✓The US is set to provide an additional $1.4 million for Armenia’s coronavirus response.
✓The Armenian and Russian Defense Ministers have signed an agreement regarding the air force.
✓An Armenian Armed Forces officer got lost in bad weather and was captured in Azerbaijan.
✓The first Armenia-made Kalashinikov rifles have been delivered to the Armed Forces.
ArmInfo. The return of the previous government in Armenia is impossible, and the current government has failed. Head of the "Bright Armenia" party, MP Edmon Marukyan stated this.
He also noted that the ones that urge the people to be vigilant, since the previous government may return, are liars. They want only one thing that the former government remains in politics, as a result of which the rating of the current government would rise. "The return of the previous government is categorically impossible, in any format. The political forces ousted from power are doing everything possible to remain in the political field, to be a player. And this is possible as long as the current government constantly reminds of the previous government and is fighting "demons". The people will not gain anything from the bickering of the new and previous government, there will only be a brutal war between "blacks" and "whites," Marukyan emphasized.
The MP noted that according to all polls, representatives of the previous government do not have even one percent of the votes, thus, they are only a conditional "player".
"In turn, the "Bright Armenia" party intends to unite with all healthy political forces that are not connected with either the previous or the current government. We will create an alliance that, during the elections, will push representatives of the previous and current government out of the election race. The new government did not meet the expectations of the people, as did the previous one. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to the new political forces," Marukyan concluded.
Daily Sabah By Basel Haj Jasem Aug 21, 2020 The political and media circles in the former Soviet countries continually discuss the issue of establishing a Turkish military base in the Republic of Azerbaijan in the South Caucasus. The discussion of the Turkish military presence in Azerbaijan is always linked to the coldness or warmth of relations between Moscow and Ankara, especially when the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict flares up. Russia is Turkey's biggest competitor in the region. If we take into account Turkey’s membership in NATO, the establishment of a Turkish military base in Azerbaijan to ensure military and political balance would create a counterweight to the Russian military base in Armenia. When a Turkish military base is established, it directly complicates the bilateral relations of Russia and Azerbaijan and would also become a source of concern to Iran. The bilateral defense cooperation between Turkey and Azerbaijan defines two legal frameworks. The first one, which was established in the early 1990s, enables military training for Azerbaijani personnel in Turkish military institutions. The second framework is the "strategic partnership" agreement, which explicitly states that the two countries will help each other if one of them demanded its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. Although the nature of this "assistance" was subject to bilateral consultations, the agreement clearly affirmed the possibility of using military means in emergency circumstances. On Aug. 13, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, Chief of Staff Gen. Yaşar Güler, commanders of the Turkish land, air and naval forces, and other members of the high-level Turkish military delegation in Azerbaijan. On the visit, both sides attended part of a large-scale Turkish-Azerbaijani joint military maneuver in the Azerbaijani regions of Baku, Nakhchivan, Kajah, Kordimer and Yulakh. Those exercises began on July 29 and continued until mid-August. In mid-July, a high-level Azerbaijani military delegation had visited Turkey and met with the Turkish defense minister and most of the military leaders in the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). According to Azerbaijani media, very important documents were prepared between Baku and Ankara, as the two sides discussed the issue of establishing a Turkish military base in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan's exclave bordering Turkey. The Azerbaijani news site Menfal said that if relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey are not yet able to move toward a deep alliance due to the absence of certain legal steps, the current documents will raise the level of the alliance between the two parties to the highest level. As a result, the relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan will become very close and will not only include military cooperation but also political cooperation. Azerbaijani political expert Gabel Husayn Ali said that during the return visit of the high Turkish military delegation, issues of establishing a Turkish military base in Nakhchivan (likely to have reached a joint conclusion), and of establishing another military base in Absheron Peninsula were discussed in detail. In light of the close cooperation between Armenia and Iran, Armenians fear this scenario. Tehran’s relations with Yerevan are stronger than those with many neighboring Muslim countries. There is a concern in Armenia about the possibility of Turkey’s participation in the negotiation process over the Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region. Ankara declares its position clearly by fully standing by its "brother" Azerbaijan to regain its "occupied lands," where the two republics, Azerbaijan and Armenia, have been witnessing a conflict since the last century, over the Azerbaijani territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is an Azerbaijani enclave occupied by an Armenian majority. In 1993, after five years of war, the Armenians controlled areas within the territory of Azerbaijan, located between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, with an area of about 8,000 square kilometers (3,088 square miles), or about 20% of the area of Azerbaijan. Whether Turkey will establish a base in Azerbaijan or not, it should be noted that, even a few years ago, Turkey did not have military bases outside its territory, except for its military presence in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) in 1974, and today Turkey has military bases in Somalia, Qatar, Iraq and Syria.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug. 9
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The Anglo-American Lydian International firm, as the business entity engaged in gold extraction, is causing a tremendous environmental contamination to the fresh-water resources in the Caucasus and depleting the natural resources of Armenian agriculture, soil, and subsoil, Peter M. Tase, the US expert in European and Latin American politics, told Trend.
"The people of Armenia have been condemned with the harmful toxic waste left behind from the companies that are extracting gold in their backyard, meanwhile government officials and politicians are growing wealthy thanks to the briberies received from a number companies engaged in mining (gold extraction) activities. This identical practice is also present in other countries and regions such as South America and Africa, where the environment is highly vulnerable, fresh water resources become scarce and local politicians suddenly open bank accounts in countries that are a fiscal paradise and favor money laundering schemes," noted Tase.
"Armenia is heavily dependent on Agriculture and pollution originated by mining companies is detrimental to its national economy and Gross Domestic Production," Tase stressed.
"Mining enterprises negatively affect the deposition rate of soil particles. What is considered fundamental is the fact that open cut mining removes the rare minerals closest to the surface which are easiest to extract, but also exposes to erosion, the largest area of the underlying soil," emphasized the expert.
"The unloading of 'soil residues’ can form unvegetated hills that are a source of leachate and sediments, which may end up in waterways. Alluvial mining typically occurs on floodplain terraces, these sediment-filled ponds may reduce re-establishment of vegetation, alter river channels, and expose soils to erosion," he said.
"Gold mining decreases water clarity and reduces visibility for water animals and fish seeking food and places to live. Mining damages fish gills (breathing apparatus under water) and destroy filter feeding apparatus of invertebrates," the expert said.
"The mining activities in Armenia’s Amulsar must be shot down immediately and Armenian government should explore other venues that ensure sustainable economic development, withdraw its armed forces from sovereign territory of Azerbaijan is the first step for Armenia to become an industrialized and economically sustainable nation," Tase stressed.
Sara Anjargolian is Chief of Staff to Zareh Sinanyan, Armenia’s High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs. She has just returned to Armenia from a trip to Lebanon with the High Commissioner, following the massive explosion in Beirut on August 4, which resulted in more than 200 casualties. The explosion significantly impacted most Armenian-populated areas in the city, causing substantial damage to the community’s businesses, educational, cultural, and media institutions.
Sara Anjargolian talks with CivilNet’s Ani Paitjan about the situation in the Lebanese capital, the Armenian communities' mood and their growing desire to move from Lebanon and settle in Armenia.
17:18,
YEREVAN, 12 AUGUST, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 12 August, USD exchange rate down by 0.32 drams to 485.00 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 1.54 drams to 570.60 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.02 drams to 6.64 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 2.89 drams to 632.83 drams.
The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.
Gold price down by 1,655.97 drams to 30245.18 drams. Silver price down by 0.14 drams to 440.97 drams. Platinum price down by 665.05 drams to 14719.9 drams.
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western U.S.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Western United States Central Committee expresses its solidarity with our community in Beirut and all of Lebanon and offers its sincere condolences to the families of the victims. The massive explosion that rocked Beirut on August 4 naturally has impacted the large Armenian community in the city as well as the entire country. The blast also has had its ripple effects here in the Western United States, where many American Armenians have family and relatives residing in Lebanon.
The toll that this tragedy has taken on the lives of individual Lebanese Armenians who have been injured, have lost family members or have seen their homes and businesses turn into rubble in a matter of seconds, as well as the unforeseen health consequences of the spread of dust and chemicals from the blast.
Reports indicate that many of our community centers and institutions have sustained damage, specifically the Shaghzoyan Center in Bourdj Hammoud, which houses the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Bureau and Central Committee offices, editorial offices of the Aztag Daily Newspaper, and the Armenian National Committee of Middle East. Also impacted by the blast was the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia and many other religious, cultural and educational institutions.
The explosion in Beirut comes as our community in Lebanon has been enduring months hardship from the unparalleled financial collapse of Lebanon’s economy, coupled with the difficulties posed by the global coronavirus pandemic.
We have been in contact with our counterparts in Lebanon from the first moments of the crisis and have pledged our unconditional support to assist in any way possible in efforts to aid and assist the community and rebuild the critical structures. As has been the case in the past, the ARF Western U.S. Central Committee will spare no effort to mobilize its rank and file, our affiliate organizations and institutions, as well as the American community at large to help our fellow Armenians living in Lebanon in their time of need.