Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

By Kathryn Jean Lopez
 

A sign with a flower outside a cathedral at what has to be one of Manhattan’s busiest intersections on 34th Street and Second Avenue stands as a subtle reminder of genocide. One wonders how many diplomats on the way to and from the United Nations headquarters, tourists and commuters have passed it this year without noticing the banner for the centennial year of the Armenian genocide outside St. Vartan Cathedral.

With Christmas just days away, 30 U.S. Representatives, led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), have called on the Obama Administration to condemn the ongoing Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) attacks against Christians and other Middle East minorities as ‘genocide,’ reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

The December 23rd letter, addressed to Secretary of State John Kerry comes in response to reports that the Obama Administration is set to characterize the ISIS attacks on Yezidis as genocide, but will stop short of similarly referencing the murder and destruction of Christians and other minority groups. “While it is hardly possible to overstate the brutality of ISIL’s attempts to destroy the Yezidis, an overly narrow finding would wrongly discount similar violence directed against other minorities in the region, with likely dire consequences for those minorities,” noted the letter.  The Congressional letter cited the recent U.S. Commission on Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report which, “call[ed] on the US government to designate the Christian, Yazidi, Shi’a, Turkmen and Shabak communities of Iraq and Syria as victims of Genocide by ISIL.”

A copy of the letter is available here:

The effort is part of a broad outcry of concern by Congressional leaders, genocide experts and rights groups, including the ANCA, to secure a clear U.S. genocide determination regarding the anti-Christian atrocities, including calls for passage of various U.S. House and Senate genocide measures and Obama Administration’s determination.

The Greek parliament unanimously asked from the Greek government the recognition of the State of Palestine at a special session held on Tuesday in the presence of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, according to the Greek Reporter.

Abbas was welcomed as head of state by parliament president Nikos Voutsis and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras: “we welcome you in the presence of the prime minister, members of the parliament’s presidium and president of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee of parliament and the Committee of the Greek-Palestinian friendship of parliament.”

On his part, Abbas stated “the grand step of recommending to the Greek government to recognize a State of Palestine will go down in the history and in the future paces of the Palestinian people” adding also “We are very proud that we are here at the bastion of the Greek democracy” who expressed the Palestinian people’s gratitude and pleasure for the ‘grandiose’, as he called it, “Greek parliament’s initiative that further contributes to the foundation of the Palestinian State” adding “We feel at home. Further steps for the strengthening of the already close and historic relations between the peoples will follow” said Abbas and concluded “We recently welcomed the Greek prime minister in Palestine and we hope very soon to also welcome the President of the Hellenic Republic and the parliament president.”

Photo: Sputnik/ Sergey Guneev

The United Nations Security Council has unanimously adopted the resolution developed by the five permanent members of the council earlier on Friday, Sputnik News reports.

The Heads of Delegation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair Countries have issued a joint statement:

We, the Heads of Delegation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries – Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov, Secretary of State of the United States John Kerry, State Secretary for European Affairs of France Harlem Desir – remain united in our commitment to mediating a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

We welcome the upcoming meeting between President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan under the auspices of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs. In light of the recent rise in tensions, we appeal to the sides to re-commit themselves to the peaceful resolution of the conflict and dispel any misperceptions that they are not serious about reaching a negotiated settlement. The sides should continue discussions from the Sochi, Wales, and Paris Summits of 2014 on elements of a comprehensive settlement, and should intensify their dialogue in 2016 on the basis of proposals currently under discussion.

With the significant escalation in violence along the Line of Contact and Armenia-Azerbaijan border this year, the status quo has become unsustainable. We especially condemn the use of mortars and other heavy weaponry, and regret deeply the civilian casualties these weapons have caused. There is no military solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and there is no justification for the death and injury of innocent civilians. We appeal to the sides in the strongest possible terms to reduce tensions and protect lives. The Co-Chairs have proposed risk-reduction measures that we encourage the sides to adopt, including an OSCE investigation mechanism.

We welcome the progress made by the sides in implementing the data exchange on missing persons under the auspices of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). We encourage further cooperation with ICRC and must ensure that it has sufficient funding to fully implement this important humanitarian measure. Azerbaijani authorities’ decision to return an Armenian soldier who crossed the Line of Contact and an Armenian civilian who crossed the international border was a helpful humanitarian gesture and consistent with international humanitarian obligations. We urge the sides to return all remaining prisoners in the spirit of the Astrakhan Declaration of October 2010 issued by the Presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the Russian Federation. There must also be dialogue between Armenians and Azerbaijanis to build trust between neighboring peoples. We encourage the sides to work with the Co-Chairs to support programs that bring together people affected by the conflict.

Over the past year, we have witnessed increasingly vocal attacks on the Co-Chairs and the Minsk Group format. We emphasize that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format by the sides and has the full confidence of all OSCE participating States. Any attempts to blame the Co-Chairs for setbacks in the negotiation process only mask the primary obstacle to peace – the lack of political will in Armenia and Azerbaijan to reach a negotiated settlement. The Co-Chairs will continue to brief international and regional organizations interested in supporting the Minsk Group process. We reaffirm our readiness to work closely with the sides on achieving our common objective of an enduring peace.

The first meeting of the Armenia-U.S. Council on Trade and Investment was held in Yerevan on November 17, 2015.

This Council was established in May 2015 under a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) between the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the United States of America for further strengthening and deepening of the Armenian-American economic cooperation, as well as expansion of turnover of products and services between two countries.

The Armenian delegation was headed by Karen Chshmaritian, Minister of Economy of RA, while the u.S. delegation was led by Elizabeth Hafner, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative.

The Council on Trade and Investment included a high-level U.S. delegation from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Department of State and the trade representative’s office. The meeting was attended by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Armenia H.E. Mr. Richard Mills.

From the Armenian side the meeting was attended by the Deputy Minister of Economy Garegin Melkonyan, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Arayik Petrosyan, representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Economy, Finance, Agriculture, Development Foundation of Armenia, Chamber of Commerce, the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen (Employers) of Armenia, the American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia (AmCham) and other interested institutions.

Addressing the meeting, Armenian Economy Minister Karen Chshmaritian said: “Armenia is ready to become a center of interests for international business community, adding traditional Armenian hospitality to the favorable conditions for business activities. In this context I would propose to consider the opportunities to establish headquarters of international companies in Armenia, especially considering, that the U.S. investors have already appreciated the opportunities of Armenia, particularly in the spheres of tourism, information and high technologies, consulting”.

The perspectives and opportunities of the growth of mutual trade and investment between Republic of Armenia and the United States were discussed. On the agenda were discussions on intellectual property rights, customs clearances, technical barriers to trade, sanitary measures for agriculture, investment promotion efforts, private sector engagement, government procurement, WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, and environmental and labor issues.

“By identifying and addressing these technical issues, we will deepen the trade relationship between the U.S. and Armenia,” said U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Richard Mills.

In addition to the bilateral meeting, a roundtable discussion was held with interested private sector stakeholders. This was the first such meeting, with plans to continue them annually.

“Business leaders and the private sector play an important role in policy and regulatory decision-making,” Ambassador Mills said. “This roundtable discussion helped provide an opportunity for stakeholders to consult on the on-going trade discussions.”

A joint action plan outlining further steps for promoting mutual trade and investment, as well as expanding areas of cooperation is expected to be adopted at the outcome of the meeting.

The Minister of Economy Karen Chshmaritian expressed confidence that “Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) signed between the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the Government of the United States of America creates new opportunities for promotion of investment and trade between two countries, expanding existing areas of cooperation, identifying new areas of cooperation”.

The outstanding conservation of the Armenian Church and Monastery in Nicosia, winner of a European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award 2015, considered Europe’s highest honour in the field, was celebrated at a special ceremony at its premises on the evening of 27 October 2015.

George Markopouliotis, Head of the European Commission Representation in Cyprus, Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, Secretary General of Europa Nostra,Paolo Vitti, Architect responsible for the restoration project, Christopher Louise, from the United Nations Development Programme – Action for Cooperation & Trust in Cyprus (UNDP-ACT), and Kathleen Ann Doherty, US Ambassador to Cyprus, addressed the audience. Funding for the restoration work was provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The event brought together experts from across the island as well as people keenly interested and committed to preserving Cyprus’ cultural heritage. Androulla Vassiliou, former EU Commissioner for Culture (2010-2014), who made a major contribution to the development of an integrated approach for cultural heritage at the European level and co-hosted several award-giving ceremonies of the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award, was among the guests of honour.

Architect Paolo Vitti received the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award for the rehabilitation of the Armenian Church and Monastery in Nicosia at the European Heritage Awards Ceremony on 11 June 2015 at the City Hall of Oslo in Norway. This Tuesday’s special event marked the arrival of the Award in Cyprus.

The Armenian Church and Monastery are located in the Arab Ahmet neighbourhood in the northern part of Nicosia, one of the most historic and culturally diverse areas within the walled city. The architectural compound comprises three Armenian school buildings, the premises of the Armenian Prelacy, an important historical mansion, courtyards and open‐air areas, all fenced by a boundary wall. The restoration of the Church aimed to preserve a masterpiece of gothic architecture that, since 1963, had suffered from neglect.

Despite several imperfect interventions over the years and its desperate condition at the onset of the project, the Church contained significant architectural and decorative elements from the original 14th century construction, including frescoes, carved bosses and capitals, tracery and metal elements belonging to the stained-glass, some of which were only discovered during the restoration. Using traditional materials and techniques and appropriate landscaping methods, the ancillary buildings and courtyard area have also been rebuilt and refurbished for appropriate use.

The project was begun in 2007 as part of a larger peace-building effort in Cyprus. It was designed both to restore one of the most noteworthy parts of the island’s cultural heritage and to provide the Armenian, Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities with the opportunity to work together with international experts to preserve their common heritage.

The Awards’ Jury saw this project “as a definite success story, partly of conservation, with high quality research and meticulous conservation techniques, but also as an exercise in the even more challenging process of rebuilding a community. The architectural element is wonderful and precious, but so is the need to restore and develop the social cohesion of the community in the city.”

The ceremony in Nicosia was organised by the European Commission Representation in Cyprus and Europa Nostra in collaboration with UNDP-Action for Cooperation and Trust.

Iran’s First Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri has arrived in Armenia for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan.

PM Hovik Abrahamyan welcomed Eshaq Jahangiri at Zvartnots Airport.

The Armenian Prime Minister and the Iranian Vice-President will hold a meeting at the Government and will make a statement for the press.

The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, today informed the Committee of Ministers of his decision to withdraw the Council’s participation in the .

Since October 2014, a Council of Europe representative had been attending meetings in Baku intended to revive the dialogue between civil society and Azerbaijani authorities. Despite this initiative, the overall situation of human rights defenders in the country has deteriorated dramatically. An increasing number of human right defenders has recently been imprisoned, and the Council of Europe has received worrying reports about unacceptable detention conditions.

Prior to his intervention at the Committee of Ministers, the Secretary General had informed Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev of his decision.

On September 22, 2015, Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan met with China State Council Chairman (Prime Minister) Li Keqiang in Beijing, RA Government’s Press Service reported.

Welcoming the Prime Minister of Armenia, the Chairman of the State Council of China thanked him for accepting the invitation to visit China and attend the Eurasian Economic Forum. Highly appreciative of the Armenian-Chinese relations, Li Keqiang expressed confidence that his Armenian counterpart’s visit might help promote the development and strengthening of bilateral cooperation.

Thankful for the warm welcome, Prime Minister Abrahamyan pointed out that the development of relations with China is a foreign policy priority for Armenia. Stressing that there is great potential for cooperation in the economic sphere, Hovik Abrahamyan expressed conviction that his visit would give fresh impetus to bilateral ties and economic cooperation.

Stating that a high-level political dialogue had been nurtured by the two countries in recent years, the interlocutors hailed RA President Serzh Sargsyan’s State visit to China in March, 2015, which elevated the two nations’ friendly relations to a qualitatively new level and boosted the momentum of the Armenian-Chinese interaction.

“I wish to emphasize that strong with the outcome of the meeting held between the leaders of Armenia and China, we are actively working toward boosting bilateral relations and implementing the agreements reached,” Hovik Abrahamyan said.

Both sides stressed the importance of continued cooperation in the fields of infrastructure development, energy, transportation, chemical industry, agriculture, tourism, science, education, culture and civil aviation. In this context, they noted the importance of the Armenian-Chinese intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation. Prime Minister Abrahamyan said to be pleased with the fact that bilateral trade had been on the upgrade in recent years leading to a significant increase in trade turnover (more than half a billion dollars).

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang noted in turn that cooperation was developing effectively in all sectors – political, economic and humanitarian, and his country was keen to deepen and strengthen them ahead.

As the two prime ministers discussed Iran-Armenia Railroad and North-South Road Corridor investment programs, the Chinese Premier reiterated his country’s interest in them. He expressed readiness to implement joint projects in infrastructure, industry, humanitarian and other spheres. Li Keqiang advised that Armenian students’ scholarship was going to be raised in China next year.

At the end of the meeting, Hovik Abrahamyan invited his Chinese counterpart to make an official visit to Armenia. The invitation was accepted with pleasure.