Category: 2021

Azerbaijani press: Employee of Azerbaijan’s ANAMA hits mine in liberated Jabrayil

Yeghisabet Vorskanian
SOCIETY 12:21 (UTC+04:00)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

An employee of the Azerbaijani National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) 49dZFkcrKdk7XegyMd3kp4MGQoLFeMWM6Lion2T3q3h6DScBViFrXXuZoxkHq1TB1mGufMoGzfXd7jJ7ocgpJGxdEiGirjG, receiving various injuries, Trend reports on Jan.22 citing the General Prosecutor's Office.

"In the course of the investigation, it was revealed that Sultanov, sent to the Jabrayil district, hit a mine during demining work for construction of the railway and received various injuries. The prosecutor's office of the district opened a criminal case on the fact under Articles 100.2 (planning, preparing, unleashing, or waging an aggressive war), 116.0.6 (violation of international humanitarian law during armed conflicts) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan," the office said.

An inspection of the accident place was carried out, appropriate examinations were appointed and other necessary procedural actions were performed. Investigative measures in the criminal case are ongoing.

The Jabrayil district had been liberated by Azerbaijan from the Armenian occupation during the 44-day war (from late Sept. through early Nov.2020).

Azerbaijani press: Armenian opposition rallying in front of parliament building

Garik Boshkezenian
ARMENIA 13:19 (UTC+04:00)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

About 100 representatives of the Armenian opposition on Jan. 22 began a protest in from of the building of the Armenian Parliament, expressing disagreement with the initiative of the parliamentary majority to elect two new members of the Supreme Judicial Council, Trend reports citing TASS.

The protest was broadcast by local news portals.

"The election of new members of the Supreme Judicial Council pursues one single goal – to put all the courts under control. You see that many judges refuse to fulfill the illegal demands of the authorities – to arrest the opposition members. The new members of the Supreme Judicial Council will try to rectify this situation in favor of the authorities," said one of the protesters.

Azerbaijani press: Standard & Poor’s upgrades Azerbaijan’s credit rating outlook

Arsine Chaltikian
FINANCE 12:14 (UTC+04:00)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan.23

By Zeyni Jafarov – Trend:

Standard & Poor's (S&P) Global Ratings upgraded the outlook on Azerbaijan's ratings from ‘negative’ to ‘stable’ with maintaining long- and short-term sovereign credit ratings in foreign and local currencies at ‘BB+/B’, Trend reports referring to the reported data of S&P.

The report noted that the forecasts reflect the fact that in the next 12 months, as a result of the economic recovery and the relative rise in hydrocarbon prices, the financial and international positions of Azerbaijan won’t deteriorate.

According to the report, in order to further upgrade Azerbaijan's rating, it’s necessary either to exceed the surplus of the foreign trade balance over expectations or to carry out a number of structural reforms by the government in order to make the country's monetary policy more effective and strengthen the banking sector.

S&P said that the budgetary and external stock positions of Azerbaijan remain one of the strongest among sovereign states, which are rated in the ‘BB’ category, despite lower hydrocarbon prices and a slowdown in economic growth caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Large liquid government assets, projected at an average of about 74 percent of GDP in 2021-2024, will continue to provide protection against economic and financial shocks.

"Given our assumptions about the oil price and production volumes, as well as taking into account Azerbaijan's participation in the OPEC + production cut agreement, we expect that external revenues and budget revenues will gradually increase in the medium term and government measures to restore the territories liberated from the Armenian occupation by imports will moderately impact fiscal and external flows at the moment," added the report.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @jafarov_zeyni

Asbarez: Blinken: Biden Administration Will Consult with Congress on April 24th Statement

Jack Hunanian

January 23,  2020



In response to questions by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA), Secretary of State nominee Antony Blinken noted that the Biden Administration will be consulting with Congress on their April 24th Statement.

Pledges U.S. Leadership in Facilitating Return of Prisoners of War

WASHINGTON—President Biden’s nominee to serve as Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, confirmed that the incoming Administration will consult with Congress on the wording of its April 24th statement, reported the Armenian National Committee of America.

In response to a written question from Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) during his confirmation hearing, Blinken noted that: “As a presidential candidate, President Biden pledged in his Remembrance Day statement to support a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide,” adding: “The Administration will determine the wording for the White House statement to mark Remembrance Day once in office and will consult with Congress on this important issue.” The U.S. House and Senate nearly unanimously passed Armenian Genocide Resolutions in 2019.

Senator Markey also asked about what steps the Administration plans take “to ensure the immediate return of POWs being held by Azerbaijan.” Blinken stressed, in response, that: “the United States should be leading a diplomatic effort to find a lasting resolution to the conflict, working together with our European partners, including facilitating the return of prisoners of war.”

“We join with Armenian Americans and our pro-Armenian allies from across Massachusetts and around the country in thanking Senator Markey for his leadership in calling out and confronting the continuity of official Turkish and Azerbaijani genocidal intent and actions against the Armenian people,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “In the wake of Baku’s war crimes against Artsakh – armed and incited by Ankara – it is more urgent than ever for the United States to signal both Turkey and Azerbaijan that the U.S. will no longer turn a blind eye to their genocidal drive to destroy the Armenian nation.”

The full text of Senator Markey’s questions and Secretary of State-designate Blinken’s responses are provided below.

Sen. Markey: Will you formally recognize the crimes committed against the Armenian people by the Ottoman Empire as Genocide?

Blinken: As a presidential candidate, President Biden pledged in his Remembrance Day statement to support a resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide. Our administration will be committed to prioritizing human rights and ensuring such a tragedy is not repeated. The Administration will determine the wording for the White House statement to mark Remembrance Day once in office and will consult with Congress on this important issue.

Sen. Markey: In the aftermath of the war between Azerbaijan and Armenia last year, what steps will the Administration take to ensure the immediate return of POWs being held by Azerbaijan?

Blinken: As the President has said, the United States should be leading a diplomatic effort to find a lasting resolution to the conflict, working together with our European partners, including facilitating the return of prisoners of war. If confirmed, I will reinvigorate U.S. engagement to find a permanent settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that protects the security of Nagorno-Karabakh and helps to ensure another war does not break out. This includes stepping up our engagement via the Minsk Group, of which the United States is a co-chair, and additional diplomatic work to prevent any further interference by third parties.

Sen. Markey: Will the Administration restrict funding to Azerbaijan, fully enforcing Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, as President-elect Joe Biden urged the Trump Administration to do?

Blinken: In light of the recent outbreak of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Biden-Harris administration will review our security assistance to Azerbaijan. If the circumstances warrant, we will be prepared to suspend waivers of requirements under section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. If confirmed, I look forward to working with Congress and the Secretary of Defense to determine the appropriate level of assistance to meet the security needs of Armenia and the region.

COVID-19: Armenia reports 198 new cases, 276 recoveries in one day

Parkev Tvankchian

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 11:18,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. 198 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have been confirmed in Armenia in the past one day, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 165.909, the ministry of healthcare said today.

276 more patients have recovered in one day. The total number of recoveries has reached 154.535.

2166 tests were conducted in the past one day.

4 more patients have died, raising the death toll to 3034.

The number of active cases is 7.593

The number of patients who had coronavirus but died from other disease has reached 747 (3 new such case).

Candidate for U.S. State Secretary reaffirms Biden’s promise over Armenian Genocide

Christine Harutyunian

Candidate for U.S. State Secretarya reaffirms Biden's promise over Armenian Genocide

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 12:01,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. President Biden’s nominee to serve as Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, confirmed that the incoming Administration will consult with Congress on the wording of its April 24th statement, ARMENPRESS reports, citing the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

In response to a written question from Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) during his confirmation hearing, Blinken noted that: “As a presidential candidate, President Biden pledged in his Remembrance Day statement to support a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide,” adding: “The Administration will determine the wording for the White House statement to mark Remembrance Day once in office and will consult with Congress on this important issue.” The U.S. House and Senate nearly unanimously passed Armenian Genocide Resolutions in 2019.

Senator Markey also asked about what steps the Administration plans take “to ensure the immediate return of POWs being held by Azerbaijan.” Blinken stressed, in response, that: “the United States should be leading a diplomatic effort to find a lasting resolution to the conflict, working together with our European partners, including facilitating the return of prisoners of war.”

“We join with Armenian Americans and our pro-Armenian allies from across Massachusetts and around the country in thanking Senator Markey for his leadership in calling out and confronting the continuity of official Turkish and Azerbaijani genocidal intent and actions against the Armenian people,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “In the wake of Baku’s war crimes against Artsakh – armed and incited by Ankara – it is more urgent than ever for the United States to signal both Turkey and Azerbaijan that the U.S. will no longer turn a blind eye to their genocidal drive to destroy the Armenian nation.”

Artsakh’s President receives delegation led by High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of Armenia

John Hovhannisian

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 12:53,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan received on January 23 the delegation led by the High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs of Armenia Zareh Sinanyan, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Artsakh President’s Office.

A number of issues referring to the Motherland-Diaspora relations, housing programs in Artsakh and solution of problems of people who have become homeless were discussed. President Harutyunyan emphasized that only by pan-Armenian efforts it will be possible to restore and develop Artsakh.

Zareh Sinanyan noted that as always, the Armenians of Artsakh are not alone, and joint works will be carried out for solving all vital problems.

Armenia’s healthcare ministry assesses situation over COVID-19 stable

Jhanna Virabian

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 14:12,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 23, ARMENPRESS. The situation over COVID-19 is stable in Armenia, ARMENPRESS reports the healthcare ministry of Armenia said.

For decreasing the risk of the spread of the virus the quarantine regime has been prolonged by another 6 months, but some limitations have been lifted or eased.

The ministry urges the citizens to observe anti-epidemic rules.

The number of active cases is 7593.

Pashinyan has always been ‘a puppet in the hands of someone’, animator says

Christine Harutyunian
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 23 2021

Filmmaker, animator, Honored Culture Worker of Armenia David Sahakyants believes that the current authorities cannot be forced to step down through street protests organized by opposition forces and calls for other measures to achieve a breakthrough.

Speaking at a meeting of famous scientists, culture, art workers and lawyers on Saturday, David Sahakyants said that the undecided part of the society should be offered a way out of the current crisis in the country, adding the work should be carried out promptly.

"It must be made clear to the people through televised speeches that a planned coup took place in Armenia two years ago, this is a thought-out plan. [Nikol] Pashinyan was brought to power as part of a plan. I don't know exactly from where,” the animator said.

“It’s important for people to understand that he hasn’t cared about the people from the very beginning. He has always been a puppet in the hands of someone. At this point he was a tool of big players, that’s why we ended up like this. And this will continue until he leaves,” Sahakyants stated.

According to him, it is necessary to join lawyers, demand a discussion with the Prosecutor's Office and present existing problems.

Sports: Henrikh Mkhitaryan not included in Roma’s lineup for Spezia clash

Toneyan Mark
Panorama, Armenia
Jan 23 2021

Henrikh Mkhitaryan has not been included in the starting lineup of A.S. Roma for the Serie A clash against Spezia on Saturday.

Roma head coach Paulo Fonseca earlier said that a decision on the 32-year-old Armenian attacker’s participation would be made on the day of the match.

The captain of the Armenian national football team has muscle issues after Roma’s Coppa Italia match against Spezia.