Category: 2022

Euronest PA sessions: Azerbaijani delegates arrive in Yerevan

Albert Nalbandian

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 14:34,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. Two Azerbaijani Members of Parliament arrived in Yerevan to participate in the meetings of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly bureau and committees, the leader of the Armenian delegation to Euronest PA, MP Maria Karapetyan told reporters.

She said the Azeri delegation includes 3 people: the two MPs and one accompanying person.

“As far as I remember one of the MPs is independent and the other is from New Azerbaijan ruling party. I haven’t met them yet, the countries receive such delegations, now on a rotational basis it is our turn. We must host all guests properly and on a high level,” Karapetyan said.

Karapetyan added that no informal meetings are scheduled and the Azeri delegates aren’t planning any media event.

Armenian FM receives Co-Chairs of Euronest Parliamentary Assembly

Hambik Zargarian

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 14:47,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. On February 21, the Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan received the Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly Andrius Kubilius and Maka Botchorishvili. The head of the delegation of the National Assembly of Armenia to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly Maria Karapetyan also attended the meeting.

The Foreign Minister of Armenia commended the dynamics of the development of the Armenia-EU partnership, highly appreciating the role of parliamentary diplomacy in that context. Ararat Mirzoyan also expressed gratitude to the European Parliament for demonstrating its principled position on a number of important issues for Armenia. The interlocutors also exchanged views on the prospects of further cooperation within the framework of the Eastern Partnership.

The Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly commended the reforms of the recent years in Armenia in the spheres of democracy, the rule of law, and the fight against corruption. Both sides emphasized the holding of free and transparent snap elections in Armenia in 2021 amid a number of challenges.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and the Co-Chairs of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly touched upon a wide range of issues on regional security and stability.

Touching upon the urgent humanitarian issues, Minister Mirzoyan stressed the need for repatriation of the Armenian prisoners of war and civilian hostages illegally held in Azerbaijan. The Foreign Minister stressed the inadmissibility of Azerbaijan’s continuous violation of the norms of international law and the decision of the UN International Court of Justice on provisional measures.

The need for a full resumption of negotiation for a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship was also stressed.
During the meeting, the process of normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey was also touched upon.

At this time of tension, EU needs to remember Nagorno-Karabakh

Khondkarian Raffi
Open Democracy
Feb 22 2022


A message to the EU (and the US): despite a possible escalation in Ukraine, don’t forget the other major conflict in the region

Yervand ShirinyanDavid Amiryan
, 12.47pm

The 44-day war in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020 left thousands dead, but it did not put an end to the longest-running conflict in the South Caucasus. What is worse is that the grim situation in Ukraine threatens a renewed large-scale conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The status quo has changed dramatically and the two sides can no longer be treated as equal sides to the conflict. Today, Armenia, having lost the war, is being subjected to aggression.

In this context, a much more engaged EU (and US) is necessary.

First, it is critical to pressure Azerbaijan to move away from its aggressive approach and instead embrace negotiations on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh, under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group. The message should be unambiguous: the use of force is not an option and will be met with consequences.

Second, the EU could push for – and support – a monitoring mission along the border. The EU’s common security and defence policy (CSDP) mission has been used in similar contexts and could go a long way to stabilise the situation on the ground. Such a mission could enable the creation of a demilitarised zone in Nagorno-Karabakh, creating a conducive environment for determining the border. In parallel, the EU should push for a border delimitation and demarcation process, ideally under the OSCE.

Last but not least, decisive measures should be taken for the return of Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) who are, more than a year later, still detained in Azerbaijan. Despite many statements calling for the return of these POWs, Azerbaijan still holds dozens of them, in violation of international humanitarian law.

Also, earlier this month, Azerbaijan announced plans to erase elements of Armenian culture in Nagorno-Karabakh, such as Armenian inscriptions at religious sites. An outcry ensued internationally, but the situation warrants more drastic measures, including targeted individual sanctions as well as conditions attached to aid, particularly in light of the EU’s recently approved aid package to Azerbaijan of 2 billion euros. 

The need for these actions can be explained by the complex situation in the region. Active hostilities have largely stopped, thanks to the presence of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh following the 9 November 2020 trilateral statement brokered by Moscow. However, the situation remains far from peaceful. There are still numerous localised incidents, in addition to larger instances of armed clashes, such as the ones on 16 November 2021 and 12 January 2022.

The 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan significantly altered the geopolitics of the South Caucasus. First, Turkey’s active role in the conflict and the support it gave Azerbaijan, including the recruitment of Syrian mercenaries, significantly increased its influence in the region. Second, the institutional framework for settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the OSCE Minsk Group, has been undermined. Emboldened by his victory, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has been publicly stating that the conflict is over and refusing to engage with the Minsk Group.

There is a real threat of ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh

This begs the question what will happen to the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh once the Russian peacekeeping mission finishes in less than four years. Given the brutalities documented during the war, the state-promoted Armenophobia in Azerbaijan, and post-war incidents that target the Armenian population, there is a real threat of ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Another important consequence of the war is the change in the de-facto borders between the two countries. In some locations, the Armenian and Azerbaijani armed forces are only a few hundred metres away from each other. This has had a major impact on the rights and livelihoods of local communities. Residents of border communities have been taken captive, their crops set on fire and their cattle stolen.

Recent meetings between Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and President Aliyev, two of which were mediated by the EU, have produced only modest results. One outcome is that there is now a direct line between the defence ministers of the two countries, to prevent border skirmishes. The two countries also agreed to take steps towards unblocking railway connections.

One of the most important unsolved issues is where the border goes. Russia has proposed the creation of a border demarcation committee (which it would lead), but no progress is yet in sight.  

The explosive situation in Ukraine could have devastating consequences for the Caucasus, including a new conflict. Despite a personal ‘friendship’ between presidents Putin and Erdogan, Russia has been increasingly annoyed by Turkey, which has not recognised Russian control of Crimea, and because it has provided Ukraine with armed drones. There has also been recent tension between Azerbaijan and Russia, particularly over Russia’s peacekeeping mission in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Turkey will be tempted to use force again in the region, especially as their earlier actions did not generate adequate international condemnation.

The EU has the tools to prevent the worst. It now needs the will.

Iran, Armenia explore ways to strengthen security co-op

Jagharian Tania
TEHRAN TIMES
Feb 22 2022
  1. Society
– 17:7

TEHRAN – Iranian deputy police chief Qasem Rezaei and his Armenian counterpart Aram Hovhannisyan on Tuesday discussed strengthening police interactions to guarantee the security of the two countries.

During a meeting held in Tehran, Rezaei expressed hope to enhance cooperation with Armenian police officials in various areas, announcing readiness to hold joint specialized meetings with the aim of expanding relations, IRNA reported.

Noting that the Iranian police has valuable and unique experiences in various police fields, he added that “I hope that holding such bilateral meetings, especially in border cities, will be a practical beginning to move in the direction of cooperation development.”

Today, Iran’s police services are global, and due to the sacrifices of police forces in the fight against drug trafficking, the transit of drugs to other parts of the world, especially European countries, is prevented and the discovery of more than a thousand tons of narcotics per year is evidence to this claim, he further highlighted.

Hovhannisyan also for his part said that I bow my head in respect to all the courage and sacrifice of the Iranian police officers in the fight against drug traffickers, as evidenced by the number of martyrs who have lost their lives in this way.

The main purpose of this meeting is to develop cooperation and improve the situation in various fields, especially in dealing with and combating drug traffickers, he stated, expressing preparedness to take action in this regard.

Today, we witnessed the high capabilities of the Iranian police in various fields of science, skills, tactics, specialized equipment, and I hope that by improving police interactions between the two countries, we can benefit from the highly specialized knowledge of Iran in strengthening the Armenian police, he concluded.

Iran holds world record for narcotics confiscation 

Iran holds the record for narcotics confiscation in the world, Eskandar Momeni, the director of headquarters for the fight against narcotics, said in December 2021.

However, great achievements in the field of countermeasures have been gained, and the United Nations has officially announced that 90 percent of opium, 70 percent of morphine, and 20 percent of world heroin have been discovered by Iran.

Last year, about 1,200 tons of drugs were discovered, which was the highest rate of discovery in the world,” he explained.

According to figures released by the United Nations in 2000, Afghanistan produced about 200 tons of narcotics, but in 2018, it has grown to 9,500 tons.

In other words, the production of narcotics has increased fifty times, which has doubled the need for prevention efforts, he highlighted.

Despite the conditions caused by the coronavirus outbreak and the imposition of harsh sanctions against the country, fortunately, with the efforts of anti-narcotics police in 2020, drug detection increased by 41 percent.

After the Islamic Revolution (in 1979), 3,800 were martyred, 12,000 were wounded and disabled in the fight against drug trafficking.

The UNODC has praised Iran’s efforts to fight against narcotics trafficking on the occasion of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

The organization also officially announced that the world’s first place in the discovery of opium, heroin, and morphine belongs to Iran.

According to UNODC, Iran remains one of the major transit routes for drug trafficking from Afghanistan to European countries and has had a leading role at the global level in drug-control campaigns.

UNODC World Drug Report 2020 estimates that in 2018, 91 percent of world opium, 48 percent of the world morphine, and 26 percent of the world heroin were seized by Iran.

FB/MG

Azerbaijani MPs visit Armenia for the first time in a decade

Lilit Nahapetian
Feb 22 2022
 

ByAni Avetisyan
Official photo.

Two Azerbaijani MPs have visited Yerevan as participants in the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly hosted by Armenia. The last time Azerbaijani MPs had stepped foot on Armenian soil was in 2012.

MPs Tahir Mirkishili and Soltan Mammadov arrived in Armenia on 21 February. 

The Euronest Parliamentary Assembly is an inter-parliamentary forum of the members of the European Parliament and the national parliaments of Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia.

The arrival of the MPs was met by a small group of protesters holding a demonstration near hotel where the MPs would be staying. 

The protest continued on Tuesday outside of the Karen Demirchyan Complex, where the plenary session was being held. One of the protest organisers, former Chief of Staff of the Constitutional Court of Armenia Edgar Ghazaryan, told reporters that they were protesting not only the ‘arrival of the Azerbaijani delegates’ but also ‘the situation with democracy in Armenia’.

‘Today, the presence of Azeris here has symbolism, because back in 2021, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev announced that the Azeris, taking the so-called Zangezur corridor, will return to Yerevan, and it is not necessary that they will come and take Yerevan by tanks’, Ghazaryan said. 

He added that there was the impression of a ‘connection between the presence of high-ranking Azerbaijani delegates and Aliyev’s statement’. 

Naira Zohrabyan, a former MP from the opposition Prosperous Armenia party who was also at the protest, said that Armenia should have included the question of remaining prisoners-of-war in Azerbaijani custody on the agenda. 

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met with the Euronest delegation on Monday, one of the members of which was the Azerbaijani MP Tair Mirkishili, who is a  co-rapporteur on issues relating to the pandemic.

Mirkishili is from Azerbaijan’s ruling New Azerbaijan Party. He is also the chair of Azerbaijan’s Parliamentary Committee on Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship and is a member of the Azerbaijani delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

The main session of the parliamentary assembly took place on Tuesday. During the session, the Azerbaijani MP Soltan Mammadov, an independent member of the Azerbaijani Parliament, spoke about the ‘reintegration of the Armenian ethnic minority [of Nagorno-Karabakh] as equal citizens of Azerbaijan’.

‘Azerbaijan is in favour of the restoration of all relations with Armenia. This will bring peace and security, at the same time economic benefits to our region’, he said. ‘This will turn the region into a bridge between north and south, east and west’.

He also commented on Armenian POWs in Azerbaijan, denying their status as prisoners-of-war, as ‘all the prisoners of war and detainees were returned to Armenia after the war’.  

‘Now there is a discussion under international law about the people who were arrested after the war,’ Mammadov said. 

Contrary to Mammadov’s position, international rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch do not dispute the status of Armenian soldiers held captive in Azerbaijan as POWs. 

Tahir Mirkishili, in his turn, lamented the deaths of ‘thousands’ during the last war in both countries and called for peaceful relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. 

‘We do not have racist aspirations, we do not want the use of force in the future’, he said. ‘All that is already in the past, now we have to talk about the future.’

The last plenary session of Euronest held in Yerevan was in 2015, and was held without the participation of the Azerbaijani delegation, who refused to come to Armenia. They did, however, come in 2012. 

Armenian MPs also visited Baku under the auspices of Euronest in 2017.

‘During such visits, taking into account the general context, the parties provide security guarantees to persons arriving at the other country. When Ms Mane Tandilyan and Armen Ashotyan left for Baku in 2017, they were given similar guarantees’, Maria Karapetyan, an MP from Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract party told reporters.

Apparently responding to criticisms from protest organisers, the Armenian Foreign Ministry released a statement affirming that Armenian Euronest participants brought up the questions of POWs.

‘Minister Mirzoyan stressed the need to repatriate Armenian prisoners of war and civilians detained illegally in Azerbaijan’, the statement reads.  


Armenia’s response to Russia’s recognition of the LPR and DPR

Emil Lazarian

Feb 22 2022


  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

The signing of decrees on the recognition of the DPR and LPR is being actively discussed in the expert community of Armenia. Political scientists, politicians, experts on security and international relations, and journalists share assessments of what this means and how it may affect the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Let’s hope that the recognition of the LNR and the DNR is an attempt by the Russian authorities to save face and an alternative to a large-scale war”.

“Do you even understand that amid of the development of Russian-Ukrainian events, we [Armenia] will become a case study of how you can miss all the opportunities provided by the international regulatory framework, which are now being used to the maximum by both sides of the current conflict?

However, we do not believe in the possibilities provided by international norms, which have almost never been used. Instead, we prefer to blame the whole world, resent this world and remain trapped in geopolitical fatalism”.

  • What will Armenia gain and lose after lifting ban on the import of Turkish goods?
  • What do residents of Yerevan think about Armenian-Turkish negotiations?
  • How long-term loyalty to Russia cost Armenia dearly
  • Baku analyst: “Moscow inspires separatist sentiments in Karabakh”

“Those who do not sympathize with Putin and Russia are declaring that with this step, Putin simply hammered a nail in his own coffin. Those who sympathize with Putin and dislike the West are slapping the West.

And everyone judges the reality and the situation only by the news broadcast by the media, while world politics does not begin and end with them”.

“Armenia must respect the right of any nation to free self-determination. I will say more, we believe that Armenia should have recognized the independence of Artsakh in the very first days of the 44-day war in 2020. The former authorities did not recognize the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, so as not to disrupt the negotiation process.

But when Azerbaijan, Turkey, and the jihadists launched a large-scale war against Artsakh, there was no rational explanation as to why its independence was not recognized.

According to the Deliberative Decision of the International Court of Justice on the self-proclamation of Kosovo, the principle of territorial integrity operates when two internationally recognized states recognize each other’s territorial integrity, but this does not prevent any country from unilaterally declaring independence.

We stand for the absolutization of the right of peoples to self-determination. Therefore, Armenia should consider the issue of recognizing the DPR and LPR and make a timely decision”.

“Putin explained in the best possible way why it is necessary to recognize the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh. If we replace the words Ukraine and Donetsk with Azerbaijan and Artsakh in his speech, we will see that everything coincides. So I think this is a new chance for us.

It is necessary to initiate a similar bill from our side. Unfortunately, at this crucial moment, the authorities of Armenia and Artsakh are weaker than ever. In any case, everything must be done so that such a project is immediately adopted.

Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Nagorno-Karabakh hail Donbas recognition

Anna Tamamian
Feb 22 2022
 

ByOC Media
South Ossetian President Anatoly Bibilov (left), who was in Moscow on Monday, personally congratulated the leader of the separatist government in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin (right).

The authorities in Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Nagorno-Karabakh have celebrated Russia’s decision to recognise separatist-controlled Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.

Russian President Vladimir Putin recognised the separatist authorities in the two Ukrainian regions on Monday evening, ordering Russian troops to enter the regions.

Abkhazian President Aslan Bzhaniya, South Ossetian President Anatoli Bibilov, and Nagorno-Karabakh President, Arayik Harutyunyan, all hailed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision on Monday evening. 

In a statement, Bzhaniya said that Moscow’s decision was ‘fair, based on an adequate assessment of the geopolitical reality, and in line with contemporary challenges and threats’, adding that it ‘contributes to a more just and balanced world order’.

Bzhaniya also separately congratulated the leaders of the separatist governments in  Donetsk and Luhansk.

The authorities in Abkhazia also vowed to take in refugees from  Donetsk and Luhansk, allocating a hotel in Sukhumi (Sukhum) to house them. According to state-run news agency Apsny Press, a delegation from the Ministry of Emergency Situations headed by Minister Lev Kvitsinia that contained two buses, an ambulance, and an ‘escort vehicle’, had already departed for Donetsk and Luhansk to evacuate people to Abkhazia.

South Ossetian leader Anatoly Bibilov said the safety of  Donetsk and Luhansk was ‘guaranteed by Russia’ following their recognition. He said the decision was ‘designed to end the bloodshed, save the lives of people in the Donbas and Ukraine, and indicated open and firm support for the just struggle of the Donbas for the right to freedom, national and human dignity and peaceful labour in their native land.’

South Ossetian state-run news agency RES reported that ‘hundreds of people’ celebrated Putin’s decision in the streets of Tskhinvali. Photo: RES.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s Arayik Harutyunyan posted a congratulatory post on Facebook stating that the ‘right of nations to self-determination and to build their own state is inalienable for every people and is a fundamental principle of international law’. 

Harutyunyan compared the situation in the Donbas, where Russian-backed separatists and regular Russian forces have been battling the Ukrainian Government since 2014, to the conflict between Nagorno-Karabakh and the Azerbaijani Government.

‘The Republic of Artsakh [Nagorno-Karabakh] has been fighting for its freedom, security, and state-building for decades, and has been exposed to many trials and genocidal actions. Thus, we hope that the Republic of Artsakh, which has a relevant and indisputable historical, political, legal, and moral basis, has earned international recognition as a sovereign state’. 

Such recognition from Russia appears unlikely, especially considering that the day after Putin recognised the separatist governments in Ukraine, he met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and the two signed a ‘Declaration on Allied Interaction’. The details of that document have not yet been made public.

[Read also on OC Media: Georgia raises the spectre of 2008 following Donetsk and Luhansk recognition and Armenian and Azerbaijani officials silent on Donbas recognition]

Despite the enthusiastic embrace of Putin’s decision among officials in Sukhumi, Tskhinvali (Tskhinval), and Stepanakert (Khankandi), not everyone celebrated.

In Abkhazia, public figures and media commentators were largely silent after news broke of Russia’s recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Abkhazian writer Elya Jikirba, criticised Russia’s actions in Ukraine while making clear that the Ukrainian government was also at fault. 

‘We will also be affected here by increased pressure on [human rights]’, she wrote.

In a response to a post on Telegram channel ‘Eleanor Writes’, run by journalist Eleanorа Giloyan, one commentator suggested that the government risked creating parallels between Abkhazia and Donetsk and Luhansk.

‘Our authorities, with their welcoming statements, essentially delegitimise themselves’, he said.

Others, such as Aleksey Lomiya, a former Prosecutor General and now a popular blogger, congratulated Luhansk and Donetsk but avoided giving any assessment of the situation. 

An offer by President Bzhaniya on Sunday to send military assistance to Donetsk and Luhansk was also met with scepticism. 

Tigran Grigoryan, a Yerevan-based political analyst from Stepanakert, criticised Nagorno-Karabakh’s Arayik Harutyunyan’s response to events in Ukraine in a post on Facebook.

‘There must be a limit in everything. I think Arayik Harutyunyan’s congratulatory message of the recognition of the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk by Russia is wrong.’

Grigoryan argued that Armenian diplomacy should ensure that the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh was not seen as being equivalent to ‘other de facto states in the territory of the former Soviet Union’.

‘At the same time, I understand that Harutyunyan is forced to make such statements regularly, because he is probably getting some hints from officials in Moscow’, he added.

‘However, this does not mean that all Artsakh officials should take a stand on this issue. It is a very sensitive and dangerous topic that needs to be avoided as much as possible. It is not worth being more Catholic than the Pope’.


Court acquits Diyarbakır lawyers tried for Armenian genocide, Kurdistan remarks

Elizabeth Jabejian
Feb 22 2022
By

 SCF

 –

A Turkish court has acquitted current and former administrators of the Diyarbakır Bar Association who stood trial over references to the “Armenian genocide” and “Kurdistan,” Turkish Minute reported.

They were charged with insulting the Turkish nation and inciting hatred and hostility among the people.

The nine defendants acquitted by the Diyarbakır 13th High Criminal Court included Diyarbakır Bar Association President Nahit Eren and the association’s former president, Ahmet Özmen, MA said, adding that the charges were based on reports and statements released by the association between 2016 and 2018.

According to Mezopotamya, in two of those reports, which were issued on April 24, 2017 and April 24, 2018, the association used the term “genocide” when referring to the mass killings of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire in 1915-1916.

Armenians — supported by historians and scholars — say 1.5 million of their people died in a genocide committed under the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

Turkey accepts that both Armenians and Turks died in huge numbers as Ottoman forces fought czarist Russia but vehemently denies a deliberate policy of genocide and notes that the term had not been legally defined at the time.

In one of the statements the association condemned the temporary suspension from parliament of Osman Baydemir, a former lawmaker for the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), for using the word “Kurdistan” during a speech in parliament.

The statement released on Dec. 18, 2017 was titled “Punishing [use of the] _expression_ Kurdistan is shameful, unacceptable!” Mezopotamya said.

At the latest hearing of the lawyers’ trial, which started on Nov. 18, 2020, the court acquitted all nine defendants of the charges, also ordering the payment of TL 10,250 ($740) to each of them.

The decision would seem to indicate that using the words “Armenian genocide” and “Kurdistan” does not constitute a crime.

The Turkish bureaucracy and the public remain overly sensitive to the word “Kurdistan” and the tri-colored Kurdistan flag, which in some cases have been associated with “treason and terrorism” linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the EU.

More than 40,000 people, including 5,500 security force members, have been killed in four decades of fighting between the Turkish state and the PKK.

There have been cases of people being arrested for wearing Kurdistan T-shirts, activists detained for waving Kurdistan flags and students interrogated for tweeting pictures of the flag.

The websites of Turkey’s Presidency and Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as the state-run Anadolu news agency refer to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq as Kurdistan.

The Aznavoorian Duo to Release GEMS FROM ARMENIA On Cedille Records

Emil Lazarian
Feb 22 2022
by Chloe Rabinowitz Feb. 22, 2022  

        

On Friday, April 8, 2022, celebrated Armenian American sisters Ani (cello) and Marta (piano) Aznavoorian will release their debut duo album, Gems from Armenia, on Cedille Records. The Chicago-based Aznavoorian Duo celebrates the sounds of their ancestral homeland through a panoramic survey of Armenian classical music, including works by composers Komitas Vartabed, Aram Khachaturian, Arno Babajanian, and Avet Terterian; contemporary Armenian composers Serouj Kradjian, Alexander Arutiunian, and Vache Sharafyan; and the world premiere recording of a new piece by Peter Boyer. The duo will perform a recital featuring works from the album on Sunday, May 15, 2022 at 3:00pm at Nichols Hall at the Music Institute of Chicago in Evanston.

The Aznavoorian Duo comments, “The idea for this CD sprung out of gratitude to the proud and soulful people of Armenia and our homage to the historical challenges they have overcome and continue to engage with.” In the liner notes, Gary Peter Rejebian writes, “Gems from Armenia voices a range of opposing emotions across three periods of time: some ringing clear in their own right, others but a whisper of other peaks and valleys in the Armenian story.”

The album opens with five ancient folk songs arranged by early 20th-century Orthodox priest, composer, and musicologist Komitas Vardapet. Rejebian says, “Komitas strove not merely to capture melodic tunes, but to evoke the very life and heartache of the people who passed down poetic lyrics in song over centuries as he documented them for the ages.”

He continues “Soviet-era composers Aram Khachaturian, Arno Babajanian, Avet Terterian, and Alexander Arutiunian collectively represent a musical renaissance for the Armenians; a period of greatness analogous to the first millennium ‘Golden Age’ of the Armenian kingdom… Khachaturian’s glorious ode to his hometown (Yerevan) and Babajanian’s tribute to Khachaturian, his mentor (Elegy), speak with impassioned fondness in very different voices. Terterian’s Sonata, first performed in 1956, precedes the symphonies and stage works for which he is best known… As a snapshot of his lively style inspired by memorable folk melodies, Alexander Arutiunian composed his Impromptu in 1948.”

A third era, of contemporary music, is embodied by Serouj Kradjian, Vache Sharafyan, and Peter Boyer. Rejebian shares, “Lebanese-born pianist and composer Kradjian arranged Sari Siroun Yar (Beautiful Mountain Girl) as a faithful retelling of the troubadour Ashod’s ballad about a mountaineer pining for his beautiful village love… Sharafyan composed his Petrified Dance through multiple iterations of string-piano combinations for Harutyun Khachatryan’s documentary about Armenian street artist Vahan Ananyan.”

“Boyer composed Mount Ararat for the Aznavoorian Duo specially for this project as a reflection of how Armenia’s biblical heritage resonated with a composer from a completely different background,” Rejebian writes.

Cellist Ani Aznavoorian and pianist Marta Aznavoorian are Armenian American siblings renowned for their passion, artistry, and energy. The Los Angeles Times describes Ani as a cellist “who shows great sensitivity and great virtuosity at all moments” while The Boston Globe praises Marta as a pianist of “exceptionally finished technique and purity of musical impulse.”

Ani Aznavoorian, 15-year principal cello of Camerata Pacifica, is in demand as a soloist and chamber musician with some of the country’s most recognized ensembles and has appeared with many of the world’s leading orchestras. Marta Aznavoorian has performed to critical acclaim throughout the world as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, and educator, and has been nominated for multiple Grammy Awards. She is a founding member of the Lincoln Trio and has a vast discography.

The Aznavoorian Duo has toured France, Armenia, and Finland, performed at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, and presented numerous programs in their hometown of Chicago. They have individually worked with leading contemporary composers including John Harbison, Clarice Assad, Lera Auerbach, William Bolcom, Osvaldo Golijov, Shulamit Ran, Peter Boyer, Augusta Read Thomas, and Stacy Garrop, among others. Separately, the Aznavoorians have recorded for the Warner Classics, Cedille, ARTEC, and Erato labels.

Ani proudly performs on a cello made in Chicago by her father, Peter Aznavoorian. Marta is a Steinway Artist. Learn more at www.aniaznavoorian.com and www.martaaznavoorian.com.

1. Komitas Vartabed (1869-1935) – Chinar Es [2:47]
2. Komitas – Tsirani Tsar [3:13]
3. Komitas – Garoun A* [4:01]
4. Komitas – Al Ailux [1:23]
5. Komitas – Krunk [3:49]
6. Aram Khachaturian (1903-1978) (arr. Antti Hakkarainen) – Ivan Sings [1:41]
7. Khachaturian – Yerevan [3:04]

8. Arno Babajanian (1921-1983) – Elegy* [4:16]
Babajanian – Aria & Dance (5:33)
9. Aria [3:52]
10. Dance [1:40]
Avet Terterian (1929-1994) – Sonata for cello and piano
11. I. Andante [9:19]
12 II. Adagio [6:08]
13 III. Presto [5:06]
14. Serouj Kradjian (b. 1973) – Sari Siroun Yar [4:52]
15. Alexander Arutiunian (1920-2012) – Impromptu [4:25]
16. Vache Sharafyan (b. 1966) – Petrified Dance [5:15]
17. Peter Boyer (b. 1970) – Mount Ararat** [9:31]

Total Time: 75:41

* Solo Piano
** World Premiere Recording

CDR 90000 209
Producer: James Ginsburg
Recording Engineer: Bill Maylone
Recorded August 11-13, 2021 Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago

The birthplace of wine: Raise a toast to Armenian resilience

Hambardsumian Paul
The Critic
Feb 19 2022

Raise a toast to Armenian resilience

ARTILLERY ROW

By

Henry Jeffreys

19 February, 2022

The Armenian capital of Yerevan has much of the trappings of a modern city such as craft beer, free wifi and ugly glass architecture going up everywhere, but what differentiates it from London or Edinburgh, is the distinct feeling that at any moment horsemen may come over the mountains and kill everyone.

The country’s beautiful churches are festooned with images of grapes

This isn’t just paranoia. Armenian history has proved time and time again that their neighbours really are out to get them. In 2020, the country fought and lost a 40 day war with the Azeris over the disputed province of Nagorno-Karabakh, which lies within Azerbaijan. Over 4,000 Armenians died during the conflict.

The country lost territory including vineyards in the disputed region. Zorik Gharibian from Zorah wines had been buying chilar grapes from vineyards that are now in Azeri hands. “Viticulturally, we have lost lots of heritage,” he told me. This is important in a country with such a rich wine-making history. The country’s many beautiful churches are festooned with images of grapes and vines, and everywhere outside hotels and houses, you’ll see karas, clay jars once used for winemaking.

Indeed, Armenia might be the birthplace of wine. Near Gharibian’s winery in Vayots Dzor (it means Valley of Woes, which is so Armenian), there is a cave where archeologists have excavated wine making equipment from 6,000 years ago. Armenia, and especially Vayots Dzor, is something of a viticultural paradise with a wealth of native grape varieties and no phylloxera. The high altitude means cold nights even in summer so the grapes preserve their freshness. Sadly, the country’s long years of Soviet rule cut it off from its wine drinking roots. The communists designated Armenia as a centre of brandy production, and much of the population moved to vodka.

When I visited the country in 2016, Zorah was one of the very few Armenian wines available in Britain. You can buy it in Waitrose. Russia was once the biggest market but wine is increasingly being exported to Europe and the US.

His wines have a haunting perfume unlike anything I’ve ever had

The home market is expanding, too. Wine bars and festivals are springing up around the country. According to Aimee Keushguerian, younger people are drinking wine instead of vodka. Like Gharabian, she’s a diaspora Armenian from Italy. Her father founded Keush making sparkling wines, and she now has her own label Zulal working with rare local grape varieties. The process of cataloging these riches, which has gone on in France for hundreds of years, is only just beginning in Armenia.

When in 2000, against all advice, Gharibian wanted to make a quality wine from a local grape, areni, he had to isolate the best clones himself. Plus everything for the winery had to be imported from Italy. The investment was worth it, because his wines aged in karas have a haunting perfume unlike anything I’ve ever had. For those looking to explore beyond Zorah, it’s worth visiting Storica Wines in the US or Armenian Wines in Britain.

Not everyone, however, is on board with native varieties. The country’s most lavishly-funded producer Karas makes wine in collaboration with French consultant Michel Rolland on French and Italian varieties. It was founded by Argentine-Armenian billionaire Eduardo Eurnekian, who also built Yerevan’s modern airport. You’ll notice that the name of the winery refers to the clay jars that are the symbol of Armenian wine. Yet Karas doesn’t age its wine in karas. Furthermore, Eurnekian has trademarked the term, meaning other wineries who do actually use karas cannot put the word on their bottles. It’s an ongoing legal battle, according to Gharibian.

While Karas upon trial was perfectly agreeable in a rather Argentine style, I’d say you’d be mad to ignore Armenia’s native treasures. As Aimee Keushguerian puts it, “they have thrived in our soil for thousands of years and lived through wars, cultural changes and the Soviet Union”. Open a bottle of areni or chilar, and raise a toast to Armenian resilience.