10:28,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. 1699 refugees returned to Artsakh on board the latest convoy escorted by Russian peacekeepers from Yerevan to Stepanakert on November 29, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
So far, the Russian peacekeepers have escorted more than 23000 people back to Artsakh.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
11:21,
STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. More than 55,000 residents of Artsakh who had evacuated due to the war have returned to their homes as of November 30, the Minister of Territorial Administration and Development of Artsakh Zhirayr Mirzoyan told ARMENPRESS.
Earlier today the Russian military said that more than 23,000 people have returned to Artsakh. Asked to clarify, Mirzoyan said these 23000 are the residents whom the peacekeepers have recorded and this number is included in the 55,000. He said the 23000 residents were escorted by the Russian peacekeepers through the Goris-Berdzor-Stepanakert road.
“Many others had returned on their own before the Vardenis-Karvajar road was shut down. Russian peacekeepers weren’t deployed here at that time. Therefore those returning weren’t registered,” Mirzoyan said.
Speaking about the accommodation of the returning refugees, Mirzoyan said that all hotels and other buildings in Stepanakert are currently full. He said the government is renting village homes and providing them to residents who were forced to move from territories that have come under Azeri control.
Meanwhile, reconstruction in the heavily bombed Stepanakert City continues.
Reporting by Van Novikov; Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
11:39,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. Lt. General Jalal Harutyunyan is recovering normally after being wounded in action in late October during the Azerbaijani attacks while serving as Minister of Defense of Artsakh. At the time of being wounded he was in a combat position of the Defense Army.
The Ministry of Defense told ARMENPRESS that the Lt. General will soon be discharged from hospital.
“Jalal Harutyunyan will be discharged from hospital in two or three days and he will continue outpatient treatment” Defense Ministry of Armenia Director for Information and Public Relations Gevorg Altunyan told ARMENPRESS.
Because Harutyunyan was incapacitated from performing his duties as Minister of Defense, he was replaced the day after he suffered the injuries. Harutyunyan received the Hero of Artsakh title afterwards.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
11:55,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. (Press Release) On November 30th, 2020, three postage stamps dedicated to the theme “Historical and cultural monuments. Historical and cultural monuments of Armenia” have been put into circulation.
“HayPost” CJSC has issued a donation coupon for 120 AMD attached to three postage stamps with the nominal values of 240, 330 and 350 AMD. The 120 AMD donation value will be directed to the preservation of the historical and cultural monuments of Armenia.
The postage stamps have been printed in “Cartor” printing house in France with the print-run of
10 000 pcs. each. The author of the postage stamps’ design is designer Vahagn Mkrtchyan.
The postage stamp with the nominal value of 240 AMD depicts the Agarakadzor Bridge (XIII c. A.D.) located in Vayots Dzor Region. The bridge is situated on the Arpa River, 2.5 km west of Agarakadzor village. The single arch bridge maintained until 1970’s.
The postage stamp with the nominal value of 330 AMD depicts the Monastery of Marmashen (X-XI cc. A.D.) located in Shirak Region. The monastic complex of Marmashen is situated on the left bank of the Akhuryan River. The monastic complex is one of the best complexes of the Armenian architecture. The main church of the complex was built by Vahram Pahlavouni in 988-1029.
The postage stamp with the nominal value of 350 AMD depicts Yererouyk Basilica (VI c. A.D.) located in Shirak Region. Yererouyk is a three-nave basilica, having three double cruciform pillars, two-story rooms in each corner and rich decorative carvings.
Date of issue:
Designer: Vahagn Mkrtchyan
Photographer:Zaven Sargsyan
Printing house: Cartor, France
Size:40,0 x 24,0mm
Stamps per sheet: 10 pcs
Print run: 10 000 pcs x 3
MOSCOW, December 1. /TASS/. Russia sees no signs of intentional delay of the exchange of the prisoners of war and the bodies of the fallen between the sides of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, however, objective complications for this process do exist, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Tuesday.
“It is difficult to speak about any intentional steps towards intentional delay of this process, we do not see any. But it is a fact, that objective complications exist, which, I hope, will be resolved faster now,” Lavrov said at a press-conference after the CSTO Foreign Ministers Council online meeting.
According to the Foreign Minister, “it was very difficult to work on these issues,” considering the terrain and the specifics of the combat, as well as the lack of precise lists of missing people.
“In order to successfully exchange the prisoners an the bodies, the situation in this field must be accounted. And, of course, military commanders on both sides must have very precise lists of missing people, so that we can work on it substantially,” the Minister noted.
He added that assisting with prisoners and bodies exchange has become one of the main goals of the Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh. They have taken a number of specific steps that extent, the Minister said.
“We are interested in solving this humanitarian problem as soon as possible,” Lavrov underscored.
“I would note that our peacekeepers paid special attention to these problems at the time when the key international institution – the International Red Cross Committee – evacuated its employees from Nagorno-Karabakh. So the fact that our peacekeepers provided a shoulder to lean on is very important from a practical standpoint,” the top diplomat said.
He noted that the Red Cross Committee employees have already returned to Stepanakert and plan to increase its presence in the region to 400 people, and increase its funding request for activities in Nagorno-Karabakh to 45 million Swiss francs.
“So we will hope that, with the involvement of specialists from this international organization, it will go faster. Our peacekeepers will, of course, assist, as much as they can,” the top diplomat concluded.
Azerbaijan has confirmed its intention to conduct an exchange of prisoners with Armenia on the “all for all” principle, Azerbaijan’s State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons said on Tuesday, TASS reports.
“Azerbaijan stands for the exchange of prisoners and hostages according to the “all for all” principle,” the statement says.
The agency stressed that they are in contact with the command of the Russian peacekeepers on issues related to the servicemen who went missing in the combat zone.
Thousands of toys and lots of warm clothes were collected for the children of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) at the Homenmen (Armenian Athletic Association) Toy Drive in Pasadena and Glendale.
Volunteers of all ages helped donors unload toys from cars lining up the street with people eager to put a smile on a child’s face in the war-torn region of Artsakh. Some participants in the toy drive held Saturday and Sunday donated warm clothing, which is much needed in the winter months ahead. Others made monetary contributions to help with humanitarian efforts.
“We are very happy with the turnout of the toy drive and the outpouring of support from the community,” said Homenmen Chairman Vartan Kojababian, according to Massis Post, a news service covering Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora.
“The innocent children of Artsakh have witnessed their homes being destroyed, their family members have been murdered in a war they never asked for and their right to live peacefully on their ancestral lands has been threatened by a merciless enemy,” Kojababian said. “The very least we can do as Diaspora Armenians is help our brothers and sisters during this dire humanitarian crisis. We hope that these toys that were donated by generous community members will uplift the spirits of the children in Artsakh and restore a sense of calm and normalcy during these uncertain times.”
Kojababian also thanked the Armenian Educational Benevolent Union in Pasadena and Mission Wine and Spirits in Glendale where the two-day toy drive was held.
Large boxes of toys were packed up and will be flown to Armenia and distributed to children in Artsakh within the next two weeks.
For more information, or to donate toys or clothing, contact (818) 324-0574.
Armenia condemns all kinds of terrorist acts in the region and around the world, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anna Naghdalyan said.
The comments come after nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was killed in Iran. The assassination was followed by reactions from Iran and a number of other countries.
“We express our deep condolences on the assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a prominent Iranian scientist and head of the Defense Innovations and Research Organization of the Ministry of Defense of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Naghdalyan said.
“Armenia condemns all kinds of terrorist acts in the region and around the world,” she added.
Iran believes Israel and an exiled opposition group used a remote-control weapon to shoot dead top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh on Friday.
Security chief Ali Shamkhani said the attackers had “used electronic equipment” when Fakhrizadeh’s car was fired on east of the capital Tehran.
But the decades-old dispute over Karabakh, an ethnic Armenian region that broke away from Azerbaijan during a war in the 1990s, is far from resolved.
Here’s what to expect next:
Return to homes
Armenia agreed to hand over three districts — Aghdam, Lachin and Kalbajar — as part of the November deal that stopped an Azerbaijani offensive that saw Baku reclaim swathes of territory lost to Armenian separatists in the war.
Lachin was ceded on Tuesday, Kalbajar on November 25 and Aghdam on November 20.
Azerbaijan won back four other districts during the fighting and is now in control of all seven around Karabakh that Armenian forces seized in the 1990s as a buffer zone.
Tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis who fled these districts are expected to return, though Baku says the desolate areas first need to be made habitable by clearing landmines and rebuilding infrastructure.
The separatists are retaining control over most of Karabakh’s Soviet-era territory and there too residents are returning.
Up to 90,000 people fled Karabakh during the fighting — some 60 percent of the population.
Russia, which deployed peacekeepers under the deal, is helping them to go home and said Tuesday more than 26,000 had returned.
Living side-by-side
Nearly 2,000 Russian soldiers have been deployed for a renewable five-year mandate to keep the peace between the two sides.
Oil-rich Azerbaijan has vowed to invest huge sums in rebuilding the reclaimed districts, but the economic future of the Karabakh Armenians is far less certain.
The region has long relied on financial help from Armenia, itself struggling with a weak economy.
How Azerbaijan, Armenia and the separatist authorities will work together is also an open question, and tensions are sure to arise.
“The Moscow-brokered agreement… is ambiguous on a number of aspects such as the mandate of Russian peacekeepers and how the life of the local population, both Armenian and Azerbaijani, will be organised,” says Olesya Vartanyan of the International Crisis Group.
“In case the ambiguity persists, that will be potentially a source of tensions and destabilisation.”
What future for Karabakh?
The agreement also does not spell out how the most difficult question will be dealt with: Karabakh’s long-term future.
Decades of talks chaired by France, Russia and the United States — the so-called Minsk Group — failed to find a political settlement over the region’s status.
Russia’s crucial role in ending the latest fighting has moved it to the forefront and Azerbaijan is very keen for key ally Turkey to be involved in mediation efforts.
The credibility of the Minsk Group is also being called into question, in particular by Azerbaijan which last week lashed out at France after its Senate passed a resolution calling for the recognition of Karabakh as independent.
Experts say a different diplomatic format may be possible and that the new status quo could present an opportunity as a major sticking point in talks — the return of the seven districts around Karabakh — has been removed.
But mistrust in the region runs deep and decades of enmity will be hard to overcome.