Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

Number of forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh reaches 60,600

Nahapetian Zhanna

 11:34,

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. 60,600 forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh crossed into Armenia as of 10:00, September 28, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan said at the Cabinet meeting.

He said that the intensity of the influx is not decreasing.

“Most of these persons were displaced into Armenia especially yesterday and the day before. The number continued to grow overnight,” he said, adding that 26,600 of the forcibly displaced crossed into Armenia on September 26 alone.

German foreign ministry expresses concern about condition of Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh

Nahapetian Zhanna

 19:00,

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 25, ARMENPRESS. Germany is closely following the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and is concerned about the Armenian population’s condition in the region, a German foreign ministry representative said at a press briefing, TASS reports.

“We were very closely monitoring the situation over the weekend and we are very concerned about the condition of the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh,” the German foreign ministry spokesperson said. The spokesperson said that Azerbaijan’s use of military force was unacceptable. “The expulsion or forced repopulation of ethnic Armenians are unacceptable,” the German MFA representative said.

The German foreign ministry representative said that Azerbaijani authorities must ensure the protection of the rights of the peaceful population of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Azeri military must adhere to international humanitarian law. “We will make a conclusion about Azerbaijan with these steps,” the spokesperson added, stating that Russian peacekeepers in NK must likewise contribute to ensuring the protection of the peaceful population.

Speaking about EUMA, the German foreign ministry representative said, “The EU mission works only on the Armenian side of the border and can’t report from Nagorno-Karabakh.”

Armenia PM signals foreign policy shift away from Russia

Nahapetian Zhanna
DW – Deutsche Welle, Germany
Sept 24 2023

Armenia could become less dependent on the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for its security. It could also join the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called his country’s security agreements with Russia “ineffective” on Sunday, signaling a potential shift away from Moscow after it refused to intervene in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Russia had acted as guarantor for a peace deal that ended a 44-day war with Azerbaijan over the disputed territory three years ago, with peacekeepers deployed around the region.

However, Azerbaijan’s much larger army was able to overpower ethnic Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh and capture the enclave earlier this week. The fighting killed at least 200 people, according to Armenian authorities.

“The systems of external security in which Armenia is involved are ineffective when it comes to the protection of our security and Armenia’s national interests,” Pashinyan said during a televised address to the nation on Sunday.

His comments come as Armenian authorities prepare to accept around 120,000 refugees entering the country from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-dominated alliance of post-Soviet states that pledge to protect each other in the event of an attack. But Russia’s armed forces are currently focused on the invasion of Ukraine.

The Kremlin has in recent days blamed Pashinyan for his handling of the crisis and said it would not intervene because Armenia itself recognizes the disputed region as part of Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan said Armenia must transform its security arrangements “in cooperation with all the partners who are ready for mutually beneficial steps.”

“It has become evident to all of us that the CSTO instruments and the instruments of the Armenian-Russian military-political cooperation are insufficient for protecting external security of Armenia,” he said.

Pashinyan also said that Armenia should join the International Criminal Court (ICC) — a tribunal which has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March over his actions in Ukraine. Putin has avoided visiting ICC member states since then.

Earlier this month, Pashinyan sent the ICC’s founding document, the Rome Statute, to be ratified by parliament.

“The decision is not directed against CSTO and the Russian Federation,” he said. “It comes from the interests of the country’s external security, and taking such a decision is our sovereign right.”

On Sunday, the first group of refugees fleeing Azerbaijan’s offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh arrived in the Armenian border town of Kornidzor.

Officials from Armenia’s Foreign Ministry were present in the town to register the new arrivals.

The group was composed mainly of women, children and the elderly.

Armenian authorities said a total of 377 people had arrived from the region as of Sunday night.

Azerbaijan has pledged to allow rebel fighters who lay down their arms to go to Armenia via the so-called Lachin Corridor.

zc/jcg (AFP, Reuters)

https://www.dw.com/en/armenia-pm-signals-foreign-policy-shift-away-from-russia/a-66910281

Yerevan de facto recognizes Baku’s sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh: Moscow

Nahapetian Zhanna
Iran Front Page
Sept 13 2023
ByIFP Media Wire

The Armenian leadership has for all intents and purposes recognized that Nagorno-Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan, Moscow announced on Tuesday.

“It is not only about the results of the latest conflict, it is also about the fact that the Armenian leadership has essentially recognized Azerbaijan’s sovereignty over Karabakh,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

“And in the Prague declaration, the sides simply put it on paper.”

According to Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev now says directly that the question of Karabakh’s status is no longer an issue, that it has been resolved.

“And the Armenian leadership has publicly announced this, counting the entire territory before 1991 within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic and giving a figure that includes the territory of Karabakh itself. This has happened. It is not our decision, it is the decision of Armenia’s current leadership,” the Russian president stated.

He also explained how Azerbaijan’s position on Russia’s role in the region now sounds. “And if that is the case, they say to us, then now you should solve all issues with us on a bilateral basis, if you want to do something about Karabakh. Well, what can we say? There is nothing to say. If Armenia itself has recognized that Karabakh is a part of Azerbaijan, what do we have to say?” Putin emphasized.

At the same time, the Russian leader noted that such a situation raises questions about the humanitarian component and the mandate of Russian peacekeepers to remain in the region.

“The mandate is still valid. And the humanitarian issues of preventing some kind of ethnic cleansing there, of course, have not gone away. I fully agree with that. I hope that the Azerbaijani leadership, as they have told us and continue to tell us, is not interested in any ethnic cleansing. And, on the contrary, they are interested in this process being carried out gently,” the Russian leader pointed out. 

Putin noted that Moscow has laid out its plan for resolving the Karabakh conflict. He recalled that Armenia “controlled seven districts, which it took under its control after the well-known Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.”

“We offered to mediate an agreement with Azerbaijan in such a way that two districts – Kelbajar and Lachin – would actually remain under the jurisdiction of Armenia. And the whole of Karabakh. But the Armenian leadership did not agree to this, although we tried to convince those in charge of the country for a decade. For ten to fifteen years,” the Russian president recalled.

According to him, various options were discussed, “but in the end it all boiled down to this.”

“To our question, ‘What are you going to do?’ we were told: ‘We will fight.’ Well, okay,” Putin said, describing his dialogues with the Armenian leadership. “In the end, everything led to the situation that has developed today,” he added.

Responding to remarks that Moscow and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) have allegedly failed to help Yerevan while a humanitarian disaster is unfolding in Karabakh, Putin said, “If Armenia has recognized that Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan, that’s it.”

“What is there to talk about? This is what the whole problem is all about. The status of Karabakh has been determined by Armenia itself. That is the whole problem,” he stressed.

https://ifpnews.com/yerevan-de-facto-recognizes-bakus-sovereignty-nagorno-karabakh-moscow/

Can the US work with Russia in Nagorno-Karabakh?

Nahapetian Zhanna
Sept 13 2023
ANALYSIS | ASIA-PACIFIC

    The geopolitical repercussions from the war in Ukraine continue to reverberate across Eurasia.

    With global attention preoccupied by Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Azerbaijan has been depriving the estimated 120,000 ethnic Armenian population in the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh access to humanitarian aid in a blockade that has lasted over eight months and has recently intensified.

    Much to Armenia’s consternation, the 2,000 Russian peacekeeping forces stationed in the enclave since the most recent round of fighting in 2020 have appeared ineffective in the face of increasing Azerbaijani pressure against the besieged Armenian population.

    As a result, Armenia is openly seeking to diversify its security relationship away from Russia, its longstanding ally, including conducting joint military drills with the United States in Armenia that began Monday and is set to end on September 20.

    Yerevan, Armenia’s capital, has increasingly expressed a sense of betrayal at Moscow’s inability, or unwillingness, to lend support to its treaty ally since last September when Azerbaijani armed forces attacked Armenia’s internationally recognized territory and where they still occupy 10 square kilometers, according to Armenian officials.

    The Backdrop of Current Tensions

    The two former Soviet Republics fought the First Nagorno-Karabakh War during the early 1990s after the indigenous Armenian majority in the autonomous oblast proclaimed their independence from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. Following the disintegration of the Soviet Union, a full-scale war broke out between the two newly independent countries, eventually leaving tens of thousands casualties dead and hundreds of thousands displaced between 1992 and 1994. The war ended with a victory by Armenia.

    A Russian-brokered ceasefire resulted in Armenian control of Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent regions of Azerbaijan proper. The United Nations and international community, however, continued to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan.

    After over 25 years of unsuccessful negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the U.S., France, and Russia, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, bolstered by the “brotherly” military support from NATO member Turkey and years of stockpiling Israel-supplied weapons, launched an all-out assault to recapture the disputed territory in September 2020.

    The 44-day war saw Azerbaijan secure a military victory with further territorial gains guaranteed under a Moscow-brokered ceasefire, leaving a rump self-governing Nagorno-Karabakh Republic alongside a Russian peacekeeping contingent as stipulated by the November 2020 ceasefire agreement. That agreement also guaranteed that a link between the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave and Armenia, the Lachin Corridor, would be sustained and controlled by the Russian peacekeeping contingent. The status of Nagorno-Karabakh and its inhabitants remained unresolved.

    Last December, however, Baku effectively blockaded the Lachin Corridor and, five months later, it established a checkpoint on the road, formalizing the blockade. While the European Union, Russia, the U.S., and even the International Court of Justice have increasingly called for lifting the blockade, Azerbaijan remains defiant. The Azerbaijan foreign ministry insists that claims of a blockade are “completely baseless” and has accused Armenians of transporting arms into the territory, a claim Yerevan denies. Nevertheless, even the International Committee of the Red Cross struggles to continue its vital deliveries into the territory, resulting in what several United Nations Special Rapporteurs describe as a “dire humanitarian crisis.”

    There were hopes the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been at the heart of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, would be resolved by negotiations facilitated by a complementary EU and U.S. approach (although a separate track by Moscow also persists). However, the ongoing blockade has dimmed hopes for a viable negotiated settlement.

    Current Tensions

    The war in Ukraine has drained the Kremlin’s military resources and room for maneuver, especially in a region like the South Caucasus where Russia vies with Turkey for regional hegemony. Moscow’s increased reliance on Ankara over the last 18 months to balance against the West diplomatically has resulted in its inability to fulfill its own obligations in the ceasefire agreement following the 2020 war.

    Given this new reality, Armenia has started to hedge against Moscow by actively searching for new military partners and security guarantors.

    The publicity surrounding Eagle Partner 2023, the Armenian-hosted joint military exercise with the U.S., clearly worries the Kremlin, which has said it would “deeply analyze” the latest events. However, these exercises are “narrowly focused on peacekeeping operations” and do not represent a “breakthrough in U.S.-Armenia defense cooperation,” according to Benyamin Poghosyan, senior fellow at APRI, a Yerevan-based think tank.

    Nevertheless, the exercises follow Armenia’s refusal in January to host Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization exercises on its territory, citing the organization’s unwillingness to support Yerevan during last September’s escalation by Azerbaijan.

    Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, has recently made a distinctly public effort to distance itself from Russian actions in Ukraine and even from Moscow itself. In just the last weeks Yerevan has moved to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and recalled its ambassador to the CSTO. Pashinyan said depending solely on Russia for security was a “strategic mistake.” Pashinyan’s spouse, Anna Hakobyan, traveled to Kyiv last week and delivered the first package of Armenian humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

    However, the fact remains that only Russia has sent peacekeepers to Nagorno-Karabakh, and that these peacekeepers are all that stands between the local Armenian population and Azerbaijani conquest, almost certainly leading to massacre and expulsion. As Poghosyan sees it, the driving cause behind a potential new attack is “Azerbaijan’s desire to establish control over Nagorno Karabakh without providing any status or special rights to Armenians.”

    This aligns with the view of Shujat Ahmadzada, a Baku-based researcher on foreign and security policies of the South Caucasus countries, who believes Azerbaijan is pursuing a “3D policy” with regard to Nagorno-Karabakh. The three D’s stand for “De-internationalization, De-territorialization, and De-institutionalization.” Such a process is intended to transform the status of the ethnic Armenians living there into a “purely ‘internal matter’ of Azerbaijan” while “incorporating the self-governing institutions into the Azerbaijani political system in such a way that there is no single territorially defined unit for the ethnic Armenian community.”

    While the deployment of over 80 U.S. troops on Armenian soil will hopefully guarantee against imminently anticipated Azerbaijani attacks on Nagorno-Karabakh or Armenia itself, Washington’s move in a region Moscow has long viewed as a vital interest does not come without risk. Moscow views Washington’s increased involvement as the Biden administration taking advantage of Russia’s war in Ukraine in order to weaken or challenge its influence in the South Caucasus region, where Russia has a history of over 200 years of regional military domination.

    The latest American proposal for unblocking the Lachin Corridor plans to simultaneously open an alternative route to Nagorno-Karabakh through the Azerbaijani town of Aghdam. However, Armenians have regarded this proposal as a clear threat. Tigran Grigoryan, a Karabakh-born analyst and head of the Regional Center for Democracy and Security, a Yerevan-based think tank, assessed that, even if both the Lachin Corridor and the Aghdam route were to be opened, the potential remained for Baku to again close the corridor and create a “new status quo on the ground.”

    Recent reports show that the first delivery of aid by the Russian Red Cross has entered Nagorno-Karabakh from Azerbaijan. However, the acute crisis in food, energy, and humanitarian supplies continues as the Lachin Corridor remains shut and Azerbaijan continues its buildup along the border regions.

    The Biden administration would do better to use its leverage over Azerbaijan to ensure an end to the Lachin Corridor blockade while simultaneously working to achieve a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that would both recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty and provide enforceable guarantees for the future rights and security of the Armenian population there. For such an approach to work would likely require coordination with Russia.

    While such a scenario might be hard to imagine, Washington and Moscow have worked together in the past over Nagorno-Karabakh, even when relations were severely strained elsewhere. Such coordination is particularly compelling given the tens of thousands in the enclave who currently face famine. Rather than taking steps that Moscow views as threatening to its military presence in the South Caucasus (a process which led to disastrous consequences for neighboring Georgia 15 years ago), Washington, and the region itself, would be better off if American involvement instead demonstrated its commitment to ensuring human rights.

    Azeri defense ministry generates more disinformation, falsely accuses Armenia of border shooting

    Nahapetian Zhanna

     14:34,

    YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense continues its disinformation campaign with false accusations against the Armenian military, the Ministry of Defense has warned.

    In a statement released Tuesday, the Armenian Ministry of Defense said that the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense has again falsely accused the Armed Forces of Armenia of opening fire at Azeri outposts.

    “The [Ministry of Defense] of Azerbaijan continues to spread disinformation. The statement disseminated by the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan as if on September 12, at around 11:25 a.m., the Armenian Armed Forces units opened fire at the Azerbaijani combat outposts in the southwestern part of the border, does not correspond to reality,” the Armenian Ministry of Defense said.

    Kim Kardashian heartfelt plea to President Biden in hopes of preventing another Armenian genocide

    Nahapetian Zhanna
    Clutch Points
    Sept 9 2023
    By 

    Burtland Dixon



    Kim Kardashian is making a heartfelt plea to President Joe Biden, urging him to take action to prevent another Armenian Genocide and cut ties with Azerbaijan, TMZ reports. In an opinion piece published in Rolling Stone, Kardashian, along with physician and producer Eric Esrailian, passionately addressed their concerns.

    Both Kardashian and Esrailian are descendants of Armenian Genocide survivors and are deeply committed to preventing further atrocities. They express their desire not to witness the recognition or commemoration of another genocide in the future.

    The central issue highlighted in their plea is Azerbaijan’s blockade, which has severed the lifeline connecting the indigenous Christian Armenians of Artsakh with the rest of the world since December. This blockade has resulted in the use of starvation as a weapon against the Armenian population in the region. Kardashian and Esrailian argue that the war in Ukraine has forced some countries to rely on Azerbaijan for oil, inadvertently contributing to this dire situation.

    Furthermore, they criticize the coordinated social media campaigns aimed at downplaying the blockade, emphasizing the urgent need for action. Kardashian and Esrailian call upon President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other officials to take a swift and resolute stand.

    Their proposed measures include economic sanctions, cutting off foreign aid to Azerbaijan, boycotting international events held in the country (such as concerts and sporting events), and pursuing international legal proceedings. They stress that time is of the essence, and the international community must act urgently.

    Kim Kardashian emphasizes that the time for mere “thoughts, prayers, or concern” has passed, citing the ongoing conflict overseas, the 2020 attacks on Armenians in Artsakh, and a ceasefire agreement that was not upheld. She firmly asserts that the silence of governments worldwide has only exacerbated the situation, making it imperative to cut off foreign aid to Azerbaijan and boycott international events held in the country.

    Biden White House must act as genocide threatens to ‘destroy’ 120,000 people, GOP rep urges

    Nahapetian Zhanna
    FOX News
    Sept 9 2023
    By Andrew Mark Miller

    FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., has sent a letter to the Biden White House imploring it to speak out against genocide against Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and clarify that the U.S. will not “compromise” with Azerbaijan in the conflict.

    “In light of the compelling and urgent testimony provided, I respectfully urge you to immediately clarify that the United States does not tolerate, facilitate, or participate, in negotiations over genocide, and to publicly inform Azerbaijan that unless it immediately lifts its blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh, the U.S. will take action through the United Nations to refer the matter to the International Criminal Court for investigation and prosecution,” Smith wrote to President Biden in a Thursday letter.

    The testimony Smith referenced was from Luis Moreno Ocampo, former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, who testified in front of the bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, which Smith co-chairs, on Thursday.

    Ocampo told the commission “there is a reasonable basis to believe that Azerbaijan’s blockade of the Lachin Corridor constitutes genocide” and that Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, “voluntarily, knowingly, and willingly created conditions calculated to destroy 120,000 Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh.”

    In his letter, Smith expressed concern that Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently said there is a “need for a dialogue and compromise and the importance of building confidence between the parties.”

    “Mr. President, there is little doubt that this humanitarian crisis was planned, tested, and imposed by President Ilham Aliyev, who rules Azerbaijan as a dictator. His record of human rights abuses is decades in the making as I met with him in Baku in 2013 and 2014 arguing then about both his mistreatment and jailing of Azerbaijani human rights activists and abusive treatment of Armenian Christians,” Smith wrote.

    He continued, “Thus by encouraging ‘compromise,’ the Secretary appears to facilitate Azerbaijan’s use of genocide as a negotiating tactic. Negotiation may be needed to solve the differences between Azerbaijan and the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, but genocide is an abuse impossible to ignore.”

    Nagorno-Karabakh is a region within Azerbaijan that came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by the Armenian military in separatist fighting that ended in 1994. Armenian forces also took control of substantial territory around the region.

    In his letter, Smith expressed concern that Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently said there is a “need for a dialogue and compromise and the importance of building confidence between the parties.”

    “Mr. President, there is little doubt that this humanitarian crisis was planned, tested, and imposed by President Ilham Aliyev, who rules Azerbaijan as a dictator. His record of human rights abuses is decades in the making as I met with him in Baku in 2013 and 2014 arguing then about both his mistreatment and jailing of Azerbaijani human rights activists and abusive treatment of Armenian Christians,” Smith wrote.

    He continued, “Thus by encouraging ‘compromise,’ the Secretary appears to facilitate Azerbaijan’s use of genocide as a negotiating tactic. Negotiation may be needed to solve the differences between Azerbaijan and the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, but genocide is an abuse impossible to ignore.”

    Nagorno-Karabakh is a region within Azerbaijan that came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by the Armenian military in separatist fighting that ended in 1994. Armenian forces also took control of substantial territory around the region.

    Azerbaijan regained control of the surrounding territory in a six-week war with Armenia in 2020. A Russia-brokered armistice that ended the war left the region’s capital, Stepanakert, connected to Armenia only by a road known as the Lachin Corridor, along which Russian peacekeeping forces were supposed to ensure free movement.

    However, over the past nine months, the road has been blockaded by Azerbaijani forces in what they say is a move to prevent “arms smuggling.”

    Armenia says the blockade of the “Lachin corridor,” known as “the road of life” by ethnic Armenians in Karabakh, has caused acute shortages of food, medicines and other essentials.

    Azerbaijan claims it has let the Red Cross evacuate people to Armenia for medical treatment and that its own information shows there is no shortage of basic food staples, but it has not allowed food and other supplies in for some time.

    “The Biden Administration must wake up, recognize the absolutely grave responsibility it has here, and focus on finding and implementing a humane solution,” Smith said in a press release. “And this must mean that the blockade is lifted and the people continue to live in their ancient homeland — and not be subject to violence and threats. This situation is now a three-alarm fire.”

    The White House directed Fox News Digital to an Aug. 31 release from the State Department on the matter.

    “We are deeply concerned about deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Nagorno-Karabakh resulting from the continued blockage of food, medicine, and other goods essential to a dignified existence,” the statement said. 

    “The United States has worked continuously with the sides over the past several weeks to allow humanitarian assistance to reach the population of Nagorno-Karabakh. We reiterate our call to immediately re-open the Lachin corridor to humanitarian, commercial, and passenger traffic. Further, officials from Baku and representatives from Stepanakert should convene without delay to agree on the means of transporting critical provisions to the men, women, and children of Nagorno-Karabakh — including additional supply routes — and resume discussions on all outstanding issues. Basic humanitarian assistance should never be held hostage to political disagreements.”

    The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-white-house-must-act-genocide-threatens-destroy-120000-people-gop-rep-urges

    Russian aid to be delivered to Nagorno-Karabakh through Aghdam road, Lachin Corridor to be opened for humanitarian goods

    Nahapetian Zhanna

     21:10, 9 September 2023

    STEPANAKERT, SEPTEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) authorities announced Saturday that Russian aid will be delivered through the Aghdam road and that at the same time an agreement has been reached to restore humanitarian transit along Lachin Corridor.

    “The Russian government has initiated the provision of humanitarian aid to the Republic of Artsakh, given the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh. The aid, which includes Russian-made essential products, has been sent to Artsakh through the Russian Red Cross by their vehicles. The authorities of the Republic of Artsakh, based on the need to mitigate the severe humanitarian problems resulting from the total blockade by Azerbaijan, have decided to allow access of the Russian goods to our republic through the town of Askeran. At the same time, an agreement has been reached to restore humanitarian shipments by the Russian peacekeepers and the International Committee of the Red Cross along Lachin Corridor,” the Nagorno-Karabakh official InfoCenter said in a statement.

    Idram is for all: Commercial Director Grigori Yolyan

    Nahapetian Zhanna

     11:55, 6 September 2023

    YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. Using the Idram&IDBank application, you can already make payments at about 17․500 points of sale: these are shops, service points, including restaurants, hotels, beauty salons, medical centers, gas stations, entertainment venues and a number of other establishments, Idram Commercial Director Grigori Yolyan said in an interview.

    Summer is coming to an end, but the travel period is not: as long as the weather permits, we try to enjoy outdoor recreation almost every weekend. Of course, when traveling around the marzes, we use shops, cafes or entertainment venues, and it is very nice to see that in a number of marzes it is already possible to pay with Idram. Could you indicate in which regions your team mainly develops QR payments?

    You are absolutely right. Using the Idram&IDBank application, you can already make payments at about 17․500 points of sale: these are shops, service points, including restaurants, hotels, beauty salons, medical centers, gas stations, entertainment venues and a number of other establishments. I think our users will confirm that today it is already possible to use almost all the services available in Armenia, make the necessary purchases both in grocery and clothing stores, use restaurants and even leave electronic tips without having a penny in your pocket or wallet. First of all, this is the result of the possibility of payment in approximately 17․500 points of sale, and this is not only related to our work. We are also increasing the number of merchants with Idram payment option also thanks to the active support of our users, as they prompt both us and those merchants that do not yet have Idram payment option to provide this opportunity.

    This circumstance makes us very happy, because it really means that Idram not only has the largest coverage in Armenia, but is also the most popular payment method. Basically, there are reasons for this:

    convenience,

    speed,

    variety of financial instruments.

    As for the extent of distribution in the marzes, it should be noted that Idram is already widespread in almost all marzes: the largest coverage is in Shirak, then in Lori, but we continue to work towards all marzes so that our citizens have even more diverse payment points according to Idram even in the most remote marzes.

    In fact, you continue to develop non-cash payments in Armenia. Back in 2020, Idram came up with an interesting campaign – “No cash”. What was the purpose of the campaign and what do you think are the results of your efforts?

    We launched the “No cash” campaign in 2020, but in fact, much earlier, we talked about the fact that cash is no longer modern if there is a payment method like Idram. Of course, saying “no cash” when you still have about 2,000 points of sale where you can pay for Idram, and saying when the number of these points is already about 17․500, you see, these are completely different things (smiles – ed.). Yes, we were sure that the future belongs to cashless and contactless payments, where QR payments play their irreplaceable role, and indeed, contactless payment is more convenient than cash and even cards. Our users remember well the catchphrases of our campaign, which, frankly, sound very good in Armenian and are difficult to translate into other languages, but I will still try to translate: “Cash is the dirt of hands”, “Are you ancient?” etc. It seems that these are just expressions, but at first our society fell in love with these labels, stickers, and then, yes, our campaign gave an impressive result. Proof of this is also the number of daily QR payments, which has increased by almost several dozen times compared to 2020.

    And the action was more than relevant in 2020, when COVID-19 spread, and it was necessary to exclude contact with cash as much as possible, which in turn are the cause of the spread of microbes. Therefore, Idram not only began to actively increase the number of partners, but also expanded the tipping functionality at all possible food points of sale so that our citizens do not even have to touch cash to leave a tip.

    As you mentioned, there are about 17.5 thousand partners who accept payments via Idram. This is a really impressive figure, and in this respect Idram is the undisputed leader. What are the benefits for partners?

    Now there are about 17.5 thousand points, but their number is growing every day. Let’s start with the fact that Idram’s cooperation with any point of sale is mutually beneficial. Since Idram is the most popular financial app in Armenia, we have over a few hundred thousand active users and it is only natural that most of them prefer to make payments with Idram. If a few years ago the Idram sales department tried to attract new points of sale, now this process is two-way. That is, in many cases, retail points of sale themselves turn to us with a request to “install Idram”, and often the motive for this is the desire of buyers. In this regard, I also want to thank our customers and partners, who, like us, are guided by the idea of providing customers with the best experience and comfort. At the same time, from the point of view of points of sale, the possibility of paying by Idram is not only a tool for loyalty to its customers, but also aimed at increasing sales. As you know, in 2020, Idram and IDBank were the first in Armenia to introduce Rocket Line digital installment plan, which is a financial instrument that works on the principle of “Buy now, pay later” and is gaining wide popularity in the world. On the one hand, this frees our users from unnecessary trouble, because the Bank approves a certain limit for them in advance, and there is no need to submit documents and wait a long time for loan approval. On the other hand, it is a revolutionary tool for merchants, because paying with Rocket Line is technically no different from a regular payment with Idram, and the buyer takes only two or three additional steps and makes an instant purchase.

    The Rocket Line digital installment itself is available at all 17․500 points where Idram payment is available. And if the point of sale chooses the Rocket Line 0% cooperation option, then this is an additional big incentive for sales, because buyers get the opportunity to buy goods at this very moment, paying exactly the same price and not a penny more, up to 12 months. Currently, the number of such points of sale is about 6,000.

     Glad to share another exciting news! For 2-3 months now, our users have been able to use the Rocket Line payment option for up to 36 months. To be more precise, for non-cash payments up to 30,000 AMD, the maximum period for Rocket Line is 12 months, for payments from 130,000 AMD to 500,000 AMD – 24 months, and for payments exceeding 500,000 AMD, the maximum period is 36 months. In this case, at the time of purchase, the buyer simply chooses the term that suits him and makes payments in the manner prescribed by the contract in the form of equal payments, which does not require any further action on the part of the point of sale or the buyer.

    Since you talked about Rocket Line’s digital installment plan, let’s also touch on how easily this tool has been adopted by our society. Most users were probably not familiar with the Buy Now, Pay Later payment method. What image do you have today, to what extent is Rocket Line used?

    As I already mentioned, IDBank and Idram were the first in Armenia to introduce the “Buy Now, Pay Later” format. Of course, at first this was perceived by our society rather hard, and for comparison, it must be said that in the next year Rocket Line contracts were signed 7 times more than in the first 6 months of the product launch. That is, from the moment our users accepted the product, or rather, got a clear idea of its benefits, we have experienced a sharp increase in the use of Rocket Line digital installment plan. Today, Rocket Line has become a daily tool for our users: many use it when they need to make an urgent purchase, but there are still a few days before payday, after which they repay it, paying interest for just these few days, or pay no interest at all with Rocket Line 0%, many choose to sell with Rocket Line 0% and then repay on their own schedule within up to 12 months. Everyone uses Rocket Line according to the needs of the moment, adapted to their lifestyle. It should be noted that since the launch of the product, about 2.2 million contracts have already been concluded, that is, over the past 3 years this tool has been useful to our clients as many times. This is a serious indicator that our users like the product. Of course, we continue to develop the Rocket Line, making it more convenient and profitable for our users.

    You talked about customer loyalty and we can’t get around the Idplus loyalty platform. What are the features of the product of the strategic partner Idram and why did you decide to cooperate?

    The Idplus loyalty platform has converted the bonus cards known to all of us into a digital field and gives bonus points at more than 1100 points where it is possible to pay by Idram. They are automatically accumulated on the digital bonus card of this point of sale. What does it mean? If you download the Idplus application, you will see that it combines a number of advantages. At the same time, no additional actions are required on the part of the buyer and the point of sale to issue a bonus. All operations are automated, both in the case of Idram and with all services provided by partners.

    So, thanks to the Idplus platform, the client can:

    Receive bonuses and cashbacks by making contactless QR payments with more than 1100 partners,

    Sell accumulated bonuses at a discount at the auction, instantly receiving the proceeds from the sale to the Idram wallet, as well as buy bonuses at a discount from other users at the auction, moreover, the auction is held in the Dutch auction format, and the client can determine the amount of the discount when selling his bonus.

    Give or receive digital gift cards at any time, without visiting the point of sale, regardless of location and without unnecessary paperwork,

    Use gift cards or accumulated bonuses when shopping with partners in the same way as when buying with Idram,

    Make combo payments by combining payment with a gift card, bonuses and Idram in the Idplus application,

    Track accumulated bonus points and the entire history of transactions directly in the application.

    For points of sale, Idplus serves as an additional loyalty platform. With Idplus, you can easily manage your own promotions and bonus system, all on one digital platform. Idplus Partner Points can:

     Implement our own mechanism for accrual and provision of bonuses and cashbacks,

    Create digital gift cards,

    Offer customers promotions on special terms, independently determining the day, time, coupon amount, specific type of product, etc. promotions.

    Send your customers push notifications about promotions.

    Evaluate the effectiveness of your own programs or loyalty campaigns using reports prepared on the platform.

    In a word, Idplus is a universal loyalty platform that is equally useful and beneficial for both partner points of sale and their customers.

    By the way, I would like to share some good news: on the Idplus platform, it is already possible to purchase and give away fuel cards, with which you can buy fuel on even more favorable terms, in particular, saving 2-4% of the cost of fuel. Buying a card and paying with it is a matter of seconds. The service is currently available at all RAN Oil points of sale, and we are sure that other partners will join us in the near future.

    In fact, Idram currently offers its users many services on one platform, saving them time and providing a new, modern experience. What are the company’s goals for the near future?

    I think both our users and partner organizations are confident that Idram is a growing and constantly evolving company that provides modern and convenient financial instruments.

    Proof of this is the recently created Idram Junior app for children and teenagers up to 16 years old. This project shows that Idram is also taking responsibility for raising a financially literate generation. The app, of course, has limited features and allows teens to make payments up to 17․500 points, make transfers to family members and top up their phone balance. This functionality will be further expanded, and will also teach you how to save, manage your own funds, etc. Of course, it should be noted that our young users will perform all these actions exclusively under the supervision of their parents, because each Idram Junior is “attached” to the Idram&IDBank application parent.

    To summarize, the ecosystem built with our strategic partners already allows us to assert that Idram is a set of convenient, fast and applicable payment instruments, a platform that solves a number of issues for its users and partners. We are working to expand this great ecosystem, develop functionalities and are open to any cooperation, as well as other players in the market, which I assure you will only work in a win-win format, because we love to say that Idram is for everyone.