Category: 2022

The Armenian parliament leadership is set to discuss the ouster of opposition lawmakers boycotting parliament sessions on Thursday, July 14.

At a meeting of the National Assembly Council, the ruling Civil Contract faction MPs will decide whether to apply to the Constitutional Court to strip all 29 deputies from the Hayastan faction and four others representing the Pativ Unem faction of their seats.

Pativ Unem’s Taguhi Tovmasyan and independent MP Ishkhan Zakaryan, who quitted the faction in 2021, are not among the deputies.

Environmental activist and journalist Tehmine Yenokyan has alerted about murder attempts against her and her mother.

She said unknown assailants fired a shot at her home on 29 June, damaging the window of the living room. The bullet penetrated the house.

“I called the police, officers of the Nor Nork police department visited our apartment and took the shell with them. The crimes committed against me and my family do not end there because the law enforcement agencies failed to take effective measures,” she wrote on Facebook.

“On 12 July, at around 12:50am, a second gunshot was fired at my living room window, as a result of which the window glass was broken again, and the fired shell entered our living room, damaging the ceiling and the wall. I immediately called the police again,” the activist said.

She added that the front door of her house was set on fire earlier in March.

“Police describe all these actions as property damage, not crimes against my life. I believe these crimes are part of a single chain targeted at me and my family and committed at the same location. Two consecutive shots at my living room can’t be a coincidence,” Yenokyan said.

“In both cases, at the time of the shooting, my mother and I were in our apartment, and those shots could have caused our death; the fact that we survived was merely a matter of luck. In other words, assassination attempts continue to be made against me and my mother.

“The competent agency must launch a probe into a crime against life and health, not just property damage.

“On the occasion of the incident, we have appealed to Armenia’s chief prosecutor and police chief with the request to conduct a proper legal assessment and effective investigation,” she noted.

The police have told Panorama.am an investigation is underway.

Tigran Abrahamyan, an MP representing the opposition Pativ Unem faction, on Wednesday dismissed the “army reforms” touted by the authorities, claiming they are actually aimed at removing skilled officers.

He recalled the fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in the Tavush border area in July 2020, saying it could have escalated into large-scale hostilities if not for skilled military personnel. He praised General Grigory Khachaturov for his role in stopping the Azerbaijani attacks.

“The leader of the most combat-ready army corps, Grigory Khachaturov, proved himself as an accomplished commander who "intercepted" the plans of the enemy and dictated the rules of the game on the battlefield,” Abrahamyan wrote on Facebook on Tuesday.

“Naturally, the authorities did not forgive Khachaturov whose reputation grew as a victorious commander, and did not extend his term of service.

"The so called “reforms" in the army started back when commanders of various ranks were forced to quit the military amid the trap set by the authorities,” the MP said.

Turkey has started demining a border area with Armenia, Ermenihaber reports, citing GazeteKars.

As the citizens of Kars are waiting for the opening of the Dogu Kapi border crossing, they have discovered that an Israeli company has begun demining the Armenian-Turkish border.

Mine clearance in the countryside of the village of Ibiş in Kars have been ongoing for around 20 days, the media outlet said.

No official reports have been released on that effect yet.

The U.S. House Rules Committee cleared the path for full House consideration of four ANCA-backed amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA – H.R.7900) that call for Azerbaijan’s immediate release of Armenian POWs, require U.S. State Department reports on Azerbaijani war crimes, and place conditions on the proposed sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, ANCA reported.

The amendments may be voted on individually or grouped in “blocs” and voted upon during House consideration of the NDAA, which may begin as early as this Wednesday evening, July 13th.

Pro-Artsakh/Armenia advocates can write, call, and tweet their U.S. Representatives to vote for the amendment by visiting anca.org/ndaa.

“We would like to thank Chairman McGovern for his leadership of the Rules Committee and to express our appreciation to the authors, cosponsors, and all those – in our community and among our coalition partners – who helped bring these ANCA-backed amendments to the U.S. House floor,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “We will, in the coming days, strongly back each of these amendments holding Azerbaijan and Turkey accountable – rallying bipartisan support for their passage and ultimate enactment into law.”

The four pro-Artsakh/Armenia amendments to be voted on by the U.S. House are provided below (amendment numbers may change during final House votes on the measures):

Amendment #611 (formerly #698): Introduced by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), the amendment expresses the sense of Congress that the government of Azerbaijan should immediately return all Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians. Joining Rep. Schiff as Congressional cosponsors of the bipartisan amendment include Representatives Don Beyer (D-VA), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Tony Cardenas (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Young Kim (R-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), Andy Levin (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and David Valadao (R-CA).

Amendment #121 (formerly #837): Spearheaded by Representatives Tony Cardenas (D-CA) and Brad Sherman (D-CA), the amendment calls for a report by the State Department and Defense Department that would detail the use of U.S. parts in Turkish drones used by Azerbaijan against Armenia and Artsakh; Azerbaijan’s use of white phosphorous, cluster bombs and other prohibited munitions deployed against Artsakh; Turkey’s and Azerbaijan’s recruitment of foreign terrorist fighters during the 2020 Artsakh war. Joining Representatives Tony Cardenas (D-CA) and Brad Sherman (D-CA) as Congressional cosponsors of the bipartisan amendment include Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Judy Chu (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Andy Levin (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and David Valadao (R-CA).

Amendment #337 (formerly #992): Introduced by Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA), the amendment directs the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of State, to document details of the waiver requirements to Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act and report on whether security assistance to the government of Azerbaijan undermines efforts toward a peaceful settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Joining Rep. Speier as congressional cosponsors of the bi-partisan measure include Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Dina Titus (D-NV), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and David Valadao (R-CA).

Amendment #399 (formerly #478): Led by Representatives Chris Pappas (D-NH) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), the amendment would place conditions upon the sale or transfer of F-16s or F-16 modernization kits to Turkey. Joining Representatives Pappas and Bilirakis as co-sponsors of the bipartisan measure are Representatives David Cicilline (D-RI), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), James Langevin (D-RI), Andy Levin (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Grace Meng (D-NY), Frank Pallone (D-NJ), John Sarbanes (D-MD), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV). A similar amendment, #208, was withdrawn prior to consideration by the Rules Committee.

Over the past weeks, in addition to nationwide grassroots call and twitter campaigns, the ANCA Leo Sarkisian, Maral Melkonian Avetisyan, and Hovig Apo Saghdejian Capital Gateway Program summer interns and fellows have joined Hamparian and ANCA Government Affairs Director Tereza Yerimyan in advocating for these pro-Artsakh/Armenia priorities in legislative briefings for over one hundred Congressional offices, in addition to a broader office-by-office outreach campaign. The efforts will continue through full U.S. House consideration of the measures.

No progress has been made in the negotiations on the construction of a new nuclear plant in Armenia, while Russian billionaire Roman Trotsenko, owner of the GeoProMining Gold LLC who announced plans to join its construction, seems to “have gone into hiding”, Pastinfo reports.

Nikol Pashinyan met with General Director of Rosatom Corporation Alexey Likhachev on Tuesday. According to a statement released by the prime minister’s office, the interlocutors discussed issues related to the further operation of the second power bloc of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant (ANPP), the possibilities of building a new nuclear power plant in Armenia, the development of nuclear energy as well as the cooperation in the field of renewable energy.

Incidentally, earlier in 2021 Pashinyan said “negotiations” were underway over the construction of a new nuclear plant, thus attempting to “smooth over” the corruption scandal related to the Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine (ZCMC) transaction.

On September 30, 2021, Industrial Company JSC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Roman Trotsenko's GeoProMining, mysteriously acquired 60% of the ZCMC shares and promptly donated a quarter of that stake to the Armenian government. The granted 25% of the shares make up 15% of the ZCMC equity. Trotsenko’s company acquired the shares immediately after they were unfrozen by an Armenian court. The government has not revealed how Trotsenko became the recipient of the stake or the sum paid by him.

Speaking about the corruption scandal in the parliament in October 2021, Nikol Pashinyan said that "Armenia received a proposal from one of the GeoProMining owners which was discussed and they came to the conclusion that it meets the economic and state interests of Armenia.”

"This includes two very important components: the first is the construction of a copper smelter. Second, the construction of a new nuclear power plant is part of the program. GeoProMining LLC has undertaken investment commitments for the establishment of a copper smelter, which has been duly recorded, and talks on the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia have already started,” Pashinyan said.

Roman Trotsenko also announced the corporation's plans to support the construction of a new nuclear plant in Armenia.

Likhachev confirmed back in November 2021 that Trotsenko was interested in new power sources in view of his new industrial projects in Armenia.

"It’s known that Mr. Trotsenko has, as they call it, dropped anchor here," Likhachev said on Nov. 16, 2021.

“Several months have passed since that statement, but not only haven’t the negotiations on a new nuclear power plant taken shape, but also the fervor of the statements has diminished. Nikol Pashinyan no longer speaks about the progress or the results of negotiations on the construction of a new nuclear power plant, saying only such a possibility is being discussed. While Trotsenko, who promised billions in investments, no longer appears on the scene. It seems that the promises given to each other remain unfulfilled. Trotsenko was not present at yesterday's meeting of Likhachev and Pashinyan,” Pastinfo says.