Category: 2019

Armenia will continue to be reliable, predictable partner in bilateral and multilateral relations according to government’s program

11:21, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. According to the government’s Action Plan, Armenia will continue to be reliable and predictable partner in bilateral and multilateral relations, My Step faction MP Tatev Hayrapetyan said, adding that this reaffirms the promise given during the revolution that there will be no drastic turns in the foreign policy.

“In the foreign policy field there are concrete bars, issues and set of tools. From the very start it was stated that there will be no turns in the foreign policy because the main goal of the revolution was linked with the domestic events in Armenia. Armenia will continue to be and will be a very reliable and predictable partner in bilateral and multilateral relations. It will continue raising its international reputation which has greatly increased after the revolution”, she said.

The lawmaker noted that the government in its Action Plan has a very ambitious point regarding the negotiation process for the Karabakh conflict settlement.

“This Action Plan of the government has a very ambitious point, that is Artsakh’s return to the negotiation table. This point is difficult to implement, but is realistic in case of consistent work”, the MP said.

The Armenian Parliament continues debating the government’s Action Plan.

The debate launched on February 12 during which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan introduced the Action Plan which was followed by a Q&A session.

According to the Constitution of Armenia, the Parliament approves the government’s Action Plan within seven days by the majority of votes of the total number of MPs.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan

Jailed retired general slapped with new charges, son declared wanted

12:06, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. Authorities have brought new criminal charges against jailed general, former lawmaker Manvel Grigoryan.

New charges include extortion and tax evasion.

He was initially charged only with illegal possession of firearms and grand theft.

The Special Investigative Service says Grigoryan, together with his wife and son, have illegally acquired massive amounts of firearms and explosives and kept it in various locations, including his private home, as well as a territory owned by the defense ministry of Artsakh.

Authorities have found multiple weapons, handguns, rifles, machine guns, around 20,000 rounds of ammunition, explosives, RPG etc.

The abovementioned firearms were discovered and confiscated earlier in June of 2018 when the general was detained.

In addition, authorities suspect Grigoryan to have committed grand theft of more than 100,000,000 drams worth of property when he served as president of the Yerkrapah Union of Volunteers. His wife and son assisted him in committing the crime, authorities said.

Embezzled property includes various supplies for the military provided by the Armenian and Artsakh defense ministries that were meant for soldiers, including during the 2016 April War days.

Authorities said Grigoryan even used the military food supplies to feed wild animals that he kept in his private zoo.

More than 4300 cans of bottled meat, made for the military, worth around 4,5 million drams in total, were found in his compound. Numerous other food supplies for the army were embezzled by Grigoryan. Grigoryan also embezzled trucks that were designed for the military – a total of eight UAZ vehicles.

The Special Investigative Service said Grigoryan has been involved in tax evasion from his early years of being in office (Deputy Minister of Defense, Member of Parliament, Yerkrapah Union of Volunteers President). He is suspected of tax evasion of more than 1,2 billion drams through a company owned by him and his family.

Grigoryan is also suspected in evading taxes and falsifying financial documents of the Yerkrapah Union.

He also misused more than 1,2 billion drams provided by the education ministry and the defense ministry to the union.

He is also suspected in extortion and racketeering committed in the early 2000s in his hometown of Etchmiatsin. During those days, when he was Deputy Defense Minister, he allegedly extorted a local businessman of a business worth nearly 40,000,000 drams by threatening the latter and his family.

Arman Grigoryan, one of the sons of the general, has been declared wanted.

The preliminary investigation is concluded pending forwarding to court, authorities said.

Grigoryan, a former Member of Parliament, was stripped of immunity by parliament in June 2018 and placed under arrest in suspicion of illegal possession of firearms and grand theft.

At the time of his arrest Grigoryan also served as president of the Yerkrapah Union of Volunteers, but was later ousted by the board of the organization amid highly scandalous accusations.

Law enforcement agencies found a private zoo, a car collection, huge amounts of weapons and ammunition, as well as allegedly embezzled military supplies and donations in his compound. Grigoryan, however, denies any wrongdoing. 

He was released from custody on a 25,000,000 dram bail on December 21, 2018. His release sparked outrage in his hometown of Etchmiatsin.

Later in January he was placed under arrest again following a court decision.

His wife is also charged. 

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan

Armenian minister, Russian Ambassador discuss cooperation prospects in high technologies

13:00, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. Minister of transport, communication and information technologies Hakob Arshakyan received Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopirkin, the ministry told Armenpress.

The minister touched upon the cooperation between the two countries and expressed readiness to further deepen and develop it in the future.

At the meeting the officials discussed the possible cooperation directions in the fields of high technologies, telecommunications, as well as the opportunities to implement joint scientific-technical programs in the engineering technologies sector.

The Russian Ambassador congratulated the minister on assuming office and stated that Armenia at all times had a leading position in the field of high technologies.

The officials also touched upon the cooperation in the transportation sectors, specifically highlighting the role of railway transport.

Minister Arshakyan welcomed the ongoing talks on finding an alternative land route to Upper Lars, stating that the launch of that route is very important for Armenia.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan

Parliament Speaker links success of government’s Action Plan with citizens’ trust and participation

13:43, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government’s Action Plan will be implemented if the government succeeds in awakening the citizens’ belief, consciousness and participation, Speaker of Parliament Ararat Mirzoyan said during the debate of the Action Plan, reports Armenpress.

“The Prime Minister is right when he says that we can stop on the development path, and this Action Plan will be implemented only when the government succeeds in awakening the citizens’ trust, consciousness and participation. And the victory of the citizens will be ensured in this case. This is the only and most serious challenge of the government. The government’s success on ensuring this will lead to the success of the Action Plan, construction of these reservoirs and increase of pensions. In case of failure, the Action Plan will not be implemented”, the Speaker noted.

He commented on the views according to which there are no concrete numbers and timeframes in the Action Plan. “The Action Plan says that the government is going to construct reservoirs. Our colleagues ask for mentioning concrete numbers, timetables and the quantity of reservoirs to be built. Yes, there are no answers to these questions in the government’s Action Plan, but these reservoirs will be constructed”, he said.

The Armenian Parliament continues debating the government’s Action Plan.

The debate launched on February 12 during which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan introduced the Action Plan which was followed by a Q&A session.

According to the Constitution of Armenia, the Parliament approves the government’s Action Plan within seven days by the majority of votes of the total number of MPs.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan

Armenian MP says Azerbaijan’s Aliyev makes unconstructive statements

14:26, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s unconstructive statements over Artsakh do not contribute to the peace process, Ruben Rubinyan – chairman of the Armenian parliamentary standing committee on foreign affairs, said, commenting on Aliyev’s statement according to which Nagorno Karabakh is an integral part of Azerbaijan, reports Armenpress.

“I think that such statements do not contribute to the peace process at all and the launch of effective negotiation process. Our position is the same. We believe that if we really want a meaningful and effective negotiation process and dialogue over peace, a respective environment is needed. This environment is possible by ruling out aggressive rhetoric and actions. And we hope that Azerbaijan will stop using aggressive rhetoric, but, unfortunately, this example shows that this hope is not justified yet”, the lawmaker said.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan

My Step faction going to submit proposals to government

14:39, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. The ruling My Step faction of the Armenian Parliament will submit proposals to the government which will be discussed by the Cabinet within the frames of the Action Plan, rather than its program. The faction unconditionally supports the government’s draft program, faction head Lilit Makunts told reporters, reports Armenpress.

“The government’s program has been discussed in-detail at various professional domains of the My Step faction. And during this period different sides have been revealed, including what is absent in the program. The My Step faction has seen what it needs to do on this path and how to fill that gap. And we have quite a lot of works to do on this path. The proposals concern what additional action we can do”, Makunts said.

She informed that they may submit the written proposals to the government by the end of the day.

Lilit Makunts noted that the government’s draft program is quite broad and flexible. It contains common vision and approaches. “If we think that there is a need for more actions while forming the road map, we will present a proposal”, Makunts said.

The Armenian Parliament continues debating the government’s Action Plan.

The debate launched on February 12 during which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan introduced the Action Plan which was followed by a Q&A session.

According to the Constitution of Armenia, the Parliament approves the government’s Action Plan within seven days by the majority of votes of the total number of MPs.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan

Armenian healthcare minister in Turkey for WHO European Region meeting

14:45, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Minister of Healthcare Arsen Torosyan is in Turkey for the World Health Organization (WHO) ministerial and high-level meeting of the European Region that is taking place in Istanbul, the ministry said.

The Armenian minister delivered remarks, emphasizing that healthcare and disease prevention is a priority all around the world.

“Regional actions are certainly important in these conditions, because infectious disease agents and their carriers do not know borders, they don’t know countries or nationalities, ecological and natural disasters can spread and threaten entire continents, the entire world. The 2005 International Healthcare regulations were aimed at the prevention of the international spread of such events. Armenia, with the purpose of introducing these regulations, is continuously demonstrating political will and is providing necessary resources. In terms of requirements of the regulations, maintaining public health from all dangers, readiness and response for emergency situations, as well as coordinated actions are noteworthy. The latter concerns domestically, as well as regionally and globally,” he said, speaking about the fundamental changes of natural and social conditions in present days.

During the visit the Armenian healthcare minister also held meetings with counterparts from Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, as well as the deputy minister of healthcare of Georgia.

Turkmen healthcare minister Nurmuhammed Amanepesov invited Torosyan to visit Turkmenistan in April. Torosyan’s Uzbek counterpart Alisher Shadmanov made a similar offer.

Torosyan has other meetings scheduled during the visit, including with the Armenian community.

A 3-day ministerial consultation and high-level technical meeting will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, on 12–14 February 2019, to galvanize the commitment of Member States to full implementation of the first Action Plan to Improve Public Health Preparedness and Response in the WHO European Region.

Following a resolution of the 68th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe which welcomed the Action Plan with appreciation, this meeting will set out the path for a shared vision of coordinated governance and accountability, establish a monitoring and evaluation framework, and identify key areas of action to successfully carry out the Action Plan at the country level.

 

Participants from 53 countries of the European Region are invited to attend plenary and working group sessions facilitated by WHO experts to:

• align efforts to improve public health preparedness and response across the European Region around a common vision of governance and shared accountability;
• discuss the establishment of an oversight structure and monitoring and evaluation framework for the implementation of the Action Plan;
• share experiences and promote dialogue on synergies, good practices and common challenges between Member States, WHO and partners for the implementation of the Action Plan.
• identify priority areas where support is required from WHO and partners, as well as innovative approaches for the improvement of public health preparedness and response.

Ultimately, the meeting will aim at ensuring the sustained commitment and leadership of all governments to achieve full implementation of the Action Plan in the European Region.

Adequate protection against all health hazards requires high-level political and financial commitment to address the full cycle of emergency management – including prevention, preparedness, response and recovery – supported by whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches.

This was the rationale behind the development of the Action Plan.

The Action Plan aims to strengthen and maintain national capacities to effectively prevent, prepare for, detect and respond to public health threats, and to provide assistance to affected countries, when necessary, through three strategic pillars:

1. Build, strengthen and maintain States Parties’ core capacities required under the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005);
2. Strengthen event management and compliance with the requirements under the IHR (2005);
3. Measure progress and promote accountability.

The IHR (2005) provide an international legal framework for countries worldwide to protect people from epidemics and other health emergencies. Since their entry into force, WHO has been actively supporting countries in the European Region to implement and maintain IHR core capacities to prevent, prepare, detect and respond to public health threats. Within the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, the IHR are a crucial tool for the management of health emergencies, including disease outbreaks, disasters and environmental crises.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan

Turkey’s Erdogan departs for Russia

14:52, 14 February, 2019

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 14, ARMENPRESS. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan departed for Sochi on February 14 to participate in the 4th summit on Syria, Anadolu reports.

During the summit Russia, Iran and Turkey will discuss the establishment of stable peace in Syria within the frames of the Astana process.

Erdogan’s delegation also includes the ministers of defense, foreign affairs and finance, as well as the head of the national intelligence organization.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan