Category: 2021

A Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone is seen during a rehearsal of a military parade dedicated to Independence Day in Kyiv, Ukraine, Aug. 20, 2021. (AP File Photo)

Azerbaijani armed forces must immediately withdraw from Armenian territory – MEPs urge EU to use all levers

 21:13,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. More than a dozen of MEPs have sent a letter to Josep Borrell, Vice-President of the European Commission and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, urging him to use all possible levers to prevent the violation of the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia, as well as Azerbaijan’s bellicose rhetoric.

ARMENPRESS reports the MEPs reminded in the letter that the Azerbaijani armed forces attacked the eastern border of Armenia on November 16.

“As members of the European Parliament, we condemn the Azerbaijani aggression and the infiltration into the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, which violates the November 9, 2020 ceasefire declaration, and seriously endangers the fragile peace in the region. The Azerbaijani Armed Forces must be immediately withdrawn from the territory of Armenia”, reads the letter.

The MEPs noted that they deeply regret the human losses caused by the attack. They stressed that any action or rhetoric aimed at violating the safe, peaceful and normal life of the population and human rights in the eastern and southern regions of the Republic of Armenia must be stopped immediately.

“We call on the EU External Action Service to use all its levers to stop and prevent the violation of the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia, as well as the belligerent rhetoric”, the MEPs said in the letter.

 00:00,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev agreed to hold a meeting in Brussels on December 15 within the framework of the EU’s Eastern Partnership Summit, ARMENPRESS reports the EU statement informs.

“President Charles Michel of the European Council held phone calls on 19 November with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia, in follow up to discussions earlier this week on the situation in the region and in the context of preparations of the Eastern Partnership Summit, to be held in Brussels on 15 December.

President Charles Michel proposed to host President Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for a meeting in Brussels in the margins of the EaP Summit.

Leaders have agreed to meet in Brussels to discuss the regional situation and ways of overcoming tensions for a prosperous and stable South Caucasus, which the EU supports.

During the phone calls, the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders have also agreed to establish a direct communication line, at the level of respective Ministers of Defence, to serve as an incident prevention mechanism”, reads the statement.

 11:07,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS.  870 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 333.583, the ministry of healthcare said today.

2161 more patients have recovered in one day. The total number of recoveries has reached 304.017.

41 patients have died, raising the death toll to 7253.

9660 tests were conducted in the past one day.

The number of active cases is 20.909.

 11:49,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian visited the Center for Quantum Technologies of the National University of Singapore, toured the center, got acquainted with the activities and programs, ARMENPRESS was informed from the President’s press service.

President Sarkissian met with Professor Chen Tsuhan, Vice President of the National University of Singapore, José Ignacio Latorre, Head of the Center for Quantum Technologies, and Keok Tong Ling, Head of the National Research Foundation’s Intelligent National Economy Department.

They briefed President Sarkissian on the center’s activities, the research being carried out in various fields, including its application in medicine.

During the meeting, issues related to mutually beneficial cooperation were discussed, in particular, issues related to the exchange of experience, the implementation of exchange programs for young professionals and scientists.

President Sarkissian presented the ATOM (Advanced Tomorrow) Presidential Initiative for the Development of Science and Technology in Armenia, noting that it, being a future-oriented program, will focus on the scientific and technological development of the country, in particular artificial intelligence, mathematical modeling.

The President said that, taking into account that Singapore has a developed quantum ecosystem, Armenia will be happy to have partners from Singapore as well. The heads of the National University, the Foundation for Quantum Technologies of the Research Foundation, in their turn, noted that they are interested in cooperation and are ready to visit Armenia to study and discuss specific areas of joint work.

President Sarkissian also participated in the forum of the International Council of the National University of Singapore School of Medicine (NUS Medicine), where he spoke about the Armenian-Singaporean relations, the potential for cooperation in the fields of science, education, the role of education and technology in the future development of the states and answered the questions of the participants.

Touching upon the Armenian-Singaporean relations, the President of Armenia noted that Singapore is a special country for many Armenians, as the Armenians have had and still have a significant trace and presence here.

Speaking about the similarities between Armenia and Singapore, President Sarkissian particularly noted that both peoples value education and science. “It is a good basis for developing cooperation in the fields of education and science. The basis of a competitive state is competitive education. We must do everything in our country to develop education, science and high technologies. Armenia and Singapore can do a lot together. I want to make Armenia a hub of science and technology”, the Armenian President said.

The President of Armenia emphasized that Singapore is a good example for Armenia. “Not having great natural resources, being a small country, Singapore had human potential, power of idea, vision, strategy. These are the factors that shaped Singapore. I hope that the strength of that idea will also make my country strong and prosperous and I will be able to say that we have repeated the example of Singapore”, Armen Sarkissian said.

 12:13,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II sent a congratulatory message to Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill on the 75^th birthday anniversary, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

“Your Holiness, your whole life, your pontifical service are completely dedicated to strengthening the role of the Church of Christ in the world, the successful testimony of the eternal truths of the Holy Gospel, the restoration of spiritual and moral values in people’s hearts, consciously. Your pastoral words and admonition serve as a beacon for the weak seeking comfort, enlightenment.

On this significant day, we wish to highlight your personal contribution to the development of closer ties and partnerships between our Churches, which in turn is a strong message for the fraternal relations of our fellow nations around the world. We highly appreciate your warm attitude towards the Armenian Church, the Armenian people, which is reflected in your care, tireless efforts for the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict, the preservation of the Armenian heritage, and the safe operation of Dadivank”.

Karekin II wished Patriarch Kirill many years of prosperous life, God’s support in the pontifical service for the sake of the enlightenment of Russia and the Russian Church.

 14:42,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Foreign minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan gave an interview to French Le Figaro newspaper, ARMENPRESS was informed from the MFA Armenia.

What is the situation on the border and in Nagorno Karabakh one year after the conflict?

Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Nagorno Karabakh ended with a trilateral declaration on the ceasefire on November 9, 2020. However, the situation remains very tense. During this year, about thirty serious violations of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan have been registered, as a result of which there have been casualties on the Armenian side. Civilians were also killed.

Nevertheless, Armenia is making every effort to establish lasting peace in the region. However, for this process to be effective, the efforts must be bilateral.

What efforts is Armenia ready to make?  

The rhetoric of the two sides is very different. Armenia speaks of opening all channels of communication, while Azerbaijan insists on the so-called “corridor” (with Nakhichevan, which is located between Armenia, Turkey and Iran, ed.). Armenia, as a manifestation of goodwill, is ready to hand over all the maps of minefields located in the region, but Azerbaijan, despite its obligation, does not release the Armenian prisoners of war.

When we talk about peace, Azerbaijan multiplies xenophobic statements. These are evidenced by the speeches of the president of Azerbaijan, the “trophy park” opened in Baku this spring, where Armenians are presented humiliated and ridiculed.

Where can lead this hate speech you are talking about?

The answer to this difficult question is in Baku. Hatred can lead to annihilation or genocide. The Armenian people know that.

Lasting peace is possible, but it is difficult to imagine the presence of the Armenian population in the territories controlled by Azerbaijan. No Armenians live in the territories that passed under the control of Azerbaijan as a result of the war, which is a factual proof of ethnic cleansing.

How many POWs are kept in Azerbaijan?

There is a lot of evidence about the inhuman, degrading treatment and torture of Armenian prisoners of war. These cases have been documented by various international non-governmental organizations, including the Human Rights Watch. We also have documented videos and photos that prove that these people were captured, but Azerbaijan does not confirm their existence.

They may have been executed extrajudicially, held in underground prisons, or trafficked in human organs. Azerbaijan has confirmed the existence of 40 Armenian prisoners of war, and has denied the existence of 100 of them.

Last Wednesday you met with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, and then took part in a trilateral meeting with your counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov involving the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. What was the result of the meeting?

First of all, I would like to thank President Macron, the French parliamentarians, all those who have shown support to Armenia.

I would also like to emphasize the importance of resuming negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. Of course, the issue of the final settlement of the conflict is on the agenda. But at this stage we agreed to take small steps to secure the release of prisoners of war and the entry of international organizations, including UNESCO, into Nagorno-Karabakh for humanitarian purposes, which will be aimed at monitoring the Armenian historical and cultural heritage, since the historical-cultural heritage of Artsakh under threat of deliberate extinction by Azerbaijan.

One such example is the bombing of the Holy Savior Cathedral in Shushi with the use of UAVs during the war. About 1,500 cultural monuments and 19,000 museum specimens of Artsakh are endangered.

What role should Russia play, which has deployed 2,000 peacekeepers in Nagorno Karabakh to maintain the ceasefire?

Russia managed to end the war on the 44th day of hostilities. Russia is a Co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group. The Russian peacekeeping forces ensure the security of the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh, contribute to the restoration of normal life. Violations of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan are directed also against the reputation of Russian peacekeepers.

Is Armenia ready to normalize its relations with Turkey, to accept the corridor connecting Azerbaijan with Turkey?

We have always stated that we are ready to normalize our relations without preconditions, despite the huge support provided by Turkey to Azerbaijan during the war against Artsakh, both politically and through the supply of weapons, as well as the deployment of thousands of foreign mercenaries.

We have received positive signals from Turkey to reopen the dialogue, but it remains complicated. Ankara puts forward new conditions. Among them is the “corridor” connecting Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan. It cannot be a subject of discussion at all. Countries should allow transit while maintaining their sovereignty over their territory. All communication channels in the region should be reopened.

 15:19,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Turkey puts forward new conditions for normalizing relations with Armenia, ARMENPRESS reports Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan said in an interview with French Le Figaro newspaper, answering the question if Armenia is ready to normalize relations with Turkey.

“We have always stated that we are ready to normalize our relations without preconditions, despite the huge support provided by Turkey to Azerbaijan during the war against Artsakh, both politically and through the supply of weapons, as well as the deployment of thousands of foreign mercenaries.

We have received positive signals from Turkey to reopen the dialogue, but it remains complicated. Ankara puts forward new conditions. Among them is the “corridor” connecting Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan. It cannot be a subject of discussion at all. Countries should allow transit while maintaining their sovereignty over their territory. All communication channels in the region should be reopened”, Mirzoyan said.

Armenia confirms its participation in Yerevan-Baku summit in Brussels in the sidelines of EU’s Eastern Partnership

 16:56,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Armenia has agreed to participate in the Yerevan-Baku summit in Brussels in the sidelines of EU’s Eastern Partnership on December 15, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry of Armenia Vahan Hunanyan told ARMENPRESS.

On November 19, the EU issued a statement, saying “President Charles Michel of the European Council held phone calls on 19 November with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia, in follow up to discussions earlier this week on the situation in the region and in the context of preparations of the Eastern Partnership Summit, to be held in Brussels on 15 December.

President Charles Michel proposed to host President Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for a meeting in Brussels in the margins of the EaP Summit.

Leaders have agreed to meet in Brussels to discuss the regional situation and ways of overcoming tensions for a prosperous and stable South Caucasus, which the EU supports.

During the phone calls, the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders have also agreed to establish a direct communication line, at the level of respective Ministers of Defence, to serve as an incident prevention mechanism”.

Azerbaijan has also agreed to participate in the summit.

Artsakh’s Government plans to impose a nationwide quarantine in the coming days

 16:59,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Due to the epidemic situation, the Government of the Artsakh Republic plans to impose nationwide quarantine and specific restrictions in the coming days due to the existing risks of coronavirus disease, ARMENPRESS reports State Minister of the Republic of Artsakh Artak Beglaryan wrote on his Facebook page. He reminded that quarantine has been in force in Stepanakert and some other communities since November 4.

“I would like to once again urge our citizens to maximally raise vigilance and preserve the safety regulations”, Beglaryan wrote, citing rising death toll in the country.

If the quarantine is approved by the Government. Wearing masks indoors will be mandatory, remote working will be promoted, mass events will be limited, in Stepanakert and some other settlements lessons will be held remotely and vaccination process will be further promoted. The option of presenting PCR tests for the unvaccinated citizens is under discussion.