13:02,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. A military helicopter crashed during a training flight in Azerbaijan’s eastern Khizi District, the Azeri Trend news agency reports citing the State Border Service.
An unspecified number of crew members died in the crash.
The helicopter, operated by the Azeri State Border Service, crashed Tuesday morning in the Bibiheybat aviation range, according to Trend.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
13:20,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. The Football Federation of Armenia (FFA) continues negotiations over building a national stadium, according to FFA President Armen Melikbekyan.
He said that various stages of negotiations were suspended due to the pandemic and during the post-war period. “Now we’ve launched the negotiations again. I can’t say that we’ve advanced in this issue but there are some changes. The football federation continues the work around building a national stadium,” Melikbekyan told reporters.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
13:57,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. Head of the European Union’s Delegation to Armenia, Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin visited Soldier’s Home rehabilitation center in Yerevan to get acquainted with the treatment, recovery conditions of soldiers, the Soldier’s Home said.
Rector of the Yerevan State Medical University Armen Muradyan and Director of Soldier’s Home rehabilitation center Haykuhi Minasyan presented to the EU Ambassador the social, cultural and educational programs being implemented in the center.
The EU delegation chief proposed to discuss in the future professional training and other joint programs.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
14:44,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. The delegation of the Parliament of Greece led by Chair of the Greek-Armenian Friendship Group Dimitrios Markopoulos visited today the Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan on the sidelines of their working visit in Armenia, the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute reports.
The Greek delegation was accompanied by chair of the Armenian parliamentary standing committee on European integration affairs Arman Yeghoyan.
Director of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute Harutyun Marutyan welcomed the guests and introduced the history of the creation of the Memorial.
The Greek parliamentarians laid flowers at the Eternal Flame and paid tribute to the memory of the innocent victims with a moment of silence. They also toured the Museum, got acquainted with the exhibits. At the end of the visit MP Dimitrios Markopoulos left a note at the Honorary Guest Book.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
15:46,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. Beijing expressed hope that Armenia and Azerbaijan will resolve disputes through dialogue and maintain regional stability.
Commenting on the trilateral Putin-Pashinyan-Aliyev meeting in Sochi, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a press conference that China welcomes Russia’s efforts in maintaining regional peace and stability, TASS reports.
He added that Beijing hopes that Armenia and Azerbaijan will “resolve disputes through dialogue and consultations and will together maintain regional peace and stability.”
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
15:57,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan received today the delegation led by the European Union’s Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, Toivo Klaar, the PM’s Office reports.
During the meeting the Prime Minister assessed the Armenia-EU cooperation as effective and in the context of development of bilateral partnership attached importance to the upcoming Eastern Partnership summit to be held in Brussels.
The EU Special Representative conveyed the greetings of the European Council President Charles Michel to the Armenian PM and reaffirmed the EU readiness to continue the efforts for strengthening the Armenia-EU ties.
Nikol Pashinyan and Toivo Klaar also exchanged views on the bilateral relations and the regional affairs.
Issues relating to the agenda of the upcoming Eastern Partnership summit, scheduled for December 15, were discussed during the meeting.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
19:27,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 29, ARMENPRESS. The Special Forces of Greece, Cyprus and Armenia completed the joint Close Quarter Battle 2021 military exercises, ARMENPRESS reports, Greek City Times informed.
From November 22 to 26 2021, the “Close Quarter Battle 2021” took place under the Greece-Cyprus-Armenia Tripartite Cooperation Program.
The purpose of the joint exercise was to increase combat capability and interoperability of the combined special forces in combat conditions.
The training included rapid reaction battle shots, moving shots, night shots, urban warfare and handling of the dead and wounded inside a residential area.
The Cypriot Defence Ministry said “similar exercises, in combination with the Tripartite Cooperation Program between Greece, Cyprus and Armenia, reflect the excellent cooperation between the Armed Forces of the three countries.”
Nikol Pashinyan receives representatives of Central Board of the Ramkavar Azatakan Party
19:39,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 30, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan received the representatives of the Central Board of the Ramkavar Azatakan Party (RAP), headed by Board Chairman Michael Kharapian, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister.
The PM welcomed the RAP representatives and attached importance to the interactions and discussions in that format. “We highly appreciate the activity and history of the Ramkavar Azatakan Party, as well as its role in organizing the political life of the Diaspora”, Nikol Pashinyan said.
Michael Kharapian noted that the Ramkavar Azatakan Party reaffirms its support to the Armenian Government for the benefit of solving the problems facing the Motherland and its progress.
During the meeting, the sides touched upon the developments in the region, the Nagorno Karabakh issue, the strengthening of Armenia-Diaspora ties, and a number of issues related to the Government’s programs.
Tuesday,
Regulators Limit Water Price Rise
Armenia -- Water meters manufactured in a local factory, Yerevan, 10Aug2018
Public utility regulators on Tuesday allowed a French company managing Armenia’s
water distribution network raise the price of drinking water in the country by
11 percent.
The price has stood at 180 drams (37 U.S. cents) per cubic meter ever since the
Veolia utility giant took over the network in 2017 after signing a 15-year
management contract with the former Armenian government.
The company’s Armenian subsidiary, Veolia Djur, requested in August this year
permission to raise it to almost 224 drams per cubic meter. It cited, among
other things, higher-than-expected inflation and the increased cost of
electricity in the country.
The Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) decided to scale back the price
hike effective from January 1. It said the water tariff will remain unchanged
for low-income households and be set at just over 200 drams for other consumers.
The PSRC linked the decision to the Armenian government’s November 10 agreement
with Veolia Djur which amended some terms of the French company’s operating
license.
The government has shed little light on the agreement so far. It is not clear
whether it made financial concessions to Veolia in exchange for limiting the
price rise.
Veolia had managed the water and sewerage network of Yerevan from 2007-2016,
phasing out Soviet-era water rationing in the vast majority of city
neighborhoods.
Minister Defends COVID-19 Health Pass
• Marine Khachatrian
Armenia - Health Minister Anahit Avanesian holds a news conference in Yerevan,
.
Health Minister Anahit Avanesian defended on Tuesday the impending introduction
of a mandatory coronavirus health pass for entry to cultural and leisure venues
in Armenia.
Under a directive drafted by the Armenia Ministry of Health, starting from
January 1, only those people who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or have
had a recent negative test will be allowed to visit bars, restaurants and other
public venues. The new requirement is part of government efforts to boost the
country’s vaccination rate, which remains one of the lowest in Europe and
Central Asia.
The measure has prompted strong criticism from some of the entities that will be
affected by it. In a statement issued on Monday, the Armenian Restaurant
Association said that many restaurants have already suffered massive losses due
to the coronavirus pandemic and would now be dealt a further financial blow.
Ruben Babayan, the director of Yerevan’s Hovannes Tumanian Puppet Theater, added
his voice to the criticism. He rebuked the government for not consulting with
the entertainment sector.
“Theaters are not the main venues for people’s gatherings,” Babayan told
RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “A typical spectator visits a theater two or three
times a year at best, whereas many people use public transport twice a day.”
Avanesian insisted that the health pass, which is obligatory in many Western
countries, must be introduced because it will help to save lives. The minister
also claimed that the number of vaccinated Armenians is already large enough to
allow cultural and entertainment venues to avoid major losses of revenue.
According to the Ministry of Health, only some 436,400 people in the country of
about 3 million were fully vaccinated as of Sunday. Nearly 345,000 others
received one dose of a vaccine in recent weeks.
Critics also complained about a lack of clarity about how the measure will be
enforced by relevant authorities.
“What if a customer shows a fake [vaccination] certificate?” asked Arsen
Hovannisian, the founder of several restaurants in downtown Yerevan. “What will
be our responsibility?”
“Or suppose that our employee sees a [certification] document and lets a
customer in. Who will be verifying [their compliance?]”
Avanesian said in this regard that her ministry and other government agencies
are still discussing enforcement mechanisms.
Armenian Military Denies No-Shoot Orders
• Naira Nalbandian
Armenia - Soldiers and a guard dog at an Armenian army post on the border with
Azerbaijan, October 15, 2021.
A senior military official dismissed on Tuesday continuing opposition
allegations that Armenian soldiers were ordered not to open fire on Azerbaijani
troops accused by Yerevan of violating Armenia’s territorial integrity.
Azerbaijani forces reportedly advanced a few kilometers into Armenian territory
at several sections of the border between the two states in May. Despite a
resulting tense standoff with Armenian army units deployed there, there were
initially no reports of armed clashes between the two sides.
Amateur videos circulated online in the following weeks showed instead armed
Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers coming to blows and chasing each other away
from contested border posts without firing gunshots. Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian spoke of a series of such incidents when he addressed the Armenian
parliament later in May.
The incidents fuelled opposition claims that Armenian soldiers were ordered not
to shoot at advancing Azerbaijani forces. They were stoked by a November 14
incident in Armenia’s Syunik province where Armenian troops were reportedly
forced to vacate two border outposts without putting up any resistance.
Pashinian fired Defense Minister Arshak Karapetian the following morning.
At least 13 soldiers from both sides were killed in heavy fighting that broke
out at a nearby border section on November 16. About three dozen other Armenian
soldiers were taken prisoner as a result.
ARMENIA -- Azerbaijani (L) and Armenian checkpoints at the Sotk gold mine on the
Armenian-Azerbaijani border, Gegharkunik province, June 18, 2021
Speaking in the National Assembly on November 17, Pashinian insisted that
neither he nor any other official had ever issued no-shoot orders. He insisted
that such orders would be tantamount to high treason.
Deputy Defense Minister Arman Sargsian echoed those assurances on Tuesday during
a meeting of the parliament committee on defense and security. “No-shoot orders
were definitely not issued by any official,” he told opposition members of the
committee.
At least one of the opposition lawmakers, Gegham Manukian, remained unconvinced.
He said the fistfights on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border suggest that the
Armenian military was indeed ordered not to open fire.
Meanwhile, the Armenian Defense Ministry pointedly declined to confirm or deny
reports that Azerbaijani troops have pulled back from one of the contested
border areas occupied by them in May.
Yerevan Again Rules Out ‘Corridors’ For Azerbaijan
Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev
and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian make statements to the press after
talks in Sochi, November 26, 2021.
Armenia’s government insisted on Tuesday that it will not cede any
extraterritorial land corridors to Azerbaijan as a result of the latest talks
between the leaders of the two states hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham
Aliyev met in the Russian city of Sochi on Friday one year after a
Russian-brokered ceasefire that stopped the six-week war over Nagorno-Karabakh.
They reported further progress towards the opening of transport links between
Armenia and Azerbaijan envisaged by the ceasefire.
In particular, Putin said a trilateral task force dealing with the matter will
meet in Moscow this week to announce “decisions which we agreed today.” He did
not elaborate.
The truce accord commits Armenia to opening rail and road links between
Azerbaijan and its Nakhichevan exclave. Armenia should be able, for its part, to
use Azerbaijani territory as a transit route for cargo shipments to Russia and
Iran.
Aliyev has repeatedly claimed that the deal calls for a special “corridor” that
will connect Nakhichevan to the rest of Azerbaijan via Armenia’s Syunik
province. Commenting on the Sochi talks over the weekend, he declared that the
“Zangezur corridor is becoming reality.”
The Armenian Foreign Ministry effectively denied that on Tuesday. The ministry
spokesman, Vahan Hunanian, said a joint statement issued by Aliyev, Pashinian
and Putin at Sochi “refuted propaganda notions about a ‘corridor’ or the logic
of a corridor.”
Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigorian, the Armenian co-chair of the
Russian-Armenian-Azerbaijani task force, likewise insisted that the three
leaders discussed conventional cross-border transport links, rather than
“exterritorial roads” implied by Aliyev.
“In case of the unblocking of roads, both the railway and highways [passing
through Armenian territory] will be under Armenia’s full jurisdiction and
control,” Grigorian told the “Hraparak” daily.
Accordingly, he said, cargo shipments to and from Nakhichevan will be subject to
Armenian customs controls and other border checks.
The assurances came amid continuing Armenian opposition allegations that
Pashinian agreed to make more concessions to Baku at the expense of Armenia’s
territorial integrity. A senior opposition lawmaker, Armen Rustamian, suggested
on Monday that Aliyev’s latest statement about the “Zangezur corridor” is the
result of his unpublicized “oral understandings” with Pashinian.
Visiting Yerevan on November 5, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk
said the trilateral working group has agreed that Armenia and Azerbaijan will
“retain sovereignty over roads passing through their territory.” The Russian
Foreign Ministry also reported such an agreement.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
Armenia’s Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) Arman Tatoyan has shared a photo of villager Gevorg Avagyan’s house, showing an Azerbaijani post on the mountain close to it.
“The house in the picture below belongs to the family of Gevorg Avagyan, a resident of Chakaten village; the watchtower of Azerbaijani servicemen is located directly above it, on the mountain. He has been deprived of his family income and continues to suffer great losses due to Azerbaijani criminal acts,” he wrote on Facebook on Monday.
During their visit to Chakaten village of Syunik Province on Monday, the ombudsman’s staff discovered that 5 to 6 years ago, 3 families built a 2 km long pipeline from a water source near the village with great difficulty, spending more than 2 million drams in the process. However, the Azerbaijani servicemen cut off the water supply for these families after their deployment in the areas without any legal ground. Currently the families have to use a different water source in the village, which is a significant issue, since the water sources are scarce and not enough to satisfy the needs of the residents.
Moreover, Gevorg Avagyan works as a taxi driver in Kapan, which is the source of income of his family. As a result of the blatantly unlawful Azerbaijani border and customs control on the Kapan-Chakaten road, it is very difficult and long to reach the town. Thus, he has been deprived of the opportunity to earn a living.
“This family has also been deprived of their opportunity to use their pastures, since the Azerbaijani troops are stationed on those lands,” Tatoyan said.
“The facts clearly prove that the deployment of Azerbaijani forces, their further fortifications in the immediate vicinity of Armenian villages and on the roads linking the communities have no legal basis. Their actions are criminal in nature, as they intentionally aggravate human rights violations, and disrupt the normal life of people. As result, the population of Armenia, especially those living in the border communities, are facing bigger humanitarian crises,” he stated.