16:19,
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 22, ARMENPRESS. The Gezira Cairo Tower was illuminated with the tricolour flag of Armenia on 21 September to mark 30 years on the republic’s independence from the Soviet Union, Ahram Online reports.
The event, organized in cooperation with the Armenian Embassy in Cairo, saw the tower lit in red, blue, and orange.
Members of the Armenian community in Egypt celebrated the event by taking Nile feluccas to watch up close the tricolour flag on the tower.
17:22,
YEREVAN, 22 SEPTEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 22 September, USD exchange rate down by 0.70 drams to 484.23 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 3.44 drams to 567.95 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.03 drams to 6.65 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 8.23 drams to 660.20 drams.
The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.
Gold price up by 373.23 drams to 27625.27 drams. Silver price down by 14.78 drams to 351.14 drams. Platinum price down by 36.66 drams to 14571.98 drams.
18:05,
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 21, ARMENPRESS. The President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon sent a congratulatory message to Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Armenia. As ARMENPRESS was informed from the office of the Prime Minister, the message runs as follows,
‘’Dear Nikol Vovaevich,
With kind regards, I extend our sincere congratulations to you and the entire friendly people of Armenia on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the indepedence of the Republic.
During these years, Armenia has recorded a range of achievements in the socio-economic development of the country, the improvement of the welfare of the people, and the strengthening of its position in the international arena.
Tajikistan highly appreciates the historical relations of friendship, multilateral partnership with Armenia, intending to strengthen and develop them in all directions.
I am confident that with joint efforts we will be able to give greater intensity and dynamics to the Tajik-Armenian cooperation, which is in line with the fundamental interests of our peoples. We are determined to make every effort to achieve that goal.
Dear Nikol Vovaevich,
On this festive day, I wish you health and success, and peace and welfare to the friendly people of Armenia’’.
19:02,
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 21, ARMENPRESS. Russia continues considering the OSCE Minsk Group an important tool for the peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict, ARMENPRESS reports Russian Deputy FM Andrey Rudenko told TASS in Tashkent.
Answering the question if the Minsk Group still preserves relevance for the Russian side, Rudenko said that it’s not doomed to inactivity.
‘’Contacts continue, maybe not so publicly, but they continue. Our Co-chair of the Minsk Group visited Baku and Yerevan, held a number of meetings there, including at the high level. At the moment the trio of the Co-chairs plan to meet in New York, in the sidelines of the General Assembly. Moreover, they plan to meet not only with each other, but the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. If it takes place, it will be a positive sign showing that the settlement process between the two countries has entered the practical stage’’, Rudenko said.
Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Poland highlight resumption of NK peace talks
20:36,
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 21, ARMENPRESS. Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan, who is in New York to participate in the 76th session of the UN General Assembly, met with Foreign Minister of Poland Zbigniew Rau on September 22. The Ministers touched upon a number of issues on the bilateral and multilateral agenda, expressing mutual readiness to take practical steps to strengthen cooperation.
As ARMENPRESS was informed form the press service of the MFA Armenia, within the framework of the Armenia-EU Partnership, the Ministers discussed issues related to the implementation of the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement, as well as the deepening of the Eastern Partnership cooperation based on common values.
The parties exchanged views on cooperation in the forthcoming Polish OSCE Chairmanship. Minister Rau briefly presented the general priorities of the Polish chairmanship.
Referring to the issues of regional security and stability, Minister Mirzoyan presented the steps taken to eliminate the consequences of Azerbaijan’s aggression against the people of Artsakh, particularly emphasizing the imperative of repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war and civilians held in detention in Azerbaijan.
Minister Mirzoyan also drew his counterpart’s attention to the preservation of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage of Artsakh and the involvement of relevant international organizations in that issue.
Both sides expressed confidence that it is necessary to resume the peace process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair’s format.
Nikol Pashinyan has spent $7 million to buy Pegasus spyware to track opposition figures as well as editors of independent media outlets, Hraparak.am reported.
“In the fight against internal enemies, Nikol Pashinyan went so far that he even bought Pegasus spyware worth $7 million. In other countries, this tool is used in foreign intelligence to spy on those who pose a threat to the country’s security,” it said.
“The mechanism is quite simple: a regular advertising SMS link is sent to the specified phone and after its opening the software is installed on the mobile phone. Incidentally, the cost of “hunting” for one person is more than $10,000. The thing is that this spyware gains access to Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram and Facebook pages.
“The authorities have introduced the new tool mainly to use it against the opposition, but the targets are selected by the direct order of Pashinyan. We have learned that the editor of one of the independent media outlets has also been included in this network,” the news site said.
The Standing Committee on Defense and Security of the Armenian parliament on Wednesday refused to appoint lawmaker Artur Ghazinyan from the opposition Armenia faction as its deputy chairman for the fourth time. The ruling faction MPs of the committee again voted against his candidacy.
Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the committee, said that within five days the committee will again hold a special meeting, not forgetting about other issues on the agenda.
It’s worth noting that the voting was held without the participation of the opposition lawmakers, since they had earlier left the hall, considering the discussion “pointless”.
“The authorities cannot force the opposition to change its decision. It is not appropriate, to say the least. Questions have been asked, answers have been given, speeches have been made and the candidate has been introduced three times. I have nothing new to say,” Ghazinyan said before leaving the room.
“Accordingly, all the responsibility lies with you, make your decision and announce it. Thank you, I’m leaving,” he noted.
The other opposition MPs also followed suit.
Pro-government lawmakers voted down a proposal of opposition Armenia faction MP Artur Ghazinyan to discuss the situation on Armenia’s borders at the meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense and Security on Wednesday.
“Today the proposal to discuss the issue in an emergency mode was rejected by the ruling force, it was not put on the agenda, while the need to address the same issue in the future has arisen,” Ghazinyan said at the meeting.
He noted that the proposal was specific and was about the establishment of a working group, as provided by the Rules of Procedure, but it was rejected.
The appointment of the deputy chairman of the Armenian parliament’s Standing Committee on Defense and Security is being thwarted for various reasons, MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition I’m Honored bloc told reporters on Wednesday.
His comments came after the ruling Civil Contract faction MPs voted against the candidacy of opposition Armenia faction MP Artur Ghazinyan for the post for the fourth time.
Abrahamyan said that the failure to appoint a deputy chair disrupts the activity of the Committee on Defense and Security.
“There is another aspect, too. It is unacceptable that the committee holds a meeting to discuss an issue, which has no significance for the public. There are priorities that have been set and presented during this period. They are related to the problems on the border, the concept of army reforms, as well as the situation on Goris-Kapan interstate road, but are not put on the agenda,” the lawmaker said.
He considers it inappropriate to constantly delay the appointment of the deputy chairman of the committee against the backdrop of such important issues.
“It goes to show that the authorities are deliberately disrupting the work of the committee,” Abrahamyan said.
Referring to the nomination of another candidate, the opposition MP noted that it’s not for the authorities to decide which candidate should be nominated by the opposition.
“At the moment we have decided to take a common position on the issue of candidates. We won’t be guided by the whims of the authorities,” he said, underlining that security issues are a priority for him.
Armenia secured the first medal at the World Military Boxing Championship in Moscow, the Boxing Federation of Armenia reported on Wednesday.
Armen Mashakaryan (69 kg), who defeated his Azerbaijani opponent in the first round, then beat his rival from Belarus in the 1/16 finals, faced Brazilian Luis Rodriguez in the 1/4 finals.
The Armenian boxer defeated his opponent in a fierce struggle to make it to the semifinals.
Incidentally, the Brazilian coaches have appealed the decision of the referees. If the decision remains unchanged, Mashakaryan will face Christian Medina Palacio of Venezuela.