Category: 2022

Opposition MP says there has never been peace under current Armenian government

Hunanian Jack
Panorama
Armenia,

The Armenian authorities are trying to convince the people that the “era of peace” propagated by them is vital, while the other political forces would lead the country to war, according to MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition With Honor faction.

“This is announced by the political force, during whose rule in 2020 the devastating 44-day war took place,” he wrote on Facebook on Tuesday.

He recalled that the Azerbaijani troops invaded Armenia’s sovereign territory in Syunik and Gegharkunik Provinces in May and November 2021.

The MP also pointed to the advancement of Azerbaijani forces into Artsakh’s Parukh village and Karaghluh heights in violation of the trilateral statement signed with the Armenian authorities.

“While those from the [ruling] political group are intimidating the public, saying, “Do you know that if we leave, there will be no peace? But when has there been peace under your government?” Abrahamyan said.

Azerbaijani press: US would like to see more of its companies operating in Azerbaijan’s liberated lands – ambassador (Exclusive)

Kajoyan Gevork
Politics Materials  16:37


BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 19. The US would like to see more of its companies operating in the Azerbaijani territories liberated from Armenian occupation [in the 2020 second Karabakh war], the country’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan Earle Litzenberger told Trend, speaking at an open door day event held at the US embassy in Baku on April 19.

According to Litzenberger, successful de-mining and restoration of the liberated lands of Azerbaijan are very important for the return of former refugees to their native lands, and the US supports this process.

“The US companies are already working in the liberated territories in such areas as energy, and de-mining,” he added..

The US companies will be able to expand their participation in projects in the liberated territories by participating in open tenders, Litzenberger said.

Armenian opposition group launches campaign to oust Pashinyan

Toneyan Mark
Panorama
Armenia,

Armenia’s “5165” opposition movement led by Karin Tonoyan on Tuesday launched a campaign to remove Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his cabinet.

Members of the movement first joined the indefinite anti-government protest being staged in Yerevan’s Liberty Square since Sunday evening.

Afterwards, they started a march through the central streets of Yerevan holding a long red ribbon. The protesters also tied red ribbons around their sleeves, saying they symbolize the “red lines” that the Armenian authorities have crossed.

Edgar Ghazaryan, a member of the movement, urges all those seeking Pashinyan’s ouster to wear red ribbons at work, in school and elsewhere as a symbol of protest.

The protest action, according to organizers, will be long-lasting.

Turkish press: Armenia has yet to give locations for routes linking Azerbaijan, Nakhchivan: Aliyev

Aram Torosian
Ruslan Rehimov   |19.04.2022

BAKU, Azerbaijan

The Armenian government has not yet provided coordinates for a planned road and railway between Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan, an exclave of Azerbaijani territory currently reachable only through Armenia, Azerbaijan’s president said Tuesday.

Plans for such a path, also known as the Zangezur corridor, were contained in the November 2020 pact ending the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh – Azerbaijani territory formerly under Armenian occupation for nearly 30 years – but since then, Armenia has not cooperated.

Ilham Aliyev made the remarks in a meeting with a delegation led by Toivo Klaar, the EU’s envoy for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, according to a statement by the presidency.

Aliyev said his meeting with Azerbaijani Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on April 6, chaired by EU Council head Charles Michel, was productive and it was an initial step for peace negotiations as they agreed to establish a working group along with a border commission to move towards a peace treaty.

However, Aliyev said there were a number of issues the Armenian side should clarify and one of them was the issue of land and rail connections between Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan.

– Armenian delays

The process of constructing the railway is still ongoing, and 60% of the section within Azerbaijani territory has been completed, according to the president, adding that the project is expected to be completed by 2023.

“Armenia hasn’t even launched the feasibility studies yet… This indicates that the process might take longer,” he said, referring to Armenian-related delays.

As for the motorway, Aliyev said it would reach the Armenian borders by late 2023, and Pashinyan did not specify the geographical coordinates essential for the project during talks in Brussels, adding that a Feb. 2 video conference with the premier yielded no concrete results.

Relations between Baku and Yerevan have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

When new clashes erupted in 2020, Azerbaijani troops liberated swathes of occupied territory from Armenian troops before Russia brokered a cease-fire.

The three countries later agreed to develop economic ties and infrastructure for the benefit of the entire region.

*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas

Extra-parliamentary parties join Artsakh parliament’s statement

Ani Basmajian
Panorama
Armenia,

Today, April 19, Speake of the Artsakh National Assembly Artur Tovmasyan, together with the heads of the factions, hosted the extra-parliamentary political forces participating in the March 31, 2020 parliamentary elections in Artsakh, including the National Renaissance Party, Generation of Independence Party, Artsakh Communist Party, Artsakh Revolutionary Party, Artsakh Conservative Party, United Armenia Party and Tomorrow Artsakh Party.

At the meeting, the leaders of the extra-parliamentary forces expressed their opinion and position on the Artsakh issue, highlighting the fact that the parliamentary factions act in unison, the parliament’s press office said.

The representatives of the parties stressed that they fully support and join the April 14, 2022 statement adopted by the National Assembly of the Artsakh Republic.

“We demand that the authorities of the Republic of Armenia abandon their current disastrous position… No government has a right to lower the negotiating bar for a status acceptable to Artsakh and the internationally recognized right to self-determination under the pretext of “peace”. On behalf of the Artsakh Armenians, we call on Armenians all over the world to stand united and resolutely by the brothers and sisters of Armenia and Artsakh in this just struggle,” reads the statement.

Yerevan court allows opposition MP to leave for PACE spring session

Karagyozian Lena
Panorama
Armenia,

The Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction has allowed opposition Hayastan faction MP Armen Gevorgyan to travel to Strasbourg to attend the spring plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

Presiding judge Anna Danibekyan on Tuesday granted a motion filed by Gevorgyan’s lawyer Lusine Sahakyan to allow her client to leave for the session planned for 25-28 April after rejecting similar requests previously.

Given that the lawmaker is going to raise issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in Strasbourg, the court allowed him to travel abroad.

Gevorgyan has been charged with corruption and money laundering as part of a criminal case also involving Armenia’s second President Robert Kocharyan.

Turkish press: The ‘G’ word and 1915 events: A handbook for Joe Biden

Antranik Varosian
 APR 20, 2022 – 12:05 AM GMT+3

Illustration by Shutterstock – edited by Büşra Öztürk.

U.S. President Joe Biden has been stressing the importance of a “rules-based international order” since he assumed the presidency. Yet, in many instances, he saw no harm in disregarding the “rules” himself. This is particularly the case in matters related to Turkey, including his ungrounded statement labeling the 1915 events as “genocide.”

Biden apparently prefers not to take counsel from competent people with the necessary legal expertise before delving into historical and legal matters. Since 1948, norms of international law, specifically the U.N. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, necessitate a decision by a competent court when referring to a case as genocide. An electoral campaign promise made to paid lobbyists does not justify such a statement in any way. What’s more, according to general principles of criminal law, non-retroactivity is a rule. Last year, the U.S. president did not mind openly contradicting these universally recognized norms and rules.

We will see whether Biden will insist on repeating the same mistake of using unfounded allegations for the 1915 events against Turkey this year. One would hope that this time he’d be informed about not only the necessary legal requirements to use the term, but also of the report written in 1919 by his fellow American Lieutenant General James Harbord, which exposed the fabrications later to be used by radicals to construct an “Armenian genocide” narrative. He may also want to look at the Tsarist Russian and Armenian sources to better understand the facts. For instance, the report of Hovhannes Kajaznuni, the first prime minister of the independent First Republic of Armenia, should serve as an eye-opener. He may also want to ask what is hidden in the Armenian archives that are still kept sealed, while the Turkish archives are open and accessible to historians.

Moreover, as far as the ongoing normalization efforts between Ankara and Yerevan are concerned, Biden should know that politicizing history once again in a prejudicial fashion will embolden none other than fanatical Armenian circles and their advocates, who oppose the normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations. This is even more concerning now, since these radicals, encouraged by the unobjective approach of a U.S. president, are now trying to have a biased act passed by the U.S. Congress. Obviously, they are aiming to draw enmity from history, nothing else.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Op-Ed contributor based in Ankara

Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh escorted Armenian pilgrims to Dadivank, Amaras and Gandzasar monasteries

Anna Tamamian
ARMINFO
Armenia –
Marianna Mkrtchyan

ArmInfo.Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh escorted Armenian pilgrims to the Dadivank, Amaras and Gandzasar monasteries, according to a newssheet by the RF  Ministry of Defense. 

The Russian peacekeeping contingent continues carrying out tasks in  Nagorno-Karabakh. 

Since November 23, 2020, Russian corps of engineers have cleared  2,369.8 hectares, 689.5km of roads, 1,937 buildings of unexploded  ordinance. The Russian peacekeeper also neutralized 26,262 pieces of  explosive material. 

Turkish press: CHP leader vows reconciliation for unity in society

Albert Nalbandian
  • 12:40:00

A significant objective of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) is to repair the damaged sense of unity within the society by reconciling people from all walks of life, the party’s leader has said, underlining the need for augmenting love and good feelings among citizens.

“We are a country that has suffered big pains. We don’t deserve this. We all want to live in peace because our unity depends on this. Laughing together, crying together and growing with love. This must be our fundamental goal,” Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said after a visit to the Hrant Dink Foundation on April 17 in Istanbul.

Kılıçdaroğlu met with Rakel Dink, the wife of the Turkish journalist of Armenian descent, Hrant Dink, who was assassinated in front of his newspaper called Agos in 2007. He was shot dead by an ultranationalist hitman who is now serving a life sentence in prison.

“I came here to explain once again that we will reconcile with the victims of the crimes committed by some dark criminal groups with which we will fight against during our government,” Kılıçdroğlu said.

The hitman of Dink’s assassination was caught, but those who motivated him for the killing are still in the dark, and many of these criminal groups have infiltrated into the state, Kılıçdaroğlu said, vowing to clear the state apparatus from these criminal networks through a determined struggle.

“Only then we can bring about unity in this country. My fundamental purpose is to live in unity in this beautiful country. If we are to leave a legacy to this country, it must be peace and unity. We will reconcile all together through love and unity,” he noted.

Italian translation of Dantesque Legend by Charents published

Emil Karabekian

Save

Share

 11:02,

YEREVAN, APRIL 18, ARMENPRESS. The Italian translation of Dantesque Legend (translator Pierpaolo Faggi)– a poem by Yeghishe Charents – was presented at the Arno Babajanyan Concert Hall in Yerevan.

The bilingual version of the Armenian writer’s book was published on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of birth of Charents. The Armenian-Italian cooperation was realized through joint efforts of the Actual Art Publishing House and Pontem Armeniae Translation Office.

The book features other poems by Charents, translated by the book’s editor Grigor Ghazaryan.