Category: 2022

Critical level of terrorist threat introduced throughout Kazakhstan

Mike Maghakian
Public Radio of Armenia
Jan 8 2022
January 7, 2022, 11:06

 1 minute read

The authorities of Kazakhstan have introduced a critical “red” level of terrorist threat throughout the republic, press service of the National Security Committee (KNB) said on Friday, TASS reports.

The meeting of the republican task force for combating terrorism was held in Nur-Sultan led by Major General Yermek Sagimbaev, Chairman of the National Security Committee, on Jan 6. By order of the Chairman of the KNB, the head of task force in coordination with the President introduced a critical “red” level of terrorist danger throughout the territory of Kazakhstan. “An anti-terrorist operation regime is in effect in all regions,” the KNB said in a statement.

The red level of terrorist danger means authorities can conduct personal searches and inspections of belongings, vehicles, temporarily restrict or prohibit their movement; have unimpeded access to residential and other premises; take measures such as the monitoring of conversations and other information transmitted through telecommunications systems.

Mass protests started in Kazakhstan on Jan 2 in the western town of Zhanaozen after the government lifted price caps for liquefied petroleum gas. Protests then spread across the country, leading to the resignation of the government. Ex-president Nursultan Nazarbaev stepped down as Security Council Chairman.

Armenia and United States celebrate 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations

Jhanna Virabian
Public Radio of Armenia
Jan 8 2022
January 7, 2022, 17:22

 1 minute read

30 years ago, on January 7, 1992 Armenia and the United States formally established diplomatic relations, following President George Bush’s recognition of the Republic of Armenia two weeks earlier, in a historic address to the nation on December 25, 1991.

In his speech, President Bush talked about the collapse of the Soviet Union, the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and recognized the independence of a number of former Soviet Republics, including Armenia.

The United States recognized Armenia’s independence on December 25, 1991, when President George H.W. Bush announced the decision in an address to the nation regarding the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the US Embassy in Armenia reminds. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established.

US-Armenian relations go back much further. During the brief period of Armenia’s independence in 1918-1920, the United States recognized the independence of the Armenian Republic on April 23, 1920, when Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby delivered a note to the Representative of the Armenian Republic (Pasdermadjian) in Washington, informing him of President Woodrow Wilson’s decision.

The note specified that this recognition “in no way predetermines the territorial frontiers, which…are matters for later delimitation.”

The territory expected to compose the independent Armenian Republic previously had been under the sovereignty of the Ottoman and Russian Empires. At the request of the Paris Peace Conference’s Supreme Council of the Allied Powers, President Wilson arbitrated the boundary to be set between Armenia and Turkey, and submitted his determinations to the Supreme Council on November 22, 1920.

Prior to Wilson’s decisions, however, the territory expected to compose the Armenian Republic had been attacked by Turkish and Bolshevik troops. By the end of 1920 the Armenian Republic had ceased to exist as an independent state, with its territory either seized by Turkey or established as the Armenian Soviet Republic, which subsequently joined the Soviet Union.

Turkish, Armenian envoys to meet in Moscow next week

Karlen Baghdasarian
The Arab Weekly
Jan 7 2022
Turkey and Armenia also hope to resume charter flights between Istanbul and Yerevan.
Friday 07/01/2022

ANKARA –

Special envoys from Turkey and Armenia will hold their first meeting aimed at normalising ties on January 14 in Moscow, Turkey’s foreign ministry announced on Wednesday.

The two neighbours, which have no diplomatic relations, agreed last month to appoint special representatives who would discuss ways of re-establishing formal ties and end years of tense relations. Turkey and Armenia also hope to resume charter flights between Istanbul and Yerevan.

The move is seen as part of a drive to end tensions in the Caucasus region. It also springs from Turkey’s efforts at reconciliation with a number of countries it has fallen out with, including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia and thus to end its regional isolation.

A foreign ministry statement did not provide further details on the meeting to be held in Moscow. Turkey appointed Serdar Kilic, a former ambassador to the United States as its special representative while Armenia chose deputy parliamentary speaker Ruben Rubinyan.

Ankara and Yerevan had reached an agreement in 2009 to establish formal relations and to open their joint border, but the agreement was never ratified because of opposition from Azerbaijan.

This time around, however, the reconciliation efforts have Azerbaijan’s blessing and Turkish officials have said Ankara would “coordinate” the normalisation process with Azerbaijan.

Turkey, a close ally of Azerbaijan, shut down its border with Armenia in 1993, in a show of solidarity with Baku, which was locked in a conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

In 2020, Turkey strongly backed Azerbaijan in the six-week conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, which ended with a Russia-brokered peace deal that saw Azerbaijan gain control of a significant part of the disputed region.

Turkey and Armenia also have a more than century-old hostility over the deaths of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians in massacres, deportations and forced marches that began in 1915 in Ottoman Turkey. Historians widely view the event as genocide.

Turkey vehemently rejects the genocide label, conceding that many died in that era, but insisting that the death toll is inflated and the deaths resulted from civil unrest.

Secretary of the Security Council hopes CSTO to help Armenia if necessary

Varazdat Torgomian
 NEWS.am 
Armenia – Jan 7 2022
17:13, 07.01.2022

Secretary of the Security Council Armen Grigoryan hopes that if Armenia finds itself in a situation as in Kazakhstan, appropriate assistance will be provided.

His remarks came on the air of the Public Television of Armenia, referring to the decision to send Armenian troops to Kazakhstan.

He said that for the first time in history the mechanisms of the Collective Security Treaty Organization were applied and it was shown how it should work. He also said that Armenia is interested in CSTO response if a crisis arises in the future and based on this, Armenia has taken relevant steps.

When Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan received the application of the president of Kazakhstan consulted with the leaders of the CSTO member states, then, according to his assessment, there were not revolutionary actions in Kazakhstan, but terrorist attacks, people were armed. During consultations, the president of Kazakhstan, as well as the leaders of other CSTO member states, provided information in which they claimed that terrorist attacks were recorded. The decision to deploy troops was made by consensus of the leaders of all CSTO member states, the official said.

Tensions flare outside local government building in Armenia’s Parakar

Emil Lazarian
panorama.am
Armenia – Jan 7 2022

Tensions flared outside the local government building in Parakar, a rural community in Armenia’s Armavir Province, on Friday morning.

Scores of police forces deployed at the entrance to the building did not allow the supporters of the Aprelu Yerkir (Country to Live) party candidate to enter it as the new Council of Elders was to hold a session to elect a new community head.

"There is no solidarity," said Valodya Grigoryan, appointed as community head by the Aprelu Yerkir faction, and entered the village hall building without answering other questions.

Tensions arose in Parakar after the December 5 local elections, when two candidates announced that they had been elected head of the community.

The Aprelu Yerkir party won ten seats in the Council of Elders as a result of the elections and named its candidate, Valodya Grigoryan, as new head of the community.

Afterwards, the Davit Minasyan bloc and the ruling Civil Contract party jointed forces and elected Davit Minasyan as Parakar community head.

Grigoryan had to take an oath of office in the courtyard of the building on December 23, since police officers did not allow him to enter it.

Later the Administrative Court ruled to annul the appointment of the new community head.

Ex-Armenian POW Robert Nalbandyan released

Manouk Vasilian
panorama.am
Armenia – Jan 7 2022

Former Armenian prisoner of war (POW) Robert Nalbandyan, who was arrested in Armenia after returning from Azerbaijani captivity, was released on Friday, human rights activist Ruben Melikyan said.

"Our first client in the "POW case", Robert Nalbandyan, regained freedom today. He had been under arrest for 52 days; first in Azerbaijani prison and then in Armenian prison. Robert will now rejoin with his three minor children and try to recover from the injuries he sustained in Azerbaijan," Melikyan wrote on Facebook, sharing a photo with him.

According to the lawyer, given their sufferings in Azerbaijan, arrests of former captives in their home country should be ruled out.

Nalbandyan was taken captive during the November 16 clashes on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and later returned to Armenia, where he was accused of violating the rules of combat duty.

The time is to start the process of tightening the screw – Anzhela Elibegova

Emma Nadirian
panorama.am
Armenia – Jan 7 2022

Expert in Azerbaijan Anzhela Elibegova raises questions about the reaction and possible behavior of Azerbaijan regarding the developments in Kazakhstan. 

"Turkey has invested millions in the renaissance of Turkish identity in the Central Asia for decades. Even if the radicals are constrained today, they would rather go underground. The leaders of Kazakhstan would need to show necessary will and have the legitimacy to prevent that evolving network amid the total exclusion any interference from outside. Otherwise, that would come outside again in other places and times," Elibekova commented on Facebook. 

In this context, the expert questions the possible behavior of Azerbaijan. "While glorifying the idea of the Great Turan, Aliyev would hardly tolerate any uncontrollable element within his own country. Now, the time is to start the process of tightening the screw," the expert stressed. 

Lydian Armenia again applies for water use permit for the exploitation of Amulsar mine

Albert Nalbandian
panorama.am
Armenia – Jan 7 2022

The draft permission for Lydian Armenia CJSC to use water for Amulsar gold mine operation in excess of 41.3l/s from Arpa River is currently being developed at the Water Resources Management Agency of the Ministry of Environment (MOE). As the Ministry said a statement, the draft will be discussed on January 11 at 16:00 at the Government building.  

To remind, last time the Company sought permission to draw water from the Arpa River to support long term operations in 2021, which was denied by the MOE.

The Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh have received almost no support from the British Government – Caroline Cox

Emil Lazarian
panorama.am
Armenia – Jan 7 2022

Baroness Caroline Cox, member of the British House of Lords raised the current humanitarian situation the Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh face amid the ongoing Azerbaijani aggression. Her remarks came  during hearing on the topic of Refugees: Mass Displacement debated on January 6 in the House of Lords.  

"I turn briefly to Nagorno-Karabakh, where 80% of the historically Armenian enclave is now occupied by Azerbaijan. In 2020, more than 91,000 people fled to Armenia from Nagorno-Karabakh; 88% of them were women and children. More than 40,000 people were deprived of their homes in areas such as the Shushi and Hadrut regions, which are still under the occupation of the Azerbaijani armed forces," Baroness Cox said, adding: "I have had the painful privilege of visiting the region more than 85 times, during the wars in the 1990s and in 2020. Last September, I visited Syunik region in Armenia to witness the suffering caused by Azeri military incursions into Armenian territory, causing displacement of local villagers within Armenia itself. Countless refugees describe the anguish of the loss of loved ones, and Azerbaijan still violates the conditions of the 2020 ceasefire by detaining Armenian prisoners of war and civilians, and perpetrating atrocities, sometimes taking a prisoner’s phone to film horrendous activities, then sending the pictures back to their families."

In her words, refugees also describe the loss of livelihoods, agricultural lands, water resources, and other vital infrastructure. "Yet the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh have received almost no support from the British Government. The UN Secretary-General’s official spokesperson in May last year unequivocally indicated that it is Azerbaijan that, despite the calls of the international community, and the UN in particular, has not provided permission for unhindered humanitarian access in Nagorno-Karabakh, and that situation remains the same," she stressed. 

In conclusion, Caroline Cox called on the UK government to ensure the provision of urgent humanitarian assistance to thousands of Armenians displaced by war, suggesting the UK has failed to acknowledge, let alone address, the root causes of mass displacement. 

"Perpetrators have carried out atrocities with impunity. There has been no justice or support for victims and Toggle showing location ofColumn 723their families. I urge the Minister to give greater priority to the problems I have identified and to many others suffering in similar situations," Caroline Cox concluded. 

Food: Lesser-Known Armenian Dishes Get the Spotlight at This Glendale Strip Mall Find

Edgar Tavakalian
LA Eater – Los Angeles
Jan 7 2022

Vernatoun highlights Armenian dishes often cooked at home for families and guests

by Joshua Lurie  Jan 7, 2022, 1:01pm PST

Photos by Joshua Lurie

Depending on one’s preference, the Glendale strip mall on the corner of Central and Chevy Chase Avenues is mostly known for a branch of Papillon International Bakery or an outlet of Baskin-Robbins, the ice cream chain founded in this city back in 1945. In spring of 2021, Vernatoun restaurant and banquet hall opened in the back corner of the strip mall, serving some of the most compelling Armenian food in Glendale. With faux brick walls, burgundy-clothed tables, and a layout that accommodates banquets (a fairly common business model in the city), the menu leans on classic Armenian dishes executed for their target demographic: the largest Armenian community in the United States.

Armenian cuisine exists as part of a diaspora, since the country’s people spread across the Caucasus, Mediterranean, Middle East, and elsewhere to escape atrocities that Turkey perpetrated upon the Armenian people beginning in 1915. Restaurateurs who have reached Los Angeles to start businesses often incorporate influences from intervening generations spent in countries like Russia, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and Greece.

Vernatoun’s kitchen manager Valog Vartanyan grew up in Tehran; his grandfathers escaped persecution in Armenia and moved to Iran before he was born. Vartanyan has lived in LA for 12 years. He previously cooked at another Armenian restaurant in Glendale that closed due to the pandemic before joining Vernatoun, whose owner and general manager hail from Yerevan, Armenia’s capital.