Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

– Jamie Redknapp believes that the Red Devils would be occupying a top-four position in the Premier League had they used their Armenian summer signing more frequently.

Manchester United’s reluctance to offer Henrikh Mkhitaryan regular football during the early part of the season has cost them “six or seven points”, according to former Liverpool midfielder Jamie Redknapp.

The Red Devils spent big on the Armenian forward over the summer, with a reported £26.3 million fee taking him to Old Trafford from Borussia Dortmund.

Mkhitaryan has impressed since being brought back in from the cold and, after he netted the winner in Sunday’s crucial victory over Tottenham, Redknapp believes that United would be sitting inside the Champions League places had they shown greater faith in his ability.

“I don’t buy the argument that Henrikh Mkhitaryan needed time to adjust to the Premier League,” he wrote in the Daily Mail.

“If he had started sooner, I’m convinced Manchester United would have six or seven more points.

“He is like Philippe Coutinho or Mesut Ozil in his ability to unlock the door and see passes that others don’t.

“He shone in the fast and furious pace of the Bundesliga so why wasn’t he even on the bench for so long?”

 

“The agreements reached at the Vienna and St. Petersburg summits on Nagorno Karabakh should be consolidated in the OSCE decisions,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a press conference in Hamburg today.

He said consensus is needed for the implementation of the agreements, which include maintenance of the ceasefire and expansion of the OSCE monitoring mission.

“There should be consensus on the number of OSCE monitors and the place of their dislocation,” Lavrov said.

“I think they should be dislocated at the line of contact,” he said.

In the evening of December 4, President Serzh Sargsyan participated at the gala-dinner organized on the occasion of the 110th anniversary of the Armenian General Benevolent Union which took place at the Tigran Mets Hall of Armenia Marriott Hotel. The President of Armenia made a statement and addressed words of gratitude to the members of the AGBU and all participants of the event.

“Commencing its activities at the beginning of the previous century, the Armenian General Benevolent Union through its 150 local bodies for 110 years has been, and I am sure will be carrying out its indispensable activities. It would be redundant of me to name one by one all programs of the Union and the works it has accomplished. The “indispensable” I believe is the word which characterizes precisely the work of a group of people which they were able to accomplish just in time, finding the only proper way which contributed to the preservation of the Armenian nation as well as to the independent Armenia and the physical existence of the Armenian nation in general.

What makes the AGBU different from all other structures? I believe first of all it is the people – members of the Central Board, or just regular members – benefactors, who have never had any expectation and moved forward true to very simple rules of benevolence: they never expected that someone would ever thank them for their charity and never intended to use charity for their personal ends. They have never looked for any reason, any cause to limit their work which has been vital for us. They have never had any problem with any of the authorities, and it is a very important factor,” said President Sargsyan in his remarks.

Serzh Sargsyan underscored that the Armenian General Benevolent Union is a dedicated benefactor, and that with this very approach the Union implements its programs aimed at the development of Armenia and the Armenian nation. The President wished the AGBU the abundance of donors, generosity, and scores of members. The President of Armenia expressed wish that the Armenian General Benevolent Union always be necessary and always be able to fulfill its mission.

President Sargsyan spoke also about the tasks before the AGBU and noted that he would love to see the Armenian General Benevolent Union much more Armenia-centered which will benefit the Union and all its beneficiaries alike. President Sargsyan also expressed desire for the Union to keep the bulk of its funds in Armenia, which has a stable financial structure since it will allow to increase the volume of charity. “I wish that our wishes are coherent. I wish that after working hours we dispute about the development possibilities. I wish that we all, regardless of being President, officials, entrepreneurs or donors, we all believe that it is our service, it is our thanks and gratitude to our nation which created us,” said President Sargsyan and wished the AGBU to celebrate gloriously its 200th anniversary and the subsequent jubilees.

The Turkish defense minister said Ankara was in talks with Moscow on the procurement of Russian S-400 air defense systems, reports.

“As for missile defense, work is continuing. We are negotiating on S-400 not only with Russia, but with other countries that have similar systems. Russia’s position on this issue now is positive,” Isik said in an interview with Turkey’s NTV broadcaster.

Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said last month that Moscow and Anakara had agreed to work out the details of a possible cooperation on implementing the Turkish national missile defense system project.

“We hope that NATO member states would take this seriously, and our system will be compatible with the alliance’s requirements. But we do not in any way reject the Russian proposal, and are actively working on it. Our ultimate goal is to manufacture these systems at home,” Isik said.

On November 1, while paying an official visit to Jakarta, Edward Nalbandian, Foreign Minister of Armenia, was received by Muhammad Jusuf Kalla, Vice President of Indonesia.

Welcoming the Foreign Minister of Armenia, the Vice President of Indonesia attached importance to the further deepening of bilateral relations, in that regard outlining the significance of the visit of the Foreign Minister of Armenia to Jakarta.

During the meeting the sides emphasized the necessity to intensify political dialogue between Armenia and Indonesia, to expand cooperation between different agencies, to foster trade and economic cooperation, while attaching importance to the organization of business forums, establishment of interaction between the trade palaces, promotion of people-to-people contacts and tourism to that end.

Jusuf Kalla and Edward Nalbandian exchanged views on a number of international and regional issues and the efforts being undertaken towards their settlement. The interlocutors mutually outlined the necessity to settle issues exclusively through peaceful means by excluding the use of force.

On the same day Edward Nalbandian visited the Parliament of Indonesia, where he had a meeting with Agus Hermanto, Vice Speaker of the House of Representatives of Indonesia, and the members of the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

At the meeting the possibilities to develop cooperation between the Parliaments of the two countries was discussed, importance was attached to the establishment of friendship groups and collaboration within the international parliamentary formats.

The interlocutors touched upon numerous issues of bilateral agenda, as well as expansion of legal framework.

Upon the request of the Indonesian Parliamentarians, Minister Nalbandian presented Armenia’s foreign policy priorities, touched upon the efforts exerted by Armenia and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to create conductive conditions for the advancement of settlement process of the Azerbaijan-Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) conflict.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia and the Vice Speaker of the Parliament of Indonesia share the view that attempts to give a religious pretext to conflicts is inadmissible and issues need to be solved exclusively through negotiations and peaceful means.

Clara Russian of Arlington, Mass, one of the last Armenian Genocide survivors and past active member of the Watertown Armenian community, passed on Oct. 5. She was 101 years old, the informs.

Clara Movsesian Russian was born on Oct. 28, 1914, in the village Yegheki, Kharpert province, Armenia. Her mother, Haigouhi Echmalian had moved to Yegheki from Hussenig to work as a teacher and was matched with Nishan Guetchudian, who had just returned from America to find a bride.

The couple was not married two years when Turkish gendarmes entered Yegheki in Spring 2015 and marched the men out of the village. Nishan was never seen again. What followed was an arduous, sometimes grueling journey through Anatolia, the Middle East, and Europe, across mountains, gorges and seas, spanning 10 years, from Yegheki to Agn, back to Yegheki, on to Aleppo, Marseilles, and then Cuba.

Along this journey Clara faced malnutrition, great poverty, and hardship, and with her stealthy, resilient mother, continually evaded the inferno of genocide.

They changed their last name to Movsesian hoping to evade persecution. Clara was fortunately blessed with having some pleasant, carefree childhood memories along the way, during her brief stays in Agn and Aleppo. Later, just as they were leaving Aleppo bound for Marseilles, Clara, who was then seven or eight, took gravely ill with typhoid and was in bed with a severe, life-threatening fever for four weeks. After her incredible recovery they finally made it to Marseilles, where they stayed for one year.

In Cuba they were greeted by Haigouhi’s sister Teriz Kalousdian, who had already emigrated to the U.S. many years before, arranged a means for them to enter the United States. While in Cuba as guests in an Armenian acquaintance’s home they briefly met a funny young man with jade green eyes and strange wavy, kinky hair named Hagop Rousyan, who worked as a shoe shiner. Clara would 15 years later randomly meet this same man again, now a successful grocer based in Somerville, Mass., known as Jack Russian, and marry him. Jack himself was a Kharpertsi, born in 1904, from the village of Sousoury.

Clara and Haigouhi finally entered the U.S.in spring 1925 and they settled in Providence, R.I. Clara grew up in a loving home and she was an excellent student. But she would see turbulence in her life again after the assassination of Archbishop Leon Tourian in 1933 and the subsequent schism of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The entire family was expelled from the church, where her mother taught Sunday school and Clara sang in the church choir.

During the Great Depression Clara was obliged to work in various positions including in her uncle Haig’s grocery store, although she made the Rhode Island Honor Society and was eligible to attend the Rhode Island College of Education free of charge. In high school Clara had been a promising graphic designer and was inclined to-wards the fine arts.

Clara and Hagop married in 1940 and eventually moved into a colonial house in Arlington, Mass. Clara lived in that same home up until a week before her passing. Together they ran the grocery store, Cedar Market, which was situated on the corner of Cedar and Summer streets near Davis Square. They had two children, Arsen and Linda, and enjoyed several cats and dogs over the years. Both Hagop and Clara were dedicated to the Watertown Armenian community and were very active. Hagop had served in the ranks of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF) and Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) for most of his adult life, and their children grew up in the AYF and the church.

Clara was a devout Christian her entire life and studied the Bible daily. In the mid-1950’s, she was asked to serve on a special exploratory committee tasked with establishing a new Armenian church in Watertown. The committee met in a tent that was pitched on the current site of St. Stephen’s Armenian Apostolic church. Clara would dutifully serve for over two decades as a member of the St. Stephen’s Ladies’ Guild and served in other capacities.

Clara was known for her wit. She had a deadpan humor, often dropping one-liners that killed everyone in the room. She loved to joke and laugh and enjoyed every moment of her day. Clara had many hobbies and interests including stamp collecting, knitting, and painting. She was also an investor and closely followed the stock market daily. Her mornings were not complete without having completed a crossword puzzle and eaten a breakfast of boiling hot percolated black coffee, feta cheese, Kalamata olives, and wheat toast or her famous choreg.

She was an excellent cook who specialized in kheyma, or chi kufta, kharpertsi kufta, sini kufta,roast stuffed lamb, an out of this world yalanchi sarma and numerous other signature dishes.

She was devoted to her children and grandchildren, and she was their confidant and role model. Clara was inspirational to scores of people throughout her life and she wasn’t even cognizant of that fact. She was a humble, kind and thoughtful human being who was revered and respected by people from all parts of the world—from Argentina to France, Lebanon and Syria to California. Even well into her 102th year, suffering from both vision and hearing loss, she was always on her feet, cooking, cleaning, and doing the laundry, climbing and descending a flight of 20 steps. She was truly an extraordinary, strong-willed woman who lived to the fullest extent of her abilities, day by day.

Clara is survived by her son Arsen; her daughter and son in law Linda and Khosroff Adanalian; grandsons Christian and Sevan; first cousin Theresa Brundage; and the many members of the Kaloustian, Russian, Bogosian and Trask families of Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

Asbarez – On Friday, September 30, 2016, the 20th anniversary of enthronement visit of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I commenced with a youth gathering held at Glendale Civic Auditorium under the auspices of the Western Prelacy and organized by Homenetmen Western US Regional Executive Committee. Over 1,400 youth participated in the meeting with His Holiness, including Homenetmen scouts, Prelacy Schools’ and Sunday Schools’ students, and parishes’ youth group members. Clergy, Central Executive and Executive Council members, representatives of sister organizations, parents, and community members were among the guests in attendance.

The event began with the entrance of His Holiness in a procession guided by scouts. Following the flag ceremony by the marching band and scouts and the flag ceremony, the scouts’ choir sang the Pontifical anthem. Welcoming remarks were delivered by MC Moushegh Bedevian, after which remarks were delivered by representatives of Prelacy Armenian Schools, parish youth groups, Sunday Schools, and Homenetmen, all of whom welcomed His Holiness and touched upon the legacy of His Holiness as a prominent leader of our church, of ecumenical affairs, in the Armenian culture and the Armenian cause.

H.E. Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate, welcomed His Holiness and stated how pleased and proud he must feel to see the large gathering of youth and to hear them pledge their faithfulness to our faith and heritage. He then invited His Holiness to address the youth and guests.

His Holiness spoke in general on the absolute importance of preserving and fostering our religious and national values, in a Diaspora situation especially, emphasizing that “preserving the Armenian language is crucial to preserving and manifesting our Armenian identity, our particularity.” Addressing the youth representatives who earlier had delivered their remarks, His Holiness commended their self-understanding, self-perception, self-articulation, and self-expression as Armenians, of their sentiment that they are proud to be Armenians, stating that they are role models and exemplary examples of what it means to be Armenian. His Holiness spoke also on the pivotal role of the family in our identity and existence, stating that after the Genocide, when everything was lost, the family became a small Armenia. “Through our families, we not only preserved our Armenian identity, we also deepened our faith,” stressed His Holiness.

A question and answer session followed. His Holiness engaged closely with the youth, answering their questions in a serious yet witty manner on topics such as how the church can attract youth, the use of modern technology by the church, the role of the church in community life, the Sis lawsuit, and more. His Holiness iterated the importance of the church, school, and family triune; spoke on the vocation of the church to be with the people – to identity itself with the suffering, joy, concerns, expectations, and needs of the people; on the need for our schools to focus not only on education but on the Christian, moral, spiritual, and Armenian formation of our youth so that our youth comprehend the significance of our church in our history and today as our spiritual home. Speaking on the Sis lawsuit, His Holiness stated that the Catholicosate is committed to continuing the process, even though it is not a rosy one, for recognition and reparations are closely interconnected and it is high time to move our cause to the legal sphere.

The program concluded with the benediction by His Holiness and the Cilician anthem sung by the Homenetmen scouts’ choir.

 Asbarez – Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art (AFFMA) will present its 19th Arpa International Film Festival (AIFF) from November 3 to 6 at the historic venue in the heart of Hollywood, the Egyptian Theatre, located at 6712 Hollywood Blvd, in Los Angeles.

This year, AIFF will be screening one of the best selection of international films at the festival. 10 feature and feature length documentary film premiers by world class contemporary international artists such as Dominique Pinon, John Savage, Karren Karagulian, Maria Furtwangler, Albert Kodagolian, Onur Turkel, Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Yana Drouz, Ashot Adamyan, Marija Karan and Jesse Williams.

A total of 55 independent films from 23 countries will be screened. Films such as: “Lost in Armenia” from award-winning director Serge Avedikian, recipient of the Cannes “Golden Palm” short film Award, “Booger Red,” a narrative documentary from acclaimed Indy director Berndt Mader, U.S. premiere of Albert Kodagolian’s “Somewhere Beautiful,” world premiere of Levon Minasian’s “Bravo Virtuoso,” and 25 years after the premiere of his masterpiece debut movie “Lost Paradise,” which screened at the prestigious AFI Film Festival, we are honored to have David Safarian back with his amazing U.S. premiere of “Hot Country Cold Winter.”

Special Screening of award winning and nominated short films from critically acclaimed festivals such as: Tribeca, Berlin, Venice, Moscow, Tallin, Golden Apricot, etc.

Gregor Zupanc, AIFF Artistic Director stated: “Our vision is to create a vibrant Hollywood melting pot for passionate international filmmakers, whose innovative voices and socially engaged stories inspire and nurture the cinematic experience. In addition, we will have exclusive screenings of the forgotten masterpieces of Armenian cinema in collaboration with film schools and engage students from institutions with well-known universities such as California State University Northridge (CSUN).”

Arpa’s programming team has hand-picked socially engaging films with emphasis on issues in the U.S. such as Immigration, LGBT, sex trafficking, transgender and racial biases. “This year our focus has been to promote and support young Californian filmmakers by presenting the best student films from Los Angeles, “stated Gregor Zupanc.

The Festival’s prestigious Armin T. Wegner Humanitarian award will be presented to Emmy winning director Bared Maronian’s documentary “Women of 1915.” It is AIFF’s distinct honor to present 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award to a world renowned film and television actor Dominique Pinon, the recipient of the Molière Award for Best Actor in 2004. This year’s recipient of the Career Achievement Award is world renowned singer, composer, and activist Serj Tankian of System of the Down, and Albert Kodagolian will receive Arpa’s Breakthrough Artist Award for his creative vision as director and cinematographer.

Heading our industry showcase this year will be Roger Kupelian of “Lord of the Rings,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” and numerous other Hollywood productions.

For the past 19 years Arpa International Film Festival continues to cultivate cultural understanding and global empathy, creating a dynamic forum for international cinema with a special focus on the works of filmmakers who explore the issues of diaspora, exile and multi-culturalism. A strong emphasis is placed on ideals of independent thought, artistic vision, cultural diversity and social understanding.

According to a decree signed by President Serzh Sargsyan, Hranush Hakobyan has been appointed as Minister of Diaspora.

Armenia’s First Deputy Defense Minister David Tonoyan had a phone conversation with the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk today.

The interlocutors discussed the situation at the line of contact between the armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

David Tonoyan informed Amb. Kasprzyk that private of the NKR Defense Army Sevak Khachatryan had been killed as a result of firing from the Azeri side on September 25.

The Deputy Defense Minister deemed the fact of the ceasefire violation unacceptable and underlined that the Azerbaijani side is fully responsible for the deadly incident.

Andrzej Kasprzyk, in turn, expressed concern over the incident and the loss of life. He pledged to take steps to avoid further destabilization of the situation.