Author: Toneyan Mark

Vocalist and Composer Astghik Martirosyan Reflects on Hope and Mutual Care in Debut Album ‘Distance’

Toneyan Mark
by Contributor

 

 

 

in Arts & Culture, Latest, Music, News, Top Stories

Vocalist and composer Astghik Martirosyan's "Distance" at National Sawdust in New York flyer


Poetry-Inspired Original Compositions and Expressive, Modern Renderings of Armenian Folk Songs, with Vardan Ovsepian (Piano, Coproducer), Darek Oleszkiewicz (Bass), Christian Euman (Drums), Daniel Rotem (Tenor Sax, 5, 6), Maksim Velichkin (Cello, 6, 7)

Vocalist and composer Astghik Martirosyan presents her debut album, “Distance” — an artistic statement born of intense reflection on the relationship between present and past, self and nation, one’s inner emotional life and the call of homeland.

Martirosyan wrote the music in 2020 while experiencing a stark duality: tremendous artistic growth and fulfillment at New England Conservatory in Boston, gut-wrenching news from an Armenia embroiled in a 45-day war with neighboring Azerbaijan over the status of the long-disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. This was during the pandemic as well, giving the title “Distance” another fraught layer of meaning.

“All these emotions were happening,” Martirosyan recalled. “I was experiencing it at a distance, by myself, far from my family and my country, and all of this came out in the music. This was my way of trying to heal, hope and dream, but also to express real sorrow. I lost friends in that war, I have friends who lost their homes. Music was my outlet.”

Astghik Martirosyan

Born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia, where she began her career at 15, Martirosyan went on to earn a master’s degree from NEC, studying with Dominique Eade and Frank Carlberg, among others. She now divides her time between New York and Los Angeles. She captures the uniqueness of her journey to brilliant effect on her debut album, “Distance,” which features some of the finest musicians on the LA scene. Pianist Vardan Ovsepian (who coproduced the date with Martirosyan), veteran bassist Darek Oleszkiewicz and top-ranked rising drummer Christian Euman make up the core band, with vital assists from tenor saxophonist Daniel Rotem and cellist Maksim Velichkin on two tracks apiece.

The seven pieces included on “Distance” weave between genres and idioms, blending lyrical influences of Armenian folk songs and Eastern European poetry with the modalities of classical, jazz and improvised music. “Silence,” the leadoff track and the only one on which Martirosyan plays piano, was loosely inspired by a line of Emily Dickinson’s: “I many times thought peace had come when peace was far away.” The title track “Distance” is inspired by Marina Tsvetaeva’s poem “To Boris Pasternak,” while “Song of the Final Meeting” is based on Anna Akhmatova’s poem of that name. The music for the poetry settings is all original.

“Silence” and the haunting “Spring Is On Its Way” feature Martirosyan’s original music and lyrics. The latter she describes as “an intimate letter to my homeland, written during the eerie silence of a temporary ceasefire, in which Azerbaijan claimed ownership of the mountains in the disputed territory.” Martirosyan evokes these sentiments in a musical language that is flowing, harmonically rich, full of melodic and formal invention and a surefooted vocal delivery (with layers of backing vocals heightening the emotional sweep).

“Summer Night” and “I’m Calling You” are Armenian folk songs, sung by Martirosyan in her native tongue. The former is heard in an epic, meter-shifting arrangement by the leader, while “I’m Calling You,” with tenor sax and cello enhancing the ensemble texture, is Ovsepian’s. “It was important to keep these melodies as pure as possible,” says Martirosyan, noting that Armenian music in general is monophonic, with the single melodic line predominant.

“Heartsong” has been recorded several times by its composer, the great Fred Hersch, whose vocal version with singer and lyricist Norma Winstone (a major influence on Martirosyan) can be heard on “Songs & Lullabies” from 2003 (under the alternate title “Song of Life”). “Lyrically the song expresses hope and celebrates life, and I felt it was important to include that perspective,” said Martirosyan. “It’s the bright star on the album.”

“This is not a protest album, but rather a statement about the human side of separation and conflict, and the need to care for one another and our communities. I want to show how there can be hope, and how we can move forward,” Martirosyan said.

‘Azerbaijan Planned and Organized’ Depopulation of Artsakh, Says French Foreign Minister

Toneyan Mark
by Asbarez Staff

 

 

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories

France's Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna speaks to reporters in Yerevan on Oct. 3


Azerbaijan planned and organized the exodus of more than 100,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh, France’s Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said during a question and answer session in the French Senate on Wednesday.

“No matter how it tries to portray the situation, yes, Azerbaijan planned and organized the exodus of more than 100,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a crime that cannot go unpunished,” the French foreign minister said.

Colonna said France will demand the adoption of a resolution within the framework of the UN Security Council that will create conditions for the return of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians.

She stressed the need to protect the historical and cultural rights of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh and insisted on permanent international presence in the region.

During a visit to Armenia last week, Colonna said Armenia needed to be able to defend itself two weeks after Azerbaijani forces invaded Nagorno-Karabakh despite the presence of Russian peacekeepers.

She said Paris has agreed to deliver military equipment to Armenia.

After visiting displaced Artsakh residents, including burn patients injured in a Stepanakert fuel depot station explosion, the minister pledged military support.

“I would like to publicly state that France has agreed on future contracts with Armenia which will allow the delivery of military equipment to Armenia so that it can ensure its defense. You’ll understand that I can’t go into more detail at the moment,” Colonna said.

Colonna’s pledge of military support to Armenia further angered Baku with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan complaining to European Council President Charles Michel last week about what he called the “anti-Azerbaijan” posturing by Paris and the EU.

Aliyev claimed that such a pledge from France will complicate peace efforts in the region.

US malevolence becomes more apparent as Artsakh Armenians are cleansed

Toneyan Mark
Daily Sundial, CSUN
Oct 9 2023
Brandon Balayan, Reporter



The last week — three years, rather — has been a perpetual hell for Armenians.

From the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, also known as the 44-Day War, to Azerbaijan’s attacks on Armenia in September 2022, to the recent exodus of Armenians from Artsakh – it seems we are gradually falling further into a nightmare we cannot wake up from.

Furthermore, the United States has allowed the fall and removal of Armenians from their ancestral lands by remaining “neutral.”
Ethnic cleansing in Artsakh
Azerbaijan’s most recent assault began on Sept. 19 under the guise of an “anti-terror” operation. The operation designated Armenians as “terrorists” due to the existence of the Artsakh Defense Forces, and has used this to justify their invasion.

According to the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Information Center, the Armenian side had 200 deaths and 400 injured after one day of fighting. The number of civilians injured amounted to 40 people, 13 of which were children. The number of civilian deaths reached 10, five of which were children.

As of recently, 100,625 people have been displaced from Artsakh, with daily additions provided by the Armenian government, all following a nine-month blockade on the disputed region Nagorno-Karabakh. Skipping forward to Sept. 28, Artsakh’s President Samvel Shahramanyan signed a decree that agreed to dismantle all government institutions by Jan. 1, 2024.

To translate these numbers into words, the Republic of Artsakh will cease to exist, and will fall into the hands of Azerbaijan’s autocratic President Ilham Aliyev.
U.S. “malevolent neutrality”
Most crimes against humanity are not equal to the U.S. It knew about the blockade on Artsakh and still offered only lip service. Also, Armenians have been documenting the blockade and making statements about a possible ethnic cleansing.

Artyom Tonoyan, a visiting professor of global studies at Hamline University, describes the lack of action as Western “malevolent neutrality.”

“It is as simple as it sounds, and it is as damning as it sounds,” Tonoyan said.

Tonoyan designates the United States’ neutrality as malevolent because it had knowledge about Armenians being starved for nine months and has been extremely passive towards Azerbaijan.

Former Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo warned about genocide in the region before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in early September, and said the U.S. may be complicit if a genocide were to occur.

The U.S. has explicitly been avoiding the ethnic cleansing question.

Samantha Power, Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), visited Armenia on Sept. 25 “to affirm U.S. support for Armenia’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and democracy in helping to address humanitarian needs stemming from the recent violence in Nagorno-Karabakh.”

Power took questions from reporters about the current crisis. One of them asked, “You quite literally wrote the book on ethnic cleansing. Standing surrounded by people who fled their homes, are you ready to say that’s what this is?”

In 2002, Power published “‘A Problem from Hell’: America and the Age of Genocide.” The book examines how U.S. leaders and policymakers have been reluctant to condemn mass atrocities as genocide.

Today, Power is not in the position of an academic, but a government mouthpiece.

To respond to the reporter, Power went on a convoluted tangent about how the international community needs to get access into Artsakh and essentially avoided the question. She emphasized the importance of humanitarian needs being met for the refugees.

Soon after, USAID announced that more than $11.5 million in humanitarian assistance would be provided to those in the South Caucasus region – amounting to just $115 per person for 100,000 people.

“You can’t fix bullet holes with bandaids, and that is exactly what the U.S. is trying to do,” Tonoyan said. He further explained that the U.S. is being complicit by doing nothing and choosing to look the other way.

More importantly, the U.S. has not been killing Armenians, but rather aiding Azerbaijan. Between 2002 and 2020, the U.S. provided $808 million in assistance to Azerbaijan. About $164 million has been allocated to military resources.

The U.S. has also continually waived Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act of 1992, which bars financial assistance to Azerbaijan. Reasons given to extend this waiver of Section 907 include if it:

  • is necessary to support U.S. efforts to counter international terrorism; or
  • is necessary to support the operational readiness of United States Armed Forces or coalition partners to counter international terrorism; or
  • is important to Azerbaijan’s border security; and
  • will not undermine or hamper ongoing efforts to negotiate a peaceful settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan or be used for offensive purposes against Armenia.

Azerbaijan has continually undermined and hampered efforts for peace, and the U.S. supplying them with aid digs them deeper in its hole of complicity.
Final thoughts
The U.S. can continue to excuse itself from “indirectly” killing Armenians all it wants. Even if this were not true, the more military aid Azerbaijan receives, the more funds they can allocate to killing Armenians – making the U.S. complicit.
“At the very least, the U.S. cannot claim ignorance,” Tonoyan said. “It knew a crime was being prepared. It knew who was preparing said crime. It had the wherewithal to prevent said crime. Yet it chose not to.”

 

Artsakh and Nagorno-Karabakh are used interchangeably by Armenians, and the author chose to use Artsakh in this article.
This article was an analysis and opinion on the U.S. role in the current crisis in Artsakh and Armenia. The omission of Russia’s role was intentional to avoid convolution and does not reflect the author’s opinions towards Russia. Also, Tonoyan mentions the West (NATO and the EU) as a whole as malevolently neutral, but the author focused on the U.S. for relevancy to the audience.

https://sundial.csun.edu/176303/opinions/us-malevolence-becomes-more-apparent-as-artsakh-armenians-are-cleansed/

AW: Confronting the “triumvirate of moral cowardice”

Toneyan Mark
October 5, 2023 Ken Khachigian Opinion, Op-Eds 0

One hundred and eight years ago, my grandmother, uncle, aunt, and my 13-year-old father – along with their entire village – were purged and exiled into the barren sands of the Syrian desert with only an armful of belongings.  Along with the rest of Western Armenia, my father’s Christian village and family were among those whom the Turkish pashas determined to exterminate.  Their ancestral homes were pillaged and destroyed, and churches rooted in centuries of history were torn down with their irreplaceable artifacts representing centuries of civilization.  Their fate was left to starvation, thirst, the swords of merciless Turks and rampant disease as they trekked into an unknown destiny. A million and five hundred thousand did not survive, including my grandmother, uncle and aunt.

One hundred and eight years ago, the world stood silent. America waived its conscience, and history repeated itself in the past weeks as the entire indigenous Armenian Christian population of Artsakh (Karabagh) was murderously marched out in the genocidal purge of another ancestral homeland carved out of its statehood in Azerbaijan.  The modern venal, murderous, amoral 21st century pasha is Ilham Aliyev, a corrupt, dictatorial oligarch who has enriched himself at the fossil fuel troughs of the Caucasus and, unbelievably, as he collaborates in the death and purges of Christians, is embraced and coddled by President Joseph Biden and his spineless Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his lickspittle NSC Adviser Jake Sullivan.

This triumvirate of moral cowardice has stood aside in the face of a tinhorn dictator in a backwater mountain region while he has soullessly set about the repeat of 1915’s systematic and calculated cleansing.  Once again the population’s target is babies, its elderly, its women and its working men.  And as Aliyev set his sights on expanding his empire into adjoining regions, Biden wrings his hands in confusion – issuing empty pronouncements through his low-level appointees of “sympathy and concern,” even as he continues military aid to Baku.

Now comes the further rub.  The so-called passion and outrage from the Congress and Biden’s colleagues in the Democrat Party has been meaningless – including that coming from Armenian-Americans in the Congress.  They wring their hands with letters and resolutions politely “urging” Biden to take action.  They make “requests” to Biden for “proper actions.”  Congressmen make themselves feel good by signing letters calling for sanctions and caterwauling about Aliyev’s mass violation of every conceivable standard of morality known to man.   None of this helps.

What the Democrats in Congress – Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and Anna Eshoo and Jackie Speier – need to do is to quit their polite promenade with Biden, Blinken and Sullivan and call them out for their moral cowardice.  What will make Biden act is if Pelosi goes into the Oval Office and tells him that anything less than action, intervention and immediate assistance is cowardice on Biden’s part – and to make public statements attacking Biden for his inaction.  Does Schumer have the courage to say to Biden: “Mr. President, if you can be pushed around by a low-life like Aliyev, how can we expect you to stand up to thugs like Putin or strongmen like Xi Jinping?” Like I have proposed for Pelosi, Schumer needs to go public with such statements – to embarrass Biden to act.

There is a reason to hold public office, and that is to achieve a service that those of us without power cannot.

As for Eshoo and Speier, the two of them are on the high moral ground to ask Biden if he has any sense of how he is now being viewed in the Armenian-American community – as callous and disconnected from reality. They might ask him a simple question: How would he feel if he was forced to leave his home in Delaware with nothing but the clothes on his back and a handful of memories – and not even his precious Corvette? And, again, those statements should not be only made in private – but loudly in public, before cameras and in press conferences – to place a blanket of shame on the shoulders of their party’s leader.

Doesn’t the official Democratic Party understand that they have the political, moral and persuasive power to shame the President into action like others cannot?  And when they don’t act as I have just proposed, then they, too should be viewed through the lens of moral condemnation.  There is a reason to hold public office, and that is to achieve a service that those of us without power cannot.  Letters written by eager staffers, full of empty words, are going into files to be lost in the archives. The real leaders of the Democratic Party – those I have named and many others who claim to stand by the side of the Armenian-American community – can show where they truly stand by using armaments of action, not cotton candy.  This is one time they can portray themselves honestly and genuinely and not hide behind Capitol Hill fluff.

I speak only for myself and for no organization or cause.  Only for the memory of my father and his village.

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Ken Khachigian served as a communications aide and speechwriter for President Richard Nixon and subsequently assisted Nixon in the preparation of his memoirs. He served President Ronald Reagan as chief speechwriter in the White House and as campaign strategist and speechwriter in Reagan’s two landslide presidential campaigns. He authored Reagan’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide in a 1981 presidential resolution. In California, Khachigian served as George Deukmejian’s close confidant and principal campaign strategist for Deukmejian’s two victorious gubernatorial campaigns.


Ara Zada’s heart is in the kitchen

Toneyan Mark
October 4, 2023 Talar Keoseyan Food, Diaspora, Interviews 0

Chef Ara cooking up a storm

Ara Zada is an Armenian entrepreneur and chef shaking up the world of cuisine. With his signature phrase, “Abbowwww,” Ara produces videos of traditional Armenian recipes with a modern twist. Currently, he’s doing a fundraiser to help our brothers and sisters from Artsakh. He is one of the authors of the recipe book Lavash, along with John Lee and Kate Leahy. With the same co-authors, Ara’s book Artsakh was published in 2021 and is sold on Etsy with proceeds benefiting Hayk For Our Heroes. Hayk For Our Heroes, in collaboration with All for Armenia and Veterans of Armenia, is providing humanitarian aid to the displaced families of Artsakh. 

Talar Keoseyan (T.K.): Could you tell us a little bit about your background? 

Ara Zada (A.Z.): I was born and raised in Los Angeles. My mom is Armenian from Egypt, and my dad was Armenian from Jerusalem. I grew up doing a lot of extreme sports and music, but my heart was always in the kitchen.

T.K.: How did the idea for Lavash come up, and what was the process?

A.Z.: When I first went to Armenia, I realized I didn’t know much of the food. Everything I grew up with was Western Armenian and was more influenced by the countries of the diaspora. When I met my co-authors, Kate Leahy and John Lee, we decided to write a cookbook highlighting Armenian cuisine from Armenia. We decided to travel to Hayastan and go village to village gathering recipes. That way, nobody will argue with us saying, “That’s not how it’s done.” We basically said, this is how we were taught in Armenia, and this is what they are currently making.

T.K.: You make everything look so easy on the Instagram tutorials. What motivated you to start with those?

A.Z.: Last year I was diagnosed with kidney cancer. I had surgery back in October, and after I recovered, I really wanted to show the world what I have to offer. One of the best things is that most people are afraid of cooking the classic dishes they grew up with. I decided to show the world these recipes in a fun, quick way and also put a little modern twist on them to make it more inviting for younger people to cook.

T.K.: You’re very passionate about food. How did this come about?

A.Z.: I have loved food since a very young age. The nickname my Dede gave me as a child was “Kol-Kol,” which means eat-eat in Arabic. My mom and grandma were great cooks, and I always wanted to be in the kitchen with them – although the one thing I really wanted to do was flip a knife like Peter Pan. My mom told me, the only way to touch a knife was to cook with her, so I started cutting up salads. That was basically my intro.

T.K.: You also collaborate with other content creators and influencers. Can you tell us more? 

A.Z.: I’ve collaborated with a lot of content creators, which is always extremely fun! I like to fuse what they do with parts of what I do and come up with interesting new food concepts. I think fusion food is the future, because it adapts what people already know to something new that they might not have tried. Also, it lets people understand new cultures through food. As far as business ventures go, I have a Spice Rub line that I’m going to be releasing soon, and I have my woodworking business @VayreniBurns that I started as a hobby during COVID, where I make serving boards and furniture. I burn them using 15,000 volts of electricity.

T.K.: You just hit 50K on Instagram. How does that feel?

A.Z.: It’s been a wild ride to 50K, but I’m loving every minute of it. The support and love has been overwhelming! I get stopped on the streets sometimes, people saying hello, taking pictures, telling me how they love the videos and to keep it up. All in all, it’s really fun.

T.K.: Where do you envision yourself in ten years?

A.Z.: In 10 years, I’m hoping to have my own show on a primetime channel, showing the world what I love and inspiring people to never give up on their dreams.

T.K.: What is your message to entrepreneurs?

A.Z.: Keep pushing, keep focusing on what you love, and if you truly believe in it, don’t let all the haters drag you down.

Ways to connect with Ara Zada:
YouTube Channel @ChefAraZada
IG @arazada
TikTok @Chefarazada #PeaceForArmenians

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Talar Keoseyan is a mother, educator and writer. Talar’s book called Mom and Dad, Why Do I Need to Know My Armenian Heritage? is available on Amazon. Tigran’s Song is available at Abril Bookstore. She has been an educator for 25 years and resides in Los Angeles, CA. She can be reached at


Armenia seeks EU aid for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh, Italy says Reuters

Toneyan Mark
Reuters
Sept 30 2023
Reuters

ROME, Sept 30 (Reuters) – Armenia has asked the European Union for assistance to help it deal with refugees arriving from Nagorno-Karabakh since Azerbaijan took back control of the region last week, the office of Italy’s prime minister said on Saturday.

Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but is populated mainly by Armenian Christians who set up the self-styled Republic of Artsakh three decades ago after a bloody ethnic conflict as the Soviet Union collapsed.

More than 100,000 refugees have arrived in Armenia since Azerbaijan launched a military operation to retake control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the head of the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said late on Friday.

Armenia has asked the EU for temporary shelters and medical supplies, the Italian prime minister’s office said in a statement, adding that Rome working to promote stabilisation in the region.

Reporting by Angelo Amante Writing by Gianluca Semeraro Editing by Helen Popper

Statement by Spokesperson for President of the European Council Charles Michel on Armenia-Azerbaijan normalisation – 26 September 2023

Toneyan Mark
European Council
Council of the European Union
Sept 26 2023

Under the auspices of President Michel, his Diplomatic Advisers Simon Mordue and Magdalena Grono hosted a meeting between Secretary of Armenia’s Security Council Armen Grigoryan and Foreign Policy Advisor to the President of Azerbaijan Hikmet Hajiyev, with the participation of Diplomatic Advisers to FR President Macron and DE Chancellor Scholz, Emmanuel Bonne and Jens Ploetner, as well as EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia Toivo Klaar.

President Michel joined the participants for a brief exchange.

The EU invited participants to exchange views on the current situation on the ground and various efforts aimed at addressing the urgent needs of the local population.

The European Union closely follows all these developments and has been engaged at the highest level to help alleviate the impact of hostilities on civilians. The EU reiterated in this context its position on Azerbaijan’s military operation last week.

Hikmet Hajiyev outlined Azerbaijan’s plans to provide humanitarian assistance and security to the local population. The EU stressed the need for transparency and access for international humanitarian and human rights actors and for more detail on Baku’s vision for Karabakh Armenians’ future in Azerbaijan. The EU is providing assistance to Karabakh Armenians.

The meeting also allowed for intense exchanges between participants on the relevance of a possible meeting of the leaders in the framework of the Third EPC Summit scheduled for 5 October 2023 in Granada.
The participants took note of the shared interest of Armenia and Azerbaijan to make use of the possible meeting in Granada to continue their normalisation efforts.

In this regard, Armen Grigoryan and Hikmet Hajiyev engaged in talks on possible concrete steps to advance the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process in the upcoming possible meeting, such as those with regard to border delimitation, security, connectivity, humanitarian issues, and the broader peace treaty.

Concrete action and decisive compromise solutions are needed on all tracks of the normalisation process.

The EU believes that the possible meeting in Granada should be used by both Yerevan and Baku to reiterate publicly their commitment to each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty in line with agreements reached previously in Prague and Brussels.

 Ecaterina Casinge
Spokesperson for the European Council President
 +32 488 58 59 08
 +32 2 281 5150

If you are not a journalist, please send your request to the public information service.

https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2023/09/26/statement-by-spokesperson-for-president-of-the-european-council-charles-michel-on-armenia-azerbaijan-normalisation-26-september-2023/

Iran president reaffirms strong opposition to Azerbaijan construction of corridor in Armenian territory

Toneyan Mark
Iran Front Page
Sept 9 2023

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has reaffirmed Iran’s strong opposition to any geopolitical change along its border regions.

President Raisi was speaking with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on the phone on Saturday.

He was referring to Azerbaijan’s threats to carve out a chunk of territory along the Iranian-Armenian border to make a corridor it calls “Zangezur” which would obliterate the land border between Iran and Armenia.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has reaffirmed Iran’s strong opposition to any geopolitical change along its border regions.

President Raisi was speaking with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on the phone on Saturday.

He was referring to Azerbaijan’s threats to carve out a chunk of territory along the Iranian-Armenian border to make a corridor it calls “Zangezur” which would obliterate the land border between Iran and Armenia.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has reaffirmed Iran’s strong opposition to any geopolitical change along its border regions.

President Raisi was speaking with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on the phone on Saturday.

He was referring to Azerbaijan’s threats to carve out a chunk of territory along the Iranian-Armenian border to make a corridor it calls “Zangezur” which would obliterate the land border between Iran and Armenia.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has reaffirmed Iran’s strong opposition to any geopolitical change along its border regions.

President Raisi was speaking with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on the phone on Saturday.

He was referring to Azerbaijan’s threats to carve out a chunk of territory along the Iranian-Armenian border to make a corridor it calls “Zangezur” which would obliterate the land border between Iran and Armenia.

Armenpress: Azeri disinformation campaign continues, Baku falsely accuses Nagorno-Karabakh of fortification works

Toneyan Mark

 21:22, 9 September 2023

STEPANAKERT, SEPTEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijan has again falsely accused the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army of carrying out fortification works, the Nagorno-Karabakh authorities said Saturday.

The disinformation generated by the Azeri authorities falsely claimed that the Azeri military thwarted fortification works by the Nagorno-Karabakh military in the Martuni region on September 9.

In a statement, the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Ministry said that they haven’t conducted any fortification activities and that the Azeri accusations are disinformation.

“The statement released by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry claiming that around 19:15, September 9, the Defense Army units attempted to conduct fortification works in Martuni region, which were thwarted by the actions of the Azerbaijani units, is yet another disinformation,” the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Ministry said.

Azerbaijan deploys UAVs, mortars in unprovoked strikes targeting Armenian border outposts

Toneyan Mark

 13:22, 1 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 1, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani military has deployed UAVs and mortars in targeting Armenian border outposts near Sotk, the Armenian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

“At around 12:50 p.m., the units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces used UAVs and mortars in the direction of Sotk. The Ministry of Defence will make an additional report,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement.