La cérémonie s’est déroulée en présence de Gaby Charroux, maire de Martigues, de nombreux élus et de membres de la communauté arménienne du Pays de Martigues.
Retrouvez en image le discours de Gaby Charroux
( images de Frédéric MUNOS Maritima Médias )
We have not had discussions with any foreign country during this period, but that does not mean that we are not open to it. This was announced by the leader of the “non-violent velvet revolution”, MP Nikol Pashinyan at the press conference with the participation of foreign journalists.
“I repeat, there is no geopolitical content in everything that is happening, this is a pure Armenian revolution and I hope that all geopolitical forces understand that,” he said, stressing that they are ready to talk about Armenia and Russia, Armenia-US relations, and relations with the EU.
“The most important thing for us in this process is the national interest of Armenia. That is the only goal and we want to serve the national interests of RA and the interests of the people. Including the interests of Artsakh. we will protect and protect the national interest of Artsakh,” he emphasized.
In response to a Russian journalist’s question about how the relations with the Russian Federation will develop, Nikol Pashinyan noted that the RA authorities will always answer this question uniformly: the relations between Armenia and Russia are very important.
“There is no doubt that Armenia and Russia are friendly, brotherly states. There are also problems, but we do not aim to criticize those problems, our aim is to solve them. Those problems are related to our region, the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, in particular, the sale of arms to Azerbaijan, which, I think, violates the balance of power between Armenia and Azerbaijan. And I think that Russia, willy-nilly, contributed to it. This is a very simple problem, but it has not been solved for a year,” he listed.
There are problems, the speaker said, also in the economic bloc, but the most important thing is that there are no unsolvable problems in Armenian-Russian relations, you just need to be patient and be positive.
The meeting between Armenia’s Prime Minister and opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan, leader of the ongoing demonstrations, lasted only a few minutes Sunday morning.
The meeting took place in the Marriott Hotel in Republic Square of Yerevan, the main rally site where every evening demonstrators gather to protest.
The Prime Minister arrived without a tie, while the opposition MP was wearing his usual t-shirt and hat.
As expected, both the Prime Minister and the lawmaker arrived at the hotel at 10:00. The meeting was held in the presence of numerous reporters who were broadcasting live.
“I am happy that you responded to my numerous calls to talk. Although I don’t quite imagine how long we can negotiate in the presence of dozens of reporters, nevertheless I am happy”, the Prime Minister said at the beginning.
MP Nikol Pashinyan responded by saying that there is a misunderstanding and that he has come to discuss the PM’s resignation and peaceful transfer of power, rather than for dialogue.
“That’s not negotiations, that’s not a dialogue. That is simply an ultimatum, blackmailing the state and legitimate authorities. You do not realize the degree of responsibility, you didn’t learn lessons from March 1 [2008]. And if we have to speak in that tone, then I am only left to once again advice you to return to the legal area and overall the limits of reasonable actions. Otherwise the entire responsibility falls on you,” Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan said.
Pashinyan reacted by saying that the situation in Armenia has changed and the power has transitioned to the people.
“A 7-8% parliamentary faction doesn’t have the right to speak on behalf of the people. And I don’t want to continue this conveersaton with you anymore. If you do not accept the lawful demand of the state, goodbye,” PM Sargsyan said and walked out on the opposition lawmaker.
Before departing, the Prime Minister addressed reporters, saying : “Dear reporters, you yourselves can make conclusions”.
The ruined medieval Cathedral of Ani, which is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, will go under restoration, Daily Sabah reports.
The restoration will be carried out in line with the authentic structure of the building, reports said.
Kars Museum Director Necmettin Alp told Anadolu Agency that the restoration of the cathedral will start later this month and special attention will be paid to ensure that the authenticity of the structure is preserved.
Built by prominent Armenian architect Trdat in the 11th century A.D., Ani Cathedral is a large rust-colored structure which contains sculpted columns, arches and gates.
For the first time in history a video of a Caucasian leopard has been captured by trap cameras of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Khosrov Forest State Reserve of Armenia.
Since 2002 the Armenian Ministry of Nature Protection and the World Wildlife Fund have been implementing the program of protection of the Caucasian leopard (Panthera pardus ciscaucasica) in Armenia.
The program aims to increase the population of the Caucasian leopard, which is on the verge of disappearance, as well as the species the leopard hunts for – the Bezoar goat, the Armenian muffle and others.
During the period from April 1 to 7 the Azerbaijani forces violated the ceasefire regime in the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact by nearly 300 times firing more than 3000 shots at the Armenian positions, the Artsakh defense ministry reported.
The Defense Army forces mainly refrained from taking countermeasures and continued confidently conducting the military service.
Director Artak Igityan is at the moment shooting the film “Anatolian History” in France, which is based on the novel “Where wild roses blossom: Anatolian history” by Mark Aren (born Karen Margaryan). The composer of the film is a French musical composer Michel Legrand, Allinnet.info reports.
“Anatolian History” stars such renowned French actors as Samy Naceri (known for his main role in the French comedy franchise “Taxi”), Gerard Darmon, and Hermine Stepanyan in the leading female role. Stepanyan shared her yet scarce experience of working with the director:
“I met director Artak Igityan during the premiere of the film ”Dawn of the Van sea’. We didn’t manage to chat too much, I only congratulated him and left. Two years later, we met again at the “Moscow” cinema in Yerevan at the premiere of another film. This time, Igityan was with his wife Anna. I approached them and said that I loved the film. Artak’s wife looked at me and said: ‘Artak, she is an excellent character.’ Thus, began a conversation about the film, as well as some other topics, Stepanyan recalled.
“Of course, I have seen films starring Darmon and Naceri, and after I realized that we will be playing in the same film, I began to watch their every single movie and read their interviews to learn more about them. During the shooting, I will get acquainted with them better because of easier direct communication,” said Stepanyan, and then added that the shooting is planned for 2018.
The shooting of the film will start in 2018.
The key obstacle for peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict is Azerbaijan’s non-constructive, extremist and bellicose position, President of Artsakh Republic Bako Sahakyan announced in an interview with Armenian Mirror Spectator.
President Sahakyan went to the American capital for his first official visit on March 12 at the head of a governmental delegation for a week of political talks and meetings. When asked what motivated this particular visit, the president responded that Artsakh has enjoyed friendly relations with the United States for many years and he himself has visited the United States on numerous other occasions. However, these trips were primarily connected with the work of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund. “This time we had the opportunity, and we took advantage of it, to meet with political circles. I am very happy that such meetings took place”, he said.
Sahakyan appreciated the ongoing diplomatic efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs of which the United States is a member. He said, “We understand that the international community in the face of the Minsk Group is concerned with finding a solution to this complicated issue. However, the Minsk Group’s interest is not sufficient. Our profound conviction is that the non-constructive, extremist, bellicose position of one of the parties, Azerbaijan, toward this issue is the obstruction which we are unable to overcome to achieve more serious agreements.”
He also said that for the peace process to be successful, Artsakh must be one of the full parties or “sides” in negotiations along with Armenia and Azerbaijan, as was initially agreed upon at the 1994 Budapest OSCE summit, and that Artsakh continues to do whatever is in its power to restore that format.
The situation of refugees in the region is often raised in international circles. Sahakyan said, “At present, it is Azerbaijani refugees that are chiefly talked about. We naturally are in favor of talking not only about Azerbaijani refugees but also about Armenian refugees.” Sahakyan declared, concerning Azerbaijanis who used to live in Artsakh. “We have said on multiple occasions over the course of recent years that Azerbaijani refugees naturally can return to Artsakh, to the Artsakh Republic, if they recognize its jurisdiction”, he said.
Bako Sahakyan said that although the April War of 2016 with Azerbaijan had its negative effects on the development of the economy, that situation has been rectified now, and for the time being, border incidents are a bit less frequent.