Category: 2022

Amir-Abdollahian: Iran supports peaceful settlement of Karabakh conflict based on intl. law

Aram Torosian
PRESS TV, Iran
July 4 2022
Monday, 04 July 2022 12:44 PM

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has reiterated Tehran’s support for the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict based on principles of the international law.

"In today's talks, the issue of the territorial integrity of countries, including the Republic of Azerbaijan, was once again emphasized by us. We also reaffirmed our support for the peaceful settlement of the ongoing Karabakh conflict based on the well-known principles of the international law,"  Amir-Abdollahian said at a joint press conference with the visiting Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov in Tehran on Monday.

“Since the beginning of the Karabakh dispute, the Islamic Republic has always declared its readiness to help resolve the conflict through dialogue. We are still ready to continue our support and assistance in this regard, so that the remaining issues would be resolved on the basis of respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the involved parties and through political dialogue,” he added.

According to reports, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azeri President Ilham Aliyev announced last month that their respective countries would be setting up border security and delimitation commissions, signaling a step towards the settlement of a decades-long conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Tensions between Yerevan and Baku remain high more than a year after the arch-foes fought a war over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The six-week conflict, which claimed more than 6,500 lives on both sides, ended in November 2020 with a Russian-brokered deal that left Azerbaijan largely in control of the territory.

Raeisi: Regional states must cooperate to prevent Israeli intrusion

Iran’s President Raeisi says regional nations must prevent the Israeli regime from intruding into the region.

Also in his remarks, Amir-Abdollahian said the Islamic Republic of Iran and Azerbaijan have cleared up all previous misunderstandings between the two neighboring Muslim countries.

Tension broke out between Tehran and Baku in October 2021 after the Iranian foreign minister issued a warning concerning certain provocations by the Israeli regime near Iran’s borders with Azerbaijan.

The regime, he said, had used the flare-up of the latest tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2020 to establish a presence in parts of Azerbaijan.

Tensions started to flare up after Azerbaijan’s president criticized military exercises by the Iranian Army’s Ground Forces in the northwestern part of the country. Tehran hit back by saying that holding drills is part of the national sovereignty, warning that Israel’s anti-Iran activities in neighboring countries will not be tolerated.

But later Azerbaijan released the two Iranian truck drivers whose arrest had strained ties between Baku and Tehran.

The move marked a thaw between the two countries a week after their foreign ministers agreed to resolve the issue through dialogue.

Amir-Abdollahian: Having cleared up misunderstandings, Tehran and Baku determined to promote ties

The Iranian foreign minister says Iran and Azerbaijan are determined to improve relations.

Elsewhere in his Monday remarks, Amir-Abdollahian touched on the promotion of bilateral ties and said that the volume of their bilateral trade has increased dramatically in the past months.

“Over the past 10 months, we have clarified misunderstandings and we are in the phase of the promotion of increasing relations,” he said. 

He added that the volume of trade between the two countries has witnessed a big jump in the past months, and expressed hope that the two countries’ public and private sectors will take further steps toward increasing the volume of bilateral trade.

“During today's negotiations, a wide range of bilateral issues were thoroughly discussed and relevant viewpoints exchanged. As you know, the presidents of the two countries have had two one-on-one meetings in the last 10 months. During the meetings, especially in last week's meeting between Ilham Aliyev and [his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim] Raeisi, constructive and forward-looking talks on a new phase of mutual ties between the two countries were held,” Amir-Abdollahian said.

“We stressed the need for deepening the relations between the two countries on the basis of understanding, trust and mutual interests,” the Iranian foreign minister added.

Iran, Azerbaijan stress need to resolve issues through dialogue, cooperation

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Azerbaijani counterpart have in a phone conversation stressed the need for the resolution of recent issues between Baku and Tehran through dialogue and cooperation.

The top Iranian diplomat stressed that various existing diplomatic formats between two or more countries should be seriously taken into consideration given unfolding developments and new conditions.

Amir-Abdollahian went on to note that he had tabled a proposal on hosting a tripartite foreign ministerial meeting between Iran, Azerbaijan and Turkey in Tehran during his last week meeting with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara.

Iran, Azerbaijan oppose foreign interference in regional affairs

Iran and Azerbaijan voice opposition to the meddling of foreign players in the region.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he said that energy and transit are two important issues concerning economic cooperation between Iran and Azerbaijan, stating that Iranian Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian is going to visit Baku later this week to discuss steps aimed at bringing Khoda Afarin Dam into operation as summer heat is coming.

“Agreements on synchronization of power grids as well as electronic power networks between the two countries will be finalized during the Iranian energy minister’s visit,” Amir-Abdollahian said.

He said discussions were also held with his Azerbaijani counterpart on the pollution of the Aras River, stressing that the roots of the contamination have been identified both in Iran and Azerbaijan.

Amir-Abdollahian also extended the Iranian president’s invitation to Aliyev to visit Tehran, emphasizing that consultations are underway to determine the timing of the trip.

Azerbaijan keen to promote ties with Iran

Bayramov, for his part, said that he had fruitful talks with Iranian officials during Monday’s talks on matters of mutual interest as well as regional issues.

“Our bilateral trade volume grew by 30% last year,” the Azerbaijani foreign minister pointed out. He, however, noted that Tehran and Baku needed to further bolster ties as they enjoy great economic and trade potential. 

He also said that his country has reached an argument with Iran to make joint cars and tractors, adding that cooperation on building dams and power plants is also among top priorities for the two neighbors.   

Hurghada receives first flight from Armenia

Nyrie Kalashian
July 4 2022
 Egypt IndependentJuly 4, 2022

On Sunday, Hurghada International Airport received its first flight from the Yerevan airport in Armenia via “Fly Arna” airlines.

Two flights are scheduled from Yerevan airport per week to Hurghada.

The airport staff distributed roses and chocolates to the tourists coming on the flight.

Hurghada International Airport in the Red Sea Governorate received on Sunday 86 regular and charter flights from various European airports, carrying about 12,000 European tourists.

The Red Sea Governorate, specifically Hurghada, has become the most prominent destination for German, British, Polish and Romanian tourists due to the high level of services of its hotels.

Hotels are witnessing a rise in occupancy rates since the beginning of June, as the summer holiday season started.

Confirmed reservations in Hurghada hotels as well indicate great domestic demand from Egyptians.

The tourism sector in Egypt is making unremitting efforts to restore tourist flows from the most important exporting markets for tourism, led by Russia, whose incoming movement has been affected by the war between Russia and Ukraine since February.

https://egyptindependent.com/hurghada-receives-first-flight-from-armenia/

Who Has Effective Control in Azerbaijan’s Karabakh Region?

Maral Takmazian
EJIL: TALK!
Blog of the European Journal of International Law
July 4 2022
Written by Nurlan Mustafayev

Following the so-called “44-Day War” between Armenia and Azerbaijan in late 2020, the conflicting parties continue several legal battles before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), alleging various violations of international law. The war saw Azerbaijan liberate a significant part of its territories under Armenia’s three-decade-long occupation, except for parts of its Karabakh region now temporarily stationed by a Russian peacekeeping force under an armistice agreement. The new physical reality on the ground created a novel international legal situation regarding extra-territorial jurisdiction and state responsibility. An important legal issue is whether Armenia or Russia or both bear responsibility for international law violations (e.g., continuing military occupation, denial of former residents’ right to property, security, movement, etc.) in Karabakh by virtue of their effective control under the European Convention on Human Rights? Are the new facts on the ground sufficient to change the ECtHR’s landmark judgment in Chiragov and Others v. Armenia?

Effective Control in Karabakh before 2020

Since the 1991-1994 war, Armenia’s military occupation and effective control over Azerbaijan’s Upper Karabakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) region and adjacent seven districts (“Occupied Territories”) has been unequivocally established, among others, by the United Nations Security Council and the General Assembly, the Council of Europe, the European Parliament and other international organizations. On top of this, the ECtHR in the landmark case of Chiragov and Others v. Armenia concerning the displacement of six Azerbaijani-Kurdish families confirmed Armenia’s effective control and its overall state responsibility for human rights violations in the Occupied Territories.  

In this case, the ECtHR developed the influential Chiragov test (or ‘high integration’ test) and held that Armenia had a decisive military presence and a high level of integration of Armenia’s military, economic, political, and legal spheres and the local administration in the Occupied Territories.  In other words, the installed local regime in the Occupied Territories survive by virtue of Armenia’s extensive and decisive support (§ 180 & 186).  The court followed the same approach in the subsequent cases of Zalyan and Others v. Armenia and Muradyan v. Armenia concerning injuries suffered by Armenian servicemen during their military service in the Occupied Territories.

In summary, from 1992 to 2021, Armenia, by exercising extra-territorial jurisdiction (effective control) over the whole Occupied Territories, has had overall state responsibility for human rights violations under the European Convention on Human Rights (European Convention).  These human rights pertain to almost a million Azerbaijanis displaced as a result of Armenia’s military occupation, including their right to property, security, movement, education, religion, etc., in the previously Armenia-occupied territories.   

Effective Control in Karabakh after 2020 

First, the “44-Day War” revealed the total inadequacy of the ECtHR’s traditional effective control test by revealing an extensive scale of Armenia’s armed forces in the Occupied Territories underappreciated by the ECtHR’s earlier decisions in the Chiragov, Zalyan and Muradyan cases. For instance, the reports by Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and Military-affairs blog Oryx revealed Armenia’s loss of a massive number of military hardware, e.g., hundreds of tanks, artillery systems, and air defense systems in the war.  In addition, Armenia’s acknowledged number of casualties, over 4,000 killed and 11,000 wounded soldiers and 25,000 surrounded soldiers in Karabakh indicate that Armenia had about 40-45 thousand soldiers (out of its total 52,000 active personnel as per IISS) in the Occupied Territories. In this author’s view, it can confidently be inferred from these emergent data that Armenia had from eighty to ninety percent (80-90%) of its overall armed forces in the Occupied Territories unaccounted for in the Court’s previous decisions. The noticeable gap between Armenia’s boots on the ground and the ECtHR’s inadequate legal assessment will require revisiting its traditional effective control test and evidentiary standards in the ongoing inter-State cases.

Notably, the “44-Day War” and the subsequent armistice agreement dated 10 November 2020 (“Armistice Agreement”) have brought three important legal consequences: first, Azerbaijan liberated a significant part of its Occupied Territories from Armenia’s effective control, except for parts of its Karabakh region; second, a Russia’s peacekeeping force was introduced to the designated areas in Karabakh; and third, a joint Russia-Turkish Monitoring Center was created in the Azerbaijani city of Agdam to supervise the ceasefire.  Since Azerbaijan does not exercise jurisdiction over parts of its Karabakh region yet, a legal assessment of which country has effective control will become paramount for the European Convention.

Russian “Peacekeeping” or “Keeping in Pieces”? 

Under Article 3 of the Armistice Agreement, Russia’s peacekeeping force of 1,960 personnel with small arms was introduced into a well-delineated ‘zone of responsibility’ in Karabakh and the Lachin pathway, connecting ethnic Karabakh Armenians and Armenia.  In addition, it is allowed to have 90 armored personnel carriers and 380 vehicles and special equipment units.  It currently operates 27 checkpoints in the area, conducts daily patrols, reports ceasefire violations, and provides security escorts to convoys and some humanitarian aid to the local population.  Together with its auxiliary support, the overall number of Russian forces is estimated to be around 4,000.

There is a lot of uncertainty about the exact responsibilities of the Russian peacekeeping force.  Without a UN or regional mandate, the open-ended provisions in the Armistice Agreement leave its activities subject to misinterpretations and overstretch.  Initially intended as a security umbrella for the ethnic Armenian civilians in Karabakh in the interim period, the Russian peacekeeping force’s role has morphed into securing a ceasefire between the two armies in and around its “zone of responsibility” in Karabakh in the face of Armenia’s army incomplete withdrawal.

The ECtHR encountered a similar question regarding the role of Russia’s peacekeeping force in Moldova’s Transnistria and Georgia’s South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions.  The court, in its recent the Georgia v. Russia (II) case, applied several criteria, namely, the number of Russian military bases, soldiers, and hardware for total inhabitants, and its economic and financial support, dependence and subordination, border protection, dual citizenship of key local officials, etc. (§ 162-175) and concluded that a Russian force has effective control over these regions.  

By way of applying these criteria to Azerbaijan’s case, while Russia has a sizable military force in Karabakh with total inhabitants of about fifty thousand, unlike in the Georgian case, it has not exceeded the threshold of military occupation.  Secondly, there are no significant economic, financial, and other forms of dependence of the region on Russia yet.  As of now, it remains unclear whether Russia’s sole military presence would compensate for the lack of other levers of control in Karabakh for the purposes of the European Convention.  This highly contextual question requires assessing Armenia’s continuing military and other roles in Karabakh as well.

Armenia’s Continuing Effective Control?

While the UN Security Council resolutions and the Armistice Agreement envisage the “withdrawal of Armenian armed forces” (Article 4), this process seems incomplete or reorganized into a different shape in practice.  According to the International Crisis Group’s new report, about a 12,000-strong Armenian army still remain in Karabakh after Armenia has reportedly withdrawn its main forces and most of the heavy weaponry deployed against Azerbaijan during the war.  The International Crisis Group’s earlier reports found that “Armenian and de facto Armenian-Karabakh military forces are intertwined, with Armenia providing all logistical and financial support, as well as ammunition and other types of military equipment.”

Thus, in the post-war period, there is no indication that Armenia severed its military, financial, political, and logistical integration with the local regime and military formations in Karabakh in the post-war period; on the contrary, the multidimensional dependence (integration), as previously established in the Chiragov, Muradyan and Zalyan cases, has increased more than ever.  For instance, Armenia’s return of the previously occupied districts rich with agricultural, water, and energy resources under the Armistice Agreement, made the local administration in Karabakh even more dependent on Armenia.  Accordingly, Armenia’s annual support has dramatically increased, providing up to 300 million US Dollars to the local regime’s operations in Karabakh, an increase of 50 percent compared to the pre-2020 era.  It pays for salaries, pensions, utilities, infrastructure, local programs, and other undeclared activities (arguably, military operations).

In the post-war period, there are also numerous reports about Armenia’s regular and covert dispatch of the conscripts and contract soldiers to Karabakh through the Lachin passway now controlled by Russia – a friction point between Azerbaijan and Russia.  On top of this, since March 2022, the Russian peacekeepers started describing their contacts “with the Azerbaijani and Armenia’s General Staffs” as necessary to ensure the safety of Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh.  suggesting Armenia’s direction over local military units – the so-called “Artsakh Defense Army.”

Conclusion

Despite the presence of Russia’s peacekeeping force, the post-war cumulative facts indicate that Armenia’s decisive military and non-military presence in Karabakh has dramatically increased compared to the pre-war period, reinforcing the Chiragov judgment.

Militarily, Armenia, through its 12,000-strong army units in Karabakh, formally reorganized as the local “Artsakh Defense Army,” still exercises control over the region for the purposes of the European Convention.  Arguably, these units are a simple continuation of Armenia’s Armed Forces for all intent and purposes.  In this context, Russia’s limited military force in Karabakh cannot be assessed as exercising effective control over this territory.  However, their high-level decision-making coordination in retaining Armenia’s control cannot be excluded.    

Second, the region’s economic, financial, logistical, and political subordination to Armenia considerably deepened in the post-war period.  Since 2020, Armenia has kept spending and investing more significant resources in Karabakh than ever before during the history of its military occupation, without which a local administration would not be able to survive and operate.  

Overall, in this author’s view, despite the territorial reduction of Armenia’s control over the previously occupied territories of Azerbaijan, it continues to exercise effective control over parts of Karabakh for the purposes of the European Convention and international law. As a result, the UN Security Council Resolution # 822 still remains unimplemented by Armenia.

Nurlan Mustafayev is a counsel on international legal affairs and instructor on public international law at Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. Views expressed in this blog post are personal…

Turkish Press: Türkiye offers Armenia to host normalisation talks in Yerevan

Meline Chalian
Turkey – July 4 2022

Türkiye had offered Armenia to host the first round of normalisation talks between the two countries in the Armenian capital Yerevan, the Turkish foreign minister said.

“We made an offer to Armenia, saying that we can have the first meeting in Yerevan, but Armenia is not ready for this yet due to domestic pressure,” Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday in a joint news conference of foreign and interior ministers of Türkiye and Austria in the capital Ankara.

Cavusoglu said that the Armenian diaspora was divided over the Turkish-Armenian normalisation process, adding that there were some protests by extremist groups on Armenian streets.

“We thank Austria (for hosting the normalisation talks), but why shouldn't the next meetings be held in Türkiye or Armenia?” he questioned.

The Turkish foreign minister also reiterated that his country is in consultation with Azerbaijan at every stage regarding the normalisation process.

“After all, we want to continue the process gradually,” Cavusoglu said.

“On the other hand, we support the normalisation between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he added.

READ MORE: Turkiye, Armenia hold first meeting in years to normalise ties

Opposition MP resigns from Armenian parliament

Janet Ekmekjian
PanARMENIAN
Armenia – July 4 2022

July 4, 2022 – 13:53 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Lawmaker from the opposition Armenia bloc Artur Ghazinyan is resigning due to "current political arrangements".

"I have decided to resign from parliament. I consider it the most accurate and justified decision in the current situation," Ghazinyan said on social media Monday, July 4.

"I don't want to talk about the reasons now. They are exclusively political and tactical in nature. I can only say that I can no longer imagine my future work with any agenda in the National Assembly."

He noted, however, that the Resistance movement demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is the only platform that can prevent "treachery and concessions".

Earlier, MP Armen Gevorgyan from Armenia bloc resigned as the chairman of the parliament's Committee on Regional and Eurasian Integration, while the ruling Civil Contract party sacked parliament Vice Speaker Ishkhan Saghatelyan and Chairman of the Committee on Economic Affairs Vahe Hakobyan – both of them from Armenia bloc.

Rules of conduct to follow by all Armenian public servants adopted and presented in Yerevan

Bedik Zaminian
Public Radio of Armenia
Armenia – July 4 2022

The Model Code of Conduct for Public Servants developed and adopted with the support of the Council of Europe was presented today at a high-level conference in Yerevan. Based on the model rules, specific Codes of Conduct for all Armenian public institutions will be developed and adopted. The conference signalled the launch of this process. 

The “High-level Conference on the Model Code of Conduct for Public Servants in Armenia” was jointly organised by the Council of Europe and the Corruption Prevention Commission of the Republic of Armenia, in the framework of the European Union and Council of Europe Partnership for Good Governance II (PGGII) Project on “Strengthening institutional capacities to fight and prevent corruption in Armenia”.

The development and promotion of the Model Code of Conduct, as well as the preparation of the respective guidance has been envisaged in the Armenian Public Service Law as part of the Corruption Prevention Commission’s responsibility. Furthermore, the adoption of codes of conduct for public officials is one of the recommended actions by the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) as a measure towards enhancing integrity of public officials.

The Model Code of Conduct for Public Servants in Armenia is part of the tangible results of the co-operation between the Corruption Prevention Commission of Armenia (CPC) and the PGGII Project and the result of a long process which begun in 2021 and included a public conference on corruption prevention, integrity and codes of conduct in February 2022, as well as other forms of interaction with the stakeholders through the national consultation process, the outcomes of which were taken into account in the final version of the Model Code. 

The purpose of today’s event was to present the Model Code as officially endorsed at  high level of the Armenian government, highlight its essential role in the development of the corruption prevention system of Armenia, and promote the next steps, namely the adoption of specific codes of conduct by all institutions, as well as associated guidance and training on effective implementation of the rules and more systematic promotion of ethical practices at all levels of public service. The PGGII project will continue supporting the Armenian authorities on this path.

The Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia, the Ambassador of the European Union to Armenia, and the Executive Secretary of GRECO and Head of the Action against Economic Crime Department of the Council of Europe delivered keynote speeches at the event. The importance of Codes of Ethics for public officials in preventing and fighting corruption was highlighted by the keynote speakers. Minister of Justice Karen Andreasyan expressed Armenia’s strong commitment to progress further towards an effective anti-corruption system in line with European standards and to address pending GRECO recommendations in this regard. European Union Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin and GRECO Executive Secretary and Head of Council of Europe Action against Economic Crime Department Hanne Juncher encouraged Armenian authorities to continue to take concrete steps in this direction and renewed the commitment of the Council of Europe and the EU to continue to support Armenia in this endeavour.

Corruption Prevention Commission Chair Haykuhi Harutyunyan presented the main elements of the newly adopted Model Code and the next steps required for its adaptation and adoption by public institutions at all levels, as well as related guidance and training.     

Participants of the event, including over sixty representatives of public authorities and civil society, also learned about good practices and practical challenges faced by other countries in the adoption and implementation of rules and codes of conduct for public officials. The Deputy Minister of Justice of Albania shared her country’s experience in this regard. 

A forward-looking discussion followed these interventions, focusing on practical implementation modalities of the adopted Model Code, and its integration with other anti-corruption mechanisms in order to strengthen the overall system, with the ultimate aim to induce a progressive positive change of culture and mentality in the Armenian society as a whole.  

This activity was organised in the framework of the Project on “Strengthening institutional capacities to fight and prevent corruption in Armenia” which is funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe in their Partnership for Good Governance II.



If we give in to emotions, the result will be a social tragedy- Pashinyan

Jack Hunanian
ARMINFO
Armenia – July 1 2022
Alexandr Avanesov

ArmInfo. It is very difficult to overestimate the importance of the prosecutor's office as a state institution in the institutionalization of the state and ensuring  legal security.  RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this on  July 1 at a solemn meeting dedicated to the 104th anniversary of the  formation of the Prosecutor's Office and the Day of the Prosecutor's  Office, the press service of the government reports.

During the meeting, which was also attended by Acting Prosecutor  General Artur Davtyan, newly elected RA Prosecutor General Anna  Vardapetyan and representatives of the Prosecutor's Office, the head  of the Armenian government stressed that the Prosecutor General's  Office is perceived as the pinnacle, the culmination of the  preliminary investigation. <And I should emphasize the importance of  this role, because the other bodies involved in the preliminary  investigation, in fact, mostly operate behind the scenes, and the  prosecutor's office is the body that accepts the formed accusation  and defends this accusation in court, most often in open court  hearings. And if the prosecutor's office referred the accusation to  the court, it means that this accusation should be crowned with a  specific punishment, a specific verdict>, Pashinyan emphasized.

He noticed that behind every criminal case there are people, a human,  family tragedy. <But I want to emphasize the importance of this fact.   It is very important to be able to fundamentally, faithfully and  consistently follow the law in the presence of all these emotional  factors. Because if we give in to emotions over each of the human  tragedies, the result will be a public tragedy>, the Prime Minister  emphasized.

At the same time, Pashinyan noted that the principle of the  inevitability of punishment is the most important factor in the  formation of the state. <A few unpunished cases will indirectly or  directly and unfairly affect others. And in this regard, I want to  emphasize that yes, the prosecutor's office was established as an  institution, but I really like the idea that the law, as well as  criminal law, is an evolving process, and we must definitely follow  this, comply with this process and be able to comply the requirements  of the time. And we are following this path>, the head of government  emphasized.

Speaking about the statistics of arrests presented by the Prosecutor  General's Office, the prime minister pointed to half-empty prisons as  an important achievement. "But at the same time, we recorded that it  is difficult to conduct a preliminary investigation in Armenia if the  accused is not detained. When talking about the development of law  and legal thought, the most important criterion for me is the  effectiveness of the investigation, and, as a result, the  inevitability of punishment, in conditions where the accused is not  in custody. This is, of course, the most important question in my  layman's opinion, when it is possible to conduct an investigation  while the accused is at large as effectively as in the case of his  detention. Of course, it is clear that there are cases when the  arrest directly follows from the interests and the need for a  preliminary investigation. I give this example in order to emphasize  the direction in which we are moving today, including the government,  which bears the main responsibility for the policy being developed  and implemented," Pashinyan said.

The head of government also stressed the importance of the  anti-corruption fight and the effectiveness of the public  administration system. "We talk a lot about the fight against  corruption, which is of political importance to us, including in  terms of increasing the strength and effectiveness of the fight  against corruption in the law enforcement system. It is extremely  important for us to strengthen the law enforcement system as a whole,  as well as social guarantees for prosecutors, because this is a  really important factor. The point is not at all in mercantile or  material interests, but in the fact that we must give the  investigator, prosecutor, policeman and, in general, all employees of  state institutions the opportunity to focus on their work. Social  security, from my point of view, is to allow, first of all, to focus  on work. Of course, this issue is always at the center of our  attention, and we must consistently be able to follow this path. Why  are our wages so low? Because the state, due to circumstances known  to you and to us, is often unable to consolidate the resources of the  entire state, which should be concentrated in the state budget. In  other words, if we talk about corruption, they are a brake that does  not allow funds that should be concentrated in the state budget to be  concentrated in the state budget. Therefore, the fight against  corruption is the most important way to generate the necessary funds  to support our public spending, including the social security system  of the state and the law enforcement system>, the Prime Minister  stressed.

He also pointed out the need to improve the efficiency of the public  administration system. "Of course, the prosecutor's office in this  sense is perhaps one of the most compact state institutions, but one  must take into account the overall efficiency of work. Although in  many cases, including in the work of individual divisions of the  prosecutor's office, we see that sometimes there is a need to attract  new resources, for example, in the process of preliminary  investigation. Because when we talk about an increase in the number  of criminal cases, we often forget that the same number of people  with the same salary investigate this volume or deal with this volume  of cases.

I say all this in order to record that we are clearly aware of the  existing agenda, and the solution of this agenda is, of course, a  priority for us. I should repeat that all the problems that we have  are related to the degree of development of our state institutions.  Where we have a shortcoming, we must look for this shortcoming in all  state institutions, from the army, armed forces and ending with  ministries, departments and local governments. And, of course, the  basis of all this must be sought in education and the education  system, starting with primary, general, higher and postgraduate  education>, Pashinyan stressed.

He added that no matter how difficult the work of the prosecutor, no  matter how difficult it was before the war and well-known events, it  is even more difficult after it, due to well-known circumstances,  because new emotions have been added to emotions, many new tragedies.

It should be noted that on the occasion of the Day of the  Prosecutor's Office, by the decree of the President of Armenia, a  number of employees of the Prosecutor's Office were awarded state  awards for their contribution to strengthening law and order, which  were presented to them by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Analyst: Artsakh is not an exception in the general diplomatic gap between Russia and the West

Emil Lazarian
ARMINFO
Armenia – July 1 2022
David Stepanyan

ArmInfo. The problem of Nagorno-Karabakh is not an exception in the general diplomatic gap between the Russian Federation and the West. A similar opinion was  expressed to ArmInfo by Fyodor Lukyanov, Research Director at the  International Valdai Discussion Club,  Editor-in-Chief of the  Russia  in Global Affairs journal.

"Obviously, one cannot count on the fact that the usual diplomatic  contacts between Russia and the West, interaction on other topics and  issues will continue as before. I think that this was very clearly  stated by representative of our Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova,  emphasizing that in such an environment, work in any format Russia  and the West is impossible. In my opinion, in this light, the  possibilities for restoring the format of the trilateral  co-chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group are practically exhausted,"  he said.

According to Lukyanov, the OSCE Minsk Group lost its real influence  as an instrument for resolving the conflict even after the 44-day war  in Artsakh. As a result, in fact, Russia and Turkey take upon  themselves the moderation of the conflict as countries that have  mechanisms for direct influence on the development of processes on  the ground.

He noted, that after the signing of the trilateral ceasefire  statement on November 9, 2020, the OSCE Minsk Group did not  participate in any serious processes. And Ukraine and the subsequent  break in all formats of interaction between Russia and the West only  drew a line in this process. In this light, Lukyanov determines the  latest US statements about the need to restore the Minsk format by  the desire to bring down the current format of mediation of the  Russian Federation with a subsequent review of the deployment of the  Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh.

"However, given the key role and position of the Russian Federation  and Azerbaijan in this matter, the possibility of resuscitation,  especially the effective work of the OSCE Minsk Group as of today is  negligible. Even taking into account the presence of the Russian  military contingent in Nagorno-Karabakh, the current peculiarities of  Moscow's relations with Ankara, Baku and Yerevan hardly allow Russia  to maintain a favorable balance in the South Caucasus. This is all  that our capabilities allow us today," the Russian analyst summed up.

Turkologist: Turkey and Azerbaijan hold the unblocking of borders as the icing on the cake of common normalization with Armenia

Markos Nalchajian
ARMINFO
Armenia – July 1 2022
David Stepanyan

ArmInfo. Judging by the latest statements by Armenian officials, there has been some disappointment in Yerevan regarding the process of normalizing relations with  Turkey.  Victor Nadein-Raevsky, Ph.D. in Philosophy, director of  the  Institute of Political and Social Studies of the Black  Sea-Caspian  region, senior researcher of IMEMO RAS (Russia) expressed  a similar  opinion to ArmInfo.

"At the initial stage of the process, there were illusions in  Armenia, conditioned by the results of the 44-day war, according to  which, after the disappearance of the main prerequisite, that is,  after the taking of territories by Azerbaijan, Turkey will go to  unblock the borders. Yerevan hoped that the normalization of  relations with Ankara would weaken Baku's influence on it. Such a  strategy was visible from the statements made from Yerevan," he  noted.

However, according to the Turkologist Ankara and Baku are guided by  their own strategic calculations, within which they hold the process  of unblocking the borders with Armenia as the icing on the cake of  the common normalization process. Since they are well aware that by  opening the border, they will not immediately receive a positive  decision on the status of Artsakh and communications through the  territory of Armenia.

At the same time, Turkey itself, according to Nadein-Raevsky, has no  weighty reasons for continuing the blockade of Armenia. In this  sense, Ankara, in his opinion, in this matter is a kind of hostage to  Baku's policy, that is aimed at resolving the issue of the status of  Nagorno-Karabakh in favor of Azerbaijan and obtaining a corridor to  Nakhichevan through Armenia.

Commenting on the current policy of Turkey, the Turkologist described  it as oriented towards national interests. Being a true ally of NATO  and trying to demonstrate this constantly, on the other hand, Recep  Erdogan repeatedly goes beyond all the limits prescribed by  Washington. And it was under Erdogan that Turkey became more active  in pursuing a policy oriented both to the West and to the East. This  was largely facilitated by the coup attempt in 2016, in which Ankara  blamed Washington.

"As of today, there are three pronounced accents in Turkish foreign  policy. First of all, it is the incitement of pan-Turkic sentiments  with the aim of consolidating all Turkic peoples into a single state  of Turan.  Second, neo-Ottomanism, expressed in the buildup of  Turkish political influence in countries that were previously part of  the Ottoman Empire. And, finally, the strengthening of geopolitical  influence through the religious factor,  Islamism," the Turkologist  summed up. 

Official Stepanakert refutes information about closure of permanent representation of Artsakh in Russia

Zhanna Nahapetian
ARMINFO
Armenia – July 1 2022
Marianna Mkrtchyan

ArmInfo. Information about the closure of the permanent representation of Nagorno-Karabakh in Russia does not correspond to reality. Artsakh Foreign Minister David  Babayan stated this in an interview with ArmInfo.

So, when asked to comment on the information disseminated, including  by the Armenian media, about this, he, in particular, said: "Be calm,  this information is not true."

It should be noted that a number of media outlets reported today that  the permanent representation of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been  functioning in Moscow since the early 1990s, will be closed against  the backdrop of strengthening Russian-Azerbaijani relations.