atop the hill were older, more elaborate gravestones, etched with the faces of soldiers killed during the first Nagorno-Karabakh war of the 1990s. Now, a whole new hillside of graves stretched out.


“Work has never been busier,” said one gravedigger in his late 50s, heaping earth around a new memorial. “Every day more bodies arrive. Every day we dig more graves. The hill is filling up.”

A gravedigger shovels earth around a new memorial at Yerablur Military Memorial Cemetery on Nov. 30, 2020.JACK LOSH FOR FOREIGN POLICY

New graves for Armenian soldiers killed in the recent war over Nagorno-Karabakh cover the hillside at Yerablur Military Memorial Cemetery on Nov. 30, 2020. JACK LOSH FOR FOREIGN POLICY

The scene points to a devastating loss of life that, coupled with the humiliation of Armenia’s defeat, will reverberate for years. The impact of just 44 days of warfare has the potential to span generations, deepening a venomous hatred between rival states, propelling the region further down its spiral of militarization and fueling yet more conflict in the future.

For though war has ended, peace has not begun. The root causes of the conflict remain unresolved, while sporadic skirmishes, outrage over war crimes, and fears for those still missing prevent raw wounds from healing. As Armenia’s beleaguered prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, said ahead of a recent memorial march to the Yerablur cemetery: “The entire nation has been through—and is going through—a nightmare. Sometimes it seems that all of our dreams have been dashed and our optimism destroyed.”


A Moscow-brokered cease-fire between the two former Soviet republics ended the war in November 2020, authorizing the deployment of Russian peacekeepers to Nagorno-Karabakh and handing back to Azerbaijan most of the territory it had lost to Armenian forces in the first war. As 1994’s cease-fire did with Azerbaijan, the new peace deal leaves Armenia feeling deeply aggrieved and replaces active hostilities with precarious ambiguity.

During its punishing offensive on the disputed territory, Azerbaijan withheld casualty numbers, concealing the true scale of losses. After it began publishing figures last month, the total death toll is now known to stand at more than 5,000 soldiers, roughly distributed among Armenians and Azerbaijanis, as well as several hundred wounded and killed civilians.

The death toll is likely to rise in the coming weeks as the fate of the missing is revealed and remains are gradually retrieved from treacherous terrain littered with mines and unexploded munitions. As winter grips this mountainous region, heavy snow, dense fog, and freezing temperatures are impeding the work of recovery teams, while rain and mud can dislodge mines, making the operations fraught with danger. As of last week, the bodies of around 320 Azerbaijani and over 1,100 Armenian service members have reportedly been collected. 

An ethnic Armenian soldier looks at a body of a soldier killed fighting on behalf of Azerbaijan on the highway connecting Stepanakert and Shushi in Nagorno-Karabakh on Nov. 13, 2020. JACK LOSH FOR FOREIGN POLICY

Despite the grief, families mourning the fallen like Avetisyan at least have the possibility of closure. Those whose relatives remain missing are plunged into a harrowing limbo. 

“They long to know what has happened to their loved ones or to bury the dead with dignity,” said Jason Straziuso of the International Committee of the Red Cross, which, along with Russian peacekeepers, is facilitating the recovery of bodies and the transfer of prisoners of war. 

Unidentified corpses lie in morgues awaiting a DNA match before they can be handed over for burial. “Many families are enduring an agonizing wait,” Straziuso said. 

That wait has been exacerbated by the emergence of horrific videos depicting war crimes and the widespread mistreatment of prisoners.

That wait has been exacerbated by the emergence of horrific videos depicting war crimes and the widespread mistreatment of prisoners. Circulating on the Telegram messaging app, most videos appear to show atrocities being committed by Azerbaijani soldiers who have tortured and executed Armenian prisoners. A smaller number of videos show Armenian forces committing war crimes, from mutilating war dead to murdering an Azerbaijani border guard by cutting his throat.

One video shows a struggling, shirtless male civilian held down by a group of Azerbaijani soldiers before being decapitated with a knife as onlookers clap and cheer. The victim’s head is placed on the nearby carcass of a pig as a soldier says in Azerbaijani: “This is how we take revenge for the blood of our martyrs.”

In another incident, two Azerbaijani soldiers pin down an older man in civilian clothes who begs for his life before his throat is cut. Separately, a captive Armenian serviceman is forced to say “Karabakh is Azerbaijan,” before his dead body is seen impaled on a wooden stick.

Desperate relatives of missing soldiers last month marched on Armenia’s defense ministry to demand information. As they gathered outside, one father said he had not heard from his wounded son since the start of October 2020, less than a week into the war.

“We don’t know his location, his status—we don’t know anything,” he said. “We’ve asked everywhere. … They’re not telling us anything.”

As cold fog enveloped the rally, one woman shouted: “Why don’t they just come out and tell us what we have to do to get our kids back? We’ll spend our own money to bring them home.” 

Armenia and Azerbaijan’s agreement to an “all for all” POW exchange has prompted some hope. By the end of last month, 56 Armenian and 16 Azerbaijani captives had returned home, ending the nightmare endured by their families. Yet an unknown number of POWs are still behind bars. Armenian officials say Azerbaijan is holding more than 100 Armenian military personnel and civilians, reportedly far more than the number of Azerbaijani prisoners in Armenian custody. Hundreds more remain missing.

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which acts as a neutral intermediary and monitors the treatment of prisoners, said that it had visited dozens of POWs and logged hundreds of tracing requests for both civilians and soldiers, but it declined to disclose precisely how many detainees it had registered. 

As war-crime videos have continued to surface, Azerbaijan last month arrested two of its soldiers accused of mutilations and called on Armenia to take similar steps—though the integrity of its investigations are doubtful. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s coterie maintain a firm grip on the country’s criminal justice system, in which torture and impunity for the perpetrators of such abuse are endemic. But justice will be a bedrock for any sustainable peace, said Arman Tatoyan, Armenia’s human rights ombudsman.

“Impunity leads to more torture,” said Tatoyan, whose office has prepared several reports documenting torture and inhumane treatment of Armenian POWs. “Impunity is a very dangerous thing.”

Others see forgetting as the foundation of any future peace. Ahmad Shahidov, who runs the Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights in Baku, caused outrage last month with a provocative tweet that implied Armenian people were “a disease”—a post later deleted by Twitter for violating its rules against “hateful conduct.” He also praised the use of a “military solution” to the dispute and called for “a new war” to create a buffer zone.

Shahidov now says he was wrong to use such vitriolic language, but he has since repeated it and held it up as a consequence of what he deemed “Armenian terrorism.” Peace in the region, he argued, could only be achieved through a process of collective amnesia, rather than accountability. 

“If we start talking about justice, Azerbaijan has a lot to talk to Armenia about,” said Shahidov, citing 1992’s brutal massacre of hundreds of Azerbaijani civilians in the town of Khojaly. “If we want to live together in the future, we must forget these negative cases. If we think and talk about these negative cases that happened on both sides, we will never get peace. Let’s start everything from zero—it’s a better solution.”

Starting from zero might be hard amid the flood of disturbing videos of torture and atrocities. 

“Social media is full of violent scenes,” Tatoyan said. “Even among our children it has already taken effect. All of the time they’re talking about violence, killing, torture. Torture generates hatred. It is very dangerous in terms of living together in this region as two nations.”

Almost two months after the cease-fire, distrust and hostility remain high. Several skirmishes have broken out in recent weeks, causing casualties and straining Moscow’s peace deal. Aliyev’s comment on the recent capture of over 60 Armenian soldiers—“They cannot be considered prisoners of war; they are terrorists”—risks stalling POW swaps. 


Mourners gather at Yerablur Military Memorial Cemetery on Nov. 30, 2020, for the funeral of Avetis Avetisyan, an Armenian soldier who was killed by an artillery attack in Nagorno-Karabakh. JACK LOSH FOR FOREIGN POLICY

For now, there are bodies to count and bodies to bury. Back in the Yerablur military cemetery, the men finished laying Avetisyan to rest. “We miss him terribly,” said Arman, one of the mourners, who asked not to give his last name. “He was a close friend. Everyone here has been touched by the war. My son’s friend is still missing in action. We don’t know if he’s alive or dead.” 

Flowers were placed, and the men turned to depart. Across the hillside of headstones, more bereaved families were already arriving.

Jack Losh is a journalist, photographer and filmmaker covering conservation, humanitarian issues and traditional cultures, often in areas of conflict and crisis. Twitter: @jacklosh

https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/01/06/armenia-loss-nagorno-karabakh-azerbaijan-horrors-of-war/?fbclid=IwAR3JUyZNOc08F45VloX3BC1otDRC1mlQSwsAzxfzPd_WOmzx_B_mpgmUtHo

Head of Armenia’s Shurnukh village: The Russians said it’s not up to them, decision has already been made

Karapet Navasardian
News.am, Armenia
Jan 2 2021
 
 
Head of Armenia’s Shurnukh village: The Russians said it’s not up to them, decision has already been made
12:10, 03.01.2021
 
During a conversation with Armenian News-NEWS.am, head of Shurnukh village Hakob Arshakyan said the residents of the 12 houses of the village transferred to the Azerbaijanis must leave their homes before January 5.
 
“The Azerbaijanis gave us time until January 5 to leave the territories transferred to them and said anyone, including animals passing through that territory after January 5 will be theirs,” Arshakyan said.
 
In regard to the photo of a library that was disseminated these past couple of days, Arshakyan stated that he couldn’t confirm if it was the library in Shurnukh or not.
 
The village head added that he has shown the map of the USSR showing Shurnukh as an Armenian village to a Russian army general and peacekeepers.
 
“We were told that it’s not up to them and that the decision has already been made. Now the villagers and I are trying to find documents from the archives in order to retrieve our lands,” Arshakyan stated.
 
Yesterday the village head informed that Azerbaijanis and Russian border guards had entered the Shurnukh village of Syunik Province. According to the demarcation conducted by the Azerbaijanis, 12 houses in Shurnukh are being transferred to Azerbaijan.
  
 

TURKISH press: Turkey bashes Armenia for violation of Nagorno-Karabakh peace deal

Karapet Navasardian
 İSTANBUL DIPLOMACY 
DEC 29, 2020 11:51 AM GMT+3
An Armenian soldier fires artillery on the front line during the ongoing fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Oct. 25, 2020. (AFP)

Turkey on Monday denounced a recent cease-fire violation and attack on Azerbaijani servicemen and civilians by Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The attacks carried out in Nagorno-Karabakh against the Azerbaijani Armed Forces by the Armenian elements, who refused to lay down their arms and withdraw, are a clear violation of the cease-fire regime established by the Trilateral Declaration dated Nov. 9, 2020,” Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hami Aksoy said in a statement.

“Military and civilian casualties and injuries occurred as a result of the attacks by Armenian armed elements, which took place earlier on Nov. 26, Dec. 8 and Dec.11, and the latest one on Dec. 27. As the signatory of the Trilateral Declaration, the primary responsibility for the withdrawal of all armed Armenian elements and compliance with the cease-fire regime lies in Armenia,” Aksoy said.

Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry said on Monday that one soldier had been killed in an attack in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, in violation of the cease-fire struck in November that ended 44 days of fighting.

The ministry statement said the incident occurred on Sunday in the Khojavend region when a group of six Armenians launched an attack on units of the Azerbaijan army in the direction of Aghdam village. One soldier was killed while another one was wounded and evacuated to a medical institution after receiving first aid, the ministry said.

The ministry added that as a result of the actions taken, all six members of the illegal Armenian armed group were killed. The ministry warned if a similar case happens again, the Azerbaijan army will take necessary measures.

This is the second violation of the cease-fire in the region as four other Azerbaijani soldiers were killed two weeks ago when their units were attacked in areas adjacent to the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Aksoy stressed that the Azerbaijani side gave the “necessary response” by using its right to self-defense against the “provocations” of the Armenian armed elements.

“In order to be a stakeholder of the lasting peace that is trying to be established in the region, Armenia must accept the realities in the field and fulfill the commitments it has undertaken with the Trilateral Declaration,” he added.

Aksoy also wished Allah’s mercy upon the “Azerbaijani brothers” who lost their lives in the attacks and a speedy recovery to the wounded and extended condolences to all Azerbaijanis.

Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but was under the occupation of Armenian forces since a war there ended in 1994. That war left Nagorno-Karabakh itself and substantial surrounding territory in Armenian hands.

In 44 days of fighting that began in late September and killed more than 5,600 people on both sides, the Azerbaijani army pushed deep into Nagorno-Karabakh, forcing Armenia to accept last month’s peace deal which saw Azerbaijan reclaim much of the region along with surrounding areas. Russia deployed nearly 2,000 peacekeepers for at least five years to monitor the peace deal and to facilitate the return of refugees.

Under the agreement, which leaves Karabakh’s future political status in limbo, Armenia lost control of parts of the enclave as well as the seven adjacent districts that it seized during the 1990s war.

The deal has sparked celebrations in Azerbaijan and fury in Armenia, where the country’s prime minister, Nikol Pashinian, is facing mounting criticism for agreeing to the deal.

Turkish Press: Turkish-Russian joint center to be ready in 2 weeks

Karapet Navasardian
Anadolu Agency, Turkey
Dec 31 2020
Turkish-Russian joint center to be ready in 2 weeks

Ruslan Rehimov   | 31.12.2020

BAKU

The construction of the Turkish-Russian joint monitoring center will be completed in two weeks, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Thursday.

“The sooner the Monitoring Center starts operating, the better, because even though about two months have passed since the war ended, there are still threats and dangers,” Aliyev said during a meeting with Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and commanders of Turkish Armed Forces.

“The Azerbaijani side is currently constructing a building for this Monitoring Center in Aghdam district. This Monitoring Center will be ready in the next 10 days – a maximum of two weeks,” a statement by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry quoted him as saying.

“As far as I know, the Turkish side is ready to start operating. You are probably also in contact with the Russian side,” he added.

Aliyev noted the armed forces of Armenia violated the cease-fire and that the Azerbaijani army had martyrs even after the war.

“I can say that according to the information we have, the Armenian armed units that still remain in some of the liberated lands are not subordinated to the Armenian political leadership,” the Azerbaijani president said, adding many of them have been neutralized and many others arrested.

“They cannot be considered prisoners of war – they are terrorists. They were given a chance. In particular, Russian peacekeepers joined the operation and they were allowed the opportunity to leave the area,” Aliyev said.

Highlighting the importance of the formation of the Azerbaijan-Armenia-Turkey transport corridor, Aliyev said that the construction of a railway line that extends to the border with Armenia would take around two years to complete, but without waiting that much transportation can begin via trucks.

For his part, Akar said Turkey and Azerbaijan are working together to help ensure peace in the newly liberated Upper Karabakh region.

“The unity, equality and joint efforts of Azerbaijan and Turkey in ensuring peace and stability here with Azerbaijan’s determination will usher great prospects not only for today but also for the future,” the Turkish defense minister said.

Following the Nov. 10 truce, Turkey and Russia signed a memorandum of understanding to set up a joint center to monitor the peace deal on Azerbaijani territories liberated from Armenia’s occupation.


– Liberation of Karabakh


Relations between the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognized as an Azerbaijani territory, and seven adjacent regions.

When new clashes erupted on Sept. 27, the Armenian army launched attacks on civilians and Azerbaijani forces and violated several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.

During the 44-day conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and nearly 300 settlements and villages from the nearly three-decade-long occupation.

Despite the Nov. 10 deal ending the conflict, the Armenian army several times violated the agreement and martyred several Azerbaijani soldiers and a civilian, according to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

The truce is seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia, whose armed forces have been withdrawing in line with the agreement.



Putin congratulates Armenia’s President on New Year and Christma

Karapet Navasardian

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 12:48,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. President of Russia Vladimir Putin has sent a congratulatory letter to Armenian President Armen Sarkissian on New Year and Christmas, the Armenian President’s Office told Armenpress.

“I hope the difficulties and concerns which this year brought will stay in the past. I would like to reaffirm the intention to further develop the Russian-Armenian allied partnership for the welfare of our two brotherly peoples, for the strengthening of peace and security in the South Caucasian region.

I wish you and your relatives good health, happiness and all the best, and to all citizens of Armenia – peace and prosperity”, reads the Russian leader’s congratulatory message.

On behalf of the Russian President, collection of souvenir stamps dedicated to USSR Hero Gevorg Vardanyan has been handed over to President Armen Sarkissian.  

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan