Author: Mary Lazarian

Defense Minister calls for not losing vigilance for a second

Mary Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 27 2020

Politics 18:18 27/01/2020Armenia

Thanks to the efforts of military political leadership of the country and the actions of the Armed Forces the situation on the frontline has been relatively stable in 2019, Defense Minister Davit Tonotyan stated on Monday at the meeting of the advisory board of the minister of defence

The minister added that the Armed Forces should not weaken vigilance for a second and exert additional efforts to strengthen the combat readiness of the Armed Forces and ensure the inviolability of the borders.

As the press department at the ministry reported in a press statement, the meeting of the advisory board addressed results pertaining to combat and mobilization training in the 2019 academic year, guarding, operative and combat training of troops and headquarters as well as the current state of military discipline.

The Head of the Chief of Staff of Armenia’s Armed Forces Artak Davtyan presented report on activities realized in 2019, summing up the main achievements and problems registered in the indicated period.

President Sarkissian meets with members of Swiss-Armenian Chamber of Commerce and businessmen

Mary Lazarian

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 20:51,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 20, ARMENPRESS. As part of his working visit to Switzerland, the President of the Republic of Armenia Armen Sarkissian met the members of the Switzerland-Armenia Chamber of Commerce and Swiss businessmen, including Swiss-Armenian businessmen during a working dinner in Zurich. It was organized by the Swiss-Armenian Chamber of Commerce with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to Switzerland.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the President’s Office, the President of the Swiss-Armenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Mike Baronian congratulated the President and the Armenian people for the achievements of 2019 and noted that the presence of President Sarkisian at the event is of great importance for the community and members and the Chamber of Commerce.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan

Expert: No guarantees that Azerbaijan won’t attempt to repeat Baku pogroms

Mary Lazarian
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 20 2020
Politics 15:36 20/01/2020 Armenia

Factually, Azerbaijan remained unpunished for perpetrating the pogroms of Armenians in Baku, expert in Azerbaijani studies Anzhela Elibegova told a discussion on the 30th anniversary of the Baku pogroms on Monday.

“This means that we have no guarantees that they will not try to repeat it again,” she said.

Attending the discussion was former Armenian Ombudsman, Executive director of Foundation Against Violation of Law NGO Larisa Alaverdyan, who, according to Elibegova, participated in the swap of the prisoners of war, managed to negotiate with Azerbaijani officials in the most heated situation and talk about saving lives. Elibegova wondered if such a communication is possible today.

“Yes, I collaborated and held meetings, including on the hardest days of the war. At that time, the atmosphere of the meetings was completely different: we grew up watching the same cartoons, reading the same literature and studying at the same universities. We are representatives of the generation that did not have any problems with interpersonal communication. In this sense, these meetings in the humanitarian sphere yielded unprecedented outcomes,” Alaverdyan said.

She noted that the annual 5-6 meetings led to amazing results. Alaverdyan emphasized no Azerbaijani, not even the ones who had the greatest contribution to the humanitarian work, has never expressed thoughts on the Artsakh issue other than those expressed by the country’s authorities. “Moreover, Armenia is more free-thinking, the Armenian side presents its stance more freely,” she explained.

Commenting on the possibility of launching such a communication between the parties today, the ex-ombudsman said the settings for such contacts, including the atmosphere and the proper interpersonal relations, are absent today. “Welcoming all the meetings, I have never stated that meetings are not necessary,” she added.

Alaverdyan called for honesty by both parties in the event of such contacts,

“We need to be sober, clearly understand what such contacts can give, what not to expect from them and how important it’s to be honest with one another,” she concluded. 


Asbarez: Yerevan, Stepanakert Welcome Passage of Genocide Resolution

Mary Lazarian
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8 hours ago

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan welcome passage of H.Res 296

Moments after the passage on Tuesday of the Armenian Genocide resolution by the U.S. House of Representatives, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan welcomed the effort calling it a “bold move toward advancing truth and historical justice.”

Pashinyan’s message, which was posted on his Twitter page, was the first official remark from official Yerevan, which was joined by similar announcement from Stepanakert.

“I salute the U.S. Congress’ historic vote recognizing the Armenian Genocide. Resolution 296 is a bold step toward advancing truth and historical justice that also offers comfort to millions of descendants of the Armenian Genocide survivors,” said Pashinyan in his Twitter post.

“My heartfelt congratulations to my Armenian compatriots all over the world and admiration to generations of Armenian-Americans, whose selfless activism and perseverance were the driving force and the inspiration behind today’s historic vote. Never again!” added Pashinyan.

Armenia’s Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan was also quick to commend the passage of the H.R. 296, tweeting that “justice and truth [were] consolidated.”

“Thank you US, US Congress. Justice and truth consolidated with historic H. Res. 296. Tribute to memory of victims of Armenian Genocide. Massive message against denialism. Deep gratitude to each of 405 votes. Empowered to work anew for prevention of mass atrocities anywhere in the world,” said Mnatsakanyan in his Twitter post.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Armenia’s Foreign Ministry expressed “profound” gratitude to U.S. House for its “determined and impressive” vote of H.Res.296, saying the measure was “of profound significance.”

“This Resolution is of profound significance in that it resolves to commemorate the Armenian Genocide through official recognition and remembrance, to reject its denial and encourage the education and understanding of the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923 as a definitive example of genocide of the 20th century,” said Armenia’s foreign ministry.

“Armenia profoundly thanks members of the US House of Representatives for their determined and impressive vote on House Resolution 296, which is an evidence of their overwhelming commitment to truth, justice, humanity and solidarity and to universal values of human rights,” added the foreign ministry, while it reiterated that garnering international recognition for the Armenian Genocide was a high foreign policy priority for Armenia.

“This Resolution is an important contribution to international efforts aimed at preventing new genocides and mass atrocity crimes anywhere in the world, which continue to shatter the conscience of humanity in the present. It is a powerful message against the scourge, the denial and the justification of genocides as it underlines the relevance of the Armenian Genocide to modern day crimes against humanity,” explained Armenia’s foreign ministry.

Armenia’s High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs Zareh Sinanyan welcomed the passage of H.Res. 296 and thanked the “dedicated advocates of the Armenian Cause.”

“The Armenian Genocide is one of the most undeniable pages of world history, the most painful point of our national memory. Because of the Genocide, the majority of Armenian people were deprived of their homeland and spread around the world, creating the Armenian Diaspora. As a result, not only has the genocide of generations not been forgotten, it has also been transformed into a driving force to prove that we are not victims; that we are and are ready to fight for justice,” said Sinanyan.

“The lack of proper condemnation of the Armenian Genocide by the international community set a precedent for subsequent atrocities. Through passing this resolution in the House of Representatives, mankind took another step on the path to respecting international law and the rule of universal values. Let’s hope the resolution gets the same support in the US Senate,” added Sinanyan.

“The process of recognition, condemnation and reparation of the Armenian Genocide is indispensable, and the Republic of Armenia will always maintain the need to condemn the Armenian Genocide on the agenda of its work with the Diaspora and foreign relations,” explained Sinanyan.

Similarly, the Artsakh Foreign Ministry issued a statement welcoming the adoption of the Armenian Genocide resolution. Meanwhile, Artsakh Foreign Minister Masis Mayilyan, who is on a working visit to Washington, attended the House deliberation and vote on H.Res. 296.

Artsakh Foreign Minister Masis Mayilyan with Rep. Frank Pallone after the passage of H,Res. 296

Following the vote, Mayilyan met with members of Congress Frank Pallone and Anna Eshoo and expressed his gratitude to them for their continuned efforts aimed at the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and their crucial contribution to the adoption of the historical Resolution.

“We express our deepest gratitude to members of the U.S. House of Representatives Adam Schiff and Gus Bilirakis for authoring and submitting the resolution, to the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues for its support of the resolution and consistent efforts towards its passing, as well as to all the Congressmen and Congresswomen who voted for the adoption of the resolution,” said the Artsakh foreign ministry.

“We convey our congratulations and highest gratitude to the Armenian National Committee of America and the Armenian Assembly of America for their coordinated work with Congressmen, as well as to all those whose consistent efforts led to the adoption of this historic Resolution by the overwhelming majority,” added the Artsakh foreign ministry.

“The adoption of the resolution is an important step aimed at thwarting Turkey’s attempts to deny the first Genocide of the 20th century and a significant contribution to the universal struggle for preventing such crimes,” the statement said. “We are convinced that the adoption of the Resolution by the House of Representatives of the U.S. Congress on recognizing the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923 in the Ottoman Empire is not only of moral, but also of practical significance – it will contribute to ensuring peace and stability in our region.”

Un jeune champion d’échecs à Marseille menacé d’être expulsé avec ses parents

Mary Lazarian
France Bleu
27 oct 2019
Dimanche 27 octobre 2019 à 18:47 – Par David Aussillou, France Bleu Provence

  • A 14 ans, Davit est l’un des grands espoirs des échecs en France. Installé à Marseille, le jeune arménien vit dans l’angoisse d’une possible expulsion de ses parents en situation irrégulière.

    Davit Avanesyan est l’un des plus grands espoirs des échecs à Marseille © Radio France – David Aussillou

    Marseille, France

    A Marseille, un collégien vit le même destin que le héros du film Fahim sorti ces derniers jours au cinéma. Comme lui, il est arrivé en France avec son père après un long voyage depuis l’Arménie. Comme lui, il est passionné par le jeu des échecs depuis sa toute petite enfance. “En Arménie, c’est une matière comme les autres à l’école, explique Davit Avanesyan. _Je joue chaque jour au moins pendant deux heures. J’aime bien attaquer et trouver des plans.”  _Et ça marche : au dernier championnat de France des moins de 16 ans, l’adolescent a remporté 9 victoires sur 9 parties ! Aujourd’hui, Davit évolue dans le championnat “Top jeunes” par équipe.

    Dans le film, Fahim craint de voir son père renvoyer au Bangladesh. Les destins se ressemblent encore car pendant le championnat de France, le père de Davit a été interpellé dans le tramway à Marseille. Depuis, toute la famille vit dans la crainte d’une expulsion. Voilà pourquoi le club d’échecs du jeune garçon se mobilise aujourd’hui. “On se sent démuni, confie William Azari, la manager général de Marseille Echecs. Les pouvoirs publics ne font rien. Davit est trés important pour nous. On n’imagine pas du tout le voir partir. Dans les compétitions, il défend les couleurs de la France“.

    ACNIS reView from Yerevan #35, 2019_Weekly Update_October 12-19

    Mary Lazarian
    Weekly Update    

     

    19 OCTOBER 2019    

     

    • Parliamentary hearings on The Constitutional Law on Parties: Existing Problems and the Framework of Amendments kicked off in the Armenian parliament. The hearing was initiated by the Armenian parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan. In addition to the MPs, the hearings are attended by representatives of various NGOs operating in Armenia reported News.am.
    • The EU countries have condemned Turkey’s operation in Syria, the European Council said in a statement released after the first day of the summit in Brussels, TASS reported. “The EU condemns Turkey’s unilateral military action in North East Syria which causes unacceptable human suffering, undermines the fight against Da’esh and threatens heavily European security,” the European Council said adding that “the European Council notes tonight’s US-Turkey announcement on a pause for all military operations.”

     

    • The British government announced two months ago that Alan Gogbashian will replace Judith Farnworth, a fellow diplomat who has served as British ambassador in Yerevan for the last four years. The announcement was welcomed by many in Armenia and its worldwide Diaspora. The government has unexpectedly rescinded its recent decision to appoint an ethnic Armenian diplomat as the United Kingdom’s new ambassador to Armenia informed The Armenian Mirror-Spectator.
    • President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian attended the gala dinner of the “Global Innovation Forum 2019: Transforming Intelligence” organized by the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST) in Yerevan, the President’s Office told Armenpress.

      The event was being held on the sidelines of the Aurora Forum. President Sarkissian thanked the founders of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative – Vartan Gregorian, Noubar Afeyan and Ruben Vardanyan, for their investment in Armenia’s science, technologies, innovation and charity fields. Talking about the Forum and the activity of the FAST, the President considered it as a path to the future.

     

    • Speaking at the 7th summit of the Turkic Council in Baku earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan again decried Armenian “occupation” of Karabakh and other “ancient lands” of Azerbaijan. “We will do our best to ensure the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,” he was reported to say. For his part, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev described Armenia’s southeastern Syunik province, also known as Zangezur, as “historically Azerbaijani” territory. Aliyev claimed at the summit that its “transfer to Armenia had led to a geographic separation of the Turkic world.”

      According to Azatutyun the Armenian Foreign Ministry condemned Aliyev’s “pan-Turkist” statement as a further manifestation of Azerbaijani territorial claims to Armenia. “Azerbaijan’s and Turkey’s distorted perceptions of and approaches to regional security based on racism and discrimination hinder peaceful resolution of conflicts and contribute to instability in and outside the region,” the ministry spokeswoman, Anna Naghdalian, said in written comments.

     

    • Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan received the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, Stéphane Visconti of France and Andrew Schofer of the United States of America, as well as the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk, the PM’s Office told Armenpress.

      The Armenian PM and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs discussed the peaceful settlement process of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. In the context of strengthening trust between the parties, the meeting participants highlighted the importance of taking actions to strengthen the ceasefire regime. The officials also touched upon the necessity to prepare populations to peace and the steps directed for this purpose.

    • Georgia’s new Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia praised Armenia for recognizing Georgian sovereignty over two breakaway regions during his first official visit to Yerevan on Tuesday reported Azatutyun. “Armenia supports us on the question of our territorial integrity, which is very important for us and for which we are grateful,” Gakharia said after talks with his Armenian counterpart Nikol Pashinian.

     

    • President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on Turkey on Monday and demanded the NATO ally stop a military incursion in northeast Syria that is rapidly reshaping the battlefield of the world’s deadliest ongoing war, – Reuters reported. Trump, who gave what critics say was a de facto green light for Turkey’s assault by ordering U.S. forces away from the conflict area, requested the ceasefire in a call with President Tayyip Erdogan. The move was quickly criticized as too little, too late by the top Democrat in Congress. “His announcement of a package of sanctions against Turkey falls very short of reversing that humanitarian disaster,” said U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

      On the other side, Reuters pointed that Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Monday that Russia wanted Turkey to ensure its military incursion into northern Syria was proportionate with the situation. Ushakov said the main thing for Moscow was that Turkey’s offensive – which targets Syrian Kurdish militia seen by Ankara as aligned with Kurdish separatists in Turkey – not harm efforts to find a political solution to Syria’s eight-year-old war. “On Monday, Russian-backed Syrian government forces wasted no time in taking advantage of an abrupt U.S. retreat from Syria after the Turkish incursion, deploying deep inside Kurdish-held territory south of the Turkish frontier,” – mentioned Reuters.

    • Members of the Constitutional Court on Monday rejected lawmakers’ calls for the dismissal of its chairman, Hrayr Tovmasian, who is increasingly at loggerheads with Armenia’s political leadership. The Armenian parliament appealed to the court on October 4 with a resolution drafted by its pro-government majority and endorsed by Justice Minister Rustam Badasian informed Azatutyun.

      It denounced, among other things, Tovmasian’s handling of appeals against the legality of coup charges brought against the arrested former President Robert Kocharian. The resolution also said that Tovmasian cannot make impartial decisions on this case because of his past membership in the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK).

     

    Sources: https://www.azatutyun.am/, https://news.am/eng/,  https://mirrorspectator.com, https://www.reuters.com/, https://tass.com, .

    Armenian 3rd President visits Amaras monastery complex in Artsakh

    Mary Lazarian
    News.am, Armenia
    Oct 12 2019
    Armenian 3rd President visits Amaras monastery complex in Artsakh Armenian 3rd President visits Amaras monastery complex in Artsakh

    23:56, 12.10.2019

    On the occasion of the Holy Translators Day, the third President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan visited the Amaras monastery complex in Artsakh. A report on this was published by Artsakh Public Television Company.

    The Amaras monastery complex is currently being reconstructed with financial support from the Luys Foundation. During his last visit, the third president of Armenia, who is the chair of the board of trustees of the foundation, drew attention to the disappointing state of the complex, and works began on the reconstruction of the monastery complex soon after that.

    Artsakh FM: Isolation is the continuation of war

    Mary Lazarian
    Panorama, Armenia
    Oct 11 2019

    “Today’s event will serve as a signal to the international community that isolating [Artsakh] and depriving its citizens of international cooperation opportunities is inadmissible,” Artsakh Republic Foreign Minister Masis Mayilyan said in his speech delivered at the “Cooperation for Justice and Peace” Forum of Artsakh Friends being held in Stepanakert on Friday.

    According to the minister they strongly believe isolation is the continuation of war, while cooperation is the basis for peace.

    “It is our common task to work on strengthening this foundation for the peaceful future of the whole region,” Mayilyan said.

    The official expressed gratitude to the forum participants for backing Artsakh during its hardest times, contributing to the development of Artsakh’s international relations and supporting the aspiration of Artsakh Armenians for freedom and justice.

    Sports: Armenia weightlifting coach reveals U23 squad and medal target for 2019

    Mary Lazarian
    MediaMax, Armenia
    Oct 2 2019
    Armenia weightlifting coach reveals U23 squad and medal target for 2019

    Head coach of the Armenian team Pashik Alaverdyan has announced that 9 athletes will represent Armenia in the junior tournament and 8 – in the U23 competition. Most of them won medals in the World Championship in Pattaya last week.

    The U23 squad includes Hamlet Mnatsakanyan (61kg weight category), Nshan Antonyan (67 kg), Levon Manukyan (73 kg), Davit Hovhannisyan and Hakob Mkrtchyan (89 kg), Samvel Babakyan (96 kg), Samvel Gasparyan (102 kg) and Simon Martirosyan (+109 kg). The only female athlete to represent Armenia in Bucharest is Tatev Hakobyan (87 kg).

    “We will do everything to increase the number of medals and improve on what we achievement last year. We got 81 medals in 2018 and we want to make it 90. We have won 40 so far in 2019,” said Alaverdyan.


    Kim Kardashian West to Produce SKIMS in Armenia

    Mary Lazarian
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    September 27, 2019

    Kim Kardashian West

    Kim Kardashian West disclosed information about her plan to produce her shapewear SKIMS in Armenia through a tweet on Thursday.

    “I will be visiting Armenia in the next 2 weeks and hope to seek ways I can help increase trade and hopefully create jobs for Armenians which includes @skims production there in the future,” she tweeted.

    Kardashian West will be visiting Yerevan in early October as a keynote speaker at the 2019 World Congress on Information Technology.

    The reality TV star revealed the news after receiving a tweet from the Armenian National Committee of America, who reached out to Kardashian West in regard to her shapewear being produced in Turkey.

    The ANCA tweeted: “Dear Kim Kardashian: Thank you for championing Armenian Genocide recognition & raising so much global awareness about Armenia. We saw that you are making some @skims products in Turkey. Please consider making them in Armenia which is known for great craftsmanship & service.”

    Kim Kardashian West tweets about her upcoming trip to Armenia

    “Thank you ANCA DC for your concerns & support. When I first began dreaming of owning my own shapewear company, I knew I wanted every piece to be made the best way possible; from the finest materials; starting from design stage through to creation, testing, innovation & fit,” Kardashian West responded through a tweet.

    “We consulted with experts and searched globally for the best in class options, some which was found in Turkey. We believe strongly against discrimination of any kind; against anyone or any nation based on the past….As a brand, we believe in embracing all people and as an individual I have been working towards broader goals in hopes of bringing forward the recognition of the Armenian genocide which I remain very passionate about. I am a strong believer that in order for change to happen, you must be willing to work with all people, even when you have differences in political opinions”, she added.

    Following her response, ANCA thanked Kardashian West for considering Armenia as a future site for SKIMS production: “We look forward to your upcoming trip to Armenia, value all you do to share our heritage, and love and respect your family’s passion for Armenian Genocide recognition.

    Kardashian responded: “Thank you! I’ve been working extremely hard on this matter and hope my trip to Armenia will bring some amazing news because I have big plans!”