Category: 2022

Specialized Tesla electric car showroom opens in Armenia

Adrine Hakobian
June 7 2022
(VIDEO)
06.06.2022 23:17

YEREVAN, June 6. /ARKA/. A specialized Tesla electric car showroom –Tesla Energy-has opened in Armenia offering smart, modern and desirable vehicles of all the models manufactured by the famous company.

The exclusive partner of Tesla Energy is ACBA Leasing, which offers purchase of cars on favorable terms. Thanks to ACBA Leasing individuals can make only a10% down payment, buy an electric car Tesla and pay the rest within 7 years. With AMD payments the annual interest rate for individual buyers starts at 11.5%.

Leasing is available also to legal entities in AMD, USD and EUR. In case of euro the annual interest rate starts from 2%.

“In order to develop innovative “green” technologies in Armenia, several years ago ACBA Leasing established “Green Leasing” sub-brand, one of the directions of which is to finance purchase of electric cars. Today with “Tesla Energy” company we are launching a campaign on financing purchase of electric cars on exceptional terms. In recent years ACBA Leasing has done an unprecedented job of popularizing electric cars in Armenia. During this period purchase of hundreds of electric cars has been financed by ACBA Leasing,’ said Aghasi Gasparyan, General Director of ACBA Leasing.

ACBA Leasing continues contributing to the development of electric car culture in Armenia. Green technologies are the future.

More information is in the video.

ACBA Leasing is controlled by the Central Bank of Armenia. -0-


https://www.armbanks.am/en/2022/06/06/140275/


U.S. says interested in facilitating Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue

Ekmekjian Janet
PanARMENIAN
Armenia – June 7 2022
June 7, 2022 – 15:14 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – The United States is interested in facilitating direct engagement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters on Monday, June 6.

Price’s remarks came ahead of a meeting between Assistant Secretary of State Karen Donfried and Foreign Policy Advisor to the President of Azerbaijan Hikmet Hajiyev.

“Assistant Secretary Donfried will convey to Mr. Hajiyev the U.S. interest in facilitating direct engagement between Azerbaijan and Armenia, including our role as a Minsk Group co-chair and our support for recent EU efforts to bring both countries together,” Price said.

“This is something that Secretary Blinken has had an opportunity to engage with the leaders of these two countries on in recent days and recent weeks. It continues to be something we wish to promote.”

United States Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken earlier welcomed the first joint meeting of the Armenia-Azerbaijan bilateral Border Commissions, which was held on the border between the two countries on May 24. The next meeting of the commissions of Armenia and Azerbaijan on the delimitation of the border will be held in June in Moscow.

Bishop: Azerbaijan seeks to replace Dadivank’s Armenian clerics with Russians

Dabaghian Diana
PanARMENIAN
Armenia – June 7 2022
June 7, 2022 – 16:11 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Azerbaijan wants to achieve the withdrawal of the Armenian clergy from Dadivank Monastery and their replacement by the clergy of the Russian Diocese of Baku, Bishop Vrtanes Abrahamyan, Primate of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, has told NEWS.am.

“I believe this information is completely in line with Azerbaijan’s policy pursued today. They do everything to bring what they want to fruition and remove our clergymen from Dadivank. They saw that they could not achieve anything with the visits of the Udis, and [therefore] they resorted to this option,” Bishop Vrtans said Tuesday, June 7.

“Besides the fact that they will remove the Armenian clergy, they will also say that there is no need for Russian peacekeepers [in Artsakh] anymore. I am sure that the Russian Orthodox Church will not give way to that move.”

The Primate of the Artsakh Diocese added that intensive negotiations are underway to resume the entry of Armenian pilgrims to Dadivank.

Concerns about the preservation of cultural sites in Nagorno-Karabakh are made all the more urgent by the Azerbaijani government’s history of systemically destroying indigenous Armenian heritage—acts of both warfare and historical revisionism. The Azerbaijani government has secretly destroyed a striking number of cultural and religious artifacts in the late 20th century. Within Nakhichevan alone, a historically Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani forces destroyed at least 89 medieval churches, 5,840 khachkars (Armenian cross stones) and 22,000 historical tombstones between 1997 and 2006.

Abandoned Soviet-era sewing factory in Dilijan to be transformed into innovative space for businesses

Jhanna Virabian
Public Radio of Armenia
Armenia – June 7 2022

Andrea Wiktorin, EU Ambassador to Armenia, participated in the official launch of the “Enhancing private sector-led economic growth in Dilijan and adjacent communities” in Dilijan.

The Project aims to stimulate business development and contribute to job creation in Dilijan through investing in hard and soft infrastructure – an abandoned Soviet-era sewing factory will be transformed into an innovative space for businesses, entrepreneurs, and community services.

The project implemented by Dilijan municipality in partnership with the IDEA Foundation, Tourism and Urbanism Foundation, and Dilijan Community center is co-funded by the European Union (EUR 1 mln) and the IDEA foundation.

‘’The European Union continues supporting local and regional authorities in Armenia since we believe strongly in the role of local actors to champion local development and growth. We hope that the refurbished ‘’Kari Fabrika’’ will boost economic activity in Dilijan and in the region of Tavush by supporting the incubation and acceleration of regional small and medium businesses and making available much needed advisory and support services in a unique multi-functional space,’’ emphasized Ambassador Wiktorin in her opening remarks.

VK’s top executive Vladimir Gabrielyan dies in Arctic accident

Adrine Hakobian
Panorama
Armenia – June 7 2022

VK’s First Deputy CEO Vladimir Gabrielyan and the company’s procurement director Sergey Merzlyakov died in an accident in the Nenets Autonomous Region in Russia’s Arctic, the Russian social networking company told TASS on Tuesday.

“Very sad news emerged this morning about the tragic death of Vladimir Gabrielyan and Sergey Merzlyakov in an accident. We mourn [their deaths] with their families and friends,” the VK press service said.

Earlier, the Union of Reindeer Herders reported that Gabrielyan had gone missing near the village of Shoina. The all-terrain vehicle he was riding in overturned.

MP Tigran Abrahamyan deplores decision to merge military staff with Armenian Defense Ministry

Emil Lazarian
Panorama
Armenia – June 7 2022

Tigran Abrahamyan, a lawmaker from the opposition Pativ Unem bloc, took to Facebook on Tuesday to deplore the authorities’ plans to merge the Armenian army’s General Staff with the Defense Ministry.

The General Staff chief will also serve as Armenia’s first deputy defense minister as part of the “reforms”, as a result of which the armed forces will be engaged in the defense of the country and combat training, Abrahamyan said.

“The defense minister is still unaware that prior to the “reforms” announced by him, it was the General Staff that was in charge of combat training and combat efficiency,” he wrote.

“The authorities believe that making the General Staff chief subordinate to the defense minister will prevent any disobedience, as it happened during former Chief of the General Staff Onik Gasparyan’s tenure,” the MP said.

Abrahamyan stated that the General Staff and the Defense Ministry have divisions which perform the same functions and should be restructured.

“However, it makes no sense at all to make the General Staff chief also the first deputy defense minister. Moreover, it will cause more problems instead of solving the pending issues,” he said.

“They say that the General Staff should deal exclusively with combat training of the military, but it is subordinated to the ministry, thus mixing everything up,” Abrahamyan added.

11 wounded in military truck rollover in Armenia

Khoyetsian Rose
Panorama
Armenia – June 7 2022

A military vehicle has been involved in a traffic accident in Armenia’s Vayots Dzor Province, leaving 11 soldiers injured.

The Kamaz truck of the Defense Ministry flipped over on the Yerevan-Meghri highway and overturned on Tuesday morning. 11 servicemen, including 10 conscripts and one officer, have been hospitalized in the wake of the accident.

“One of the soldiers has suffered a rib fracture. The condition of the others is assessed as satisfactory. They mostly have scratches,” the Defense Ministry told Panorama.am.

The cause of the accident is still unknown.

81% of Armenian citizens trust Arman Tatoyan, poll shows

Kajoyan Gevork
Panorama
Armenia – June 7 2022

The Caucasus Research Resource Center (CRRC)-Armenia Foundation on Monday released the Caucasus Barometer 2021. According to the findings of the survey, Armenia’s former Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) Arman Tatoyan has the highest rating among citizens.

In particular, the poll conducted during Arman Tatoyan’s tenure as the ombudsman of Armenia (from December 18, 2021 to February 4, 2022) reveals that 81% of citizens trust him, 9% of citizens are neutral (neither trust nor does not trust), 7% do not trust him and 2% do not know him.

The Caucasus Research Resource Center also conducted a survey of the opinion of the population of Armenia on which institutions they consider the most reliable.

Among the 17 institutions, according to citizens, the Human Rights Defender’s Office is in the first place.

According to this section, 61.2% of citizens fully trust Arman Tatoyan, 21.4% rather trust, 6.7% neither trust nor do not trust, 3.8% rather do not trust and 6.9% do not trust at all.

Tatoyan served as Armenian ombudsman from 23 February 2016 to 23 February 2022. The Caucasian Barometer survey covers the period from December 18, 2021 to February 4, 2022.

“I feel honored to have 81% of trust of citizens. On my behalf and on behalf of the entire team that worked with me during the research period, I express my sincere gratitude to our citizens for such a high level of trust,” Tatoyan said in a statement on Tuesday.

“This irreplaceable, binding, high-confidence trust is the result of the fact that we have always been honest, compassionate, objective and truly independent at work. One thing was paramount – commitment to the human rights mission,” he added.

Combat training and combat readiness of troops General Staff`s priority before "army reforms" – opposition MP

Arpi Talalian
ARMINFO
Armenia – June 7 2022
Marianna Mkrtchyan

ArmInfo.Armenia’s Minister of Defense [Suren Papikyan] is not so far informed that the tasks related to combat training and combat readiness of troops were the  priority of the General Staff before “what he has called reforms,”  Tigran Abrahamyan, a member of the opposition parliamentary faction  With Honor, stated in response to the defense minister’s statement on  reforms in Armenia’s Armed Forces and appointment of the chief of the  General Staff. 

“The minister says reforms will be implemented in the army, and the  armed forces will defend the country and deal with combat readiness,  the work they are supposed to do. And thee government decided to  grant the status of first deputy minister to the chief of the General  Staff,” Mr Abrahamyan said. 

The government thinks that by making the chief of the General Staff  subordinate to the minister of defense they will prevent statements  similar to those made by the ex-chief Honik Abrahamyan. 

So it turns out that the ex-chief of the General Staff, who was  subordinate to the premier, made a statement the government  considered undesirable. And, according to the government, that  statement would not have been made if the chief of the General Staff  had been deputy minister of defense. 

“Moreover, the General Staff and the Ministry of Defense have  departments with identical functions. And these are expected to be  reorganized by means of reforms. But it does not require appointing  the chief of the General Staff deputy minister of defense.  Furthermore, it causes more problems than provides solutions.  They  are saying the General Staff is supposed to deal with combat  readiness alone, but they are making it part of the Ministry of  Defense thereby confusing things,” Mr Abrahamyan said. 

In an interview with the Public TV of Armenia, Minister of Defense  Suren Papikyan stated after reforms in the country’s Ministry of  Defense the first minister of defense will be chief of the General  Staff.