Category: 2022

 16:25,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. The Vice Speaker of the Parliament of Armenia Ishkhan Saghatelyan held an online meeting with the Co-Chairs of the Australia-Armenia Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group Trent Zimmerman and Joel Fitzgibbon.

Armenian National Committee of Australia Executive Director Haig Kayserian and Political Affairs Director Michael Kolokossian also participated in the meeting, the Armenian parliament’s press service said.

Ishkhan Saghatelyan, the Head of the Armenia-Australia Friendship Group of the Armenian Parliament, expressed gratitude to his Australian colleagues for developing the Armenian-Australian ties, noting that he is ready to make additional efforts to develop the existing relations and conveying new quality to the ties.

Saghatelyan positively assessed Australia’s balanced position on the Artsakh issue, underscoring the recognition of the independence of the Republic of Artsakh by New South Wales.

The issue of the Armenian Genocide recognition was also addressed during the meeting.

“I hope that the day of justice will come, and Australia will fully recognize the fact of the Armenian Genocide. This is needed also for preventing new genocides,” Vice Speaker Saghatelyan said, in part, and in this context touched upon the process in the direction of establishing Armenian-Turkish relations.

Ishkhan Saghatelyan underscored that Artsakh can never be part of Azerbaijan and that the conflict must be resolved within the OSCE Minsk Group.

Joel Fitzgibbon also attached importance to the recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide, as well as uniting the international community’s efforts for this purpose in order to prevent new genocides in the future.

Other issues relating to the development of the Armenian-Australian ties, as well as issues of mutual-interest were discussed.

 16:43,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will discuss the implementation process of the 2020 November 9 and 2021 January 11 trilateral agreements over Nagorno Karabakh on February 22 in Moscow, the Kremlin press service said.

The two leaders will also discuss the unblocking of economic and transportation communications in the South Caucasus, as well as issues relating to the further development of bilateral relations in political, commercial and humanitarian areas.

According to the statement of the Kremlin press service, a declaration on allied partnership will be signed as a result of talks.

 17:30,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBUARY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 21 February, USD exchange rate down by 0.30 drams to 478.70 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.82 drams to 543.80 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.10 drams to 6.22 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 0.17 drams to 652.66 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 15.95 drams to 29143.57 drams. Silver price up by 2.62 drams to 365.83 drams. Platinum price up by 174.28 drams to 16791.1 drams.

 17:36,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. According to the Southern Military District of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as a result of joint operations of the military and border guards, two infantry fighting vehicles of the Ukrainian army were destroyed, ARMENPRESS reports Ria Novosti informed.

According to the military, two combat vehicles of the Ukrainian Armed Forces entered the territory of Russia and were destroyed. It is reported that 5 Ukrainian servicemen were killed, there are no casualties among the Russians.

 18:03,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. The Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan on February 21 met with Ambassador of Finland to Armenia Kirsti Narinen.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Security Council, at the request of the Ambassador the Secretary of the Security Council presented the position of Armenia on the delimitation and demarcation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, unblocking of regional transport infrastructure and resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. In this context, Armen Grigoryan emphasized that the co-chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group is the only format, in the framework of which the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh can be resolved.

Ambassador Kirsti Narinen highly appreciated the process of the implementation of the democratic reforms in Armenia and expressed the readiness of her country for the future continuing cooperation with Armenia.

During the meeting the sides also discussed a wide range of issues of bilateral interest.

 18:20,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 20, ARMENPRESS. The sitting of the Bureau of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly took place in Yerevan on February 21. The heads of the delegations of the parliaments of Armenia, Georgia, Ukraine from the Eastern Partnership countries, as well as the political groups of the European Parliament took part.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the parliament of Armenia, during the sitting, the deputies of the Eastern Partnership countries presented information on the current political processes in their countries. Issues related to the security and political situation in the European Union and the Eastern Partnership area were also discussed.

The sittings of the Euronest PA Committees on Political Affairs, Human Rights and Democracy, Economic Integration, Legal Approximation and Convergence with EU Policies, Energy Security, Social Affairs, Employment, Education, Culture and Civil Society will be held on February 22 at aren Demirchyan Sports and Concert Complex.

 19:29,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBRUARY, ARMENPERESS. The leaders of the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugantsk Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik asked the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin to recognize the independence of Donetsk and Lugansk, ARMENPRESS reports “RIA Novosti” writes.

The leaders of Donetsk and Lugansk asked Vladimir Putin also to consider the opportunity to reach a cooperation agreement, as well as prospects of the field of defense.

 19:49,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBRUARY, ARMENPRESS. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he will make a decision today on the recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk, ARMENPRESS reports RIA Novosti informs that Vladimir Putin stated this at the end of the Security Council session.

“Dear colleagues, I listened to your opinions. Decisions will be made today. I want to thank you for this meeting and consultation,” Putin said.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and other members of the Security Council attended the meeting.

 20:05,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 21, ARMENPRESS. A telephone conversation between the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin took place on February 21, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister.

The two leaders discussed the implementation of the agreements reached in the trilateral statements of November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021.

The President of the Russian Federation invited the Prime Minister of Armenia to pay an official visit to Moscow in the spring. The Prime Minister of Armenia, in turn, invited Vladimir Putin to Armenia.

The interlocutors also discussed the situation in Russian-Ukrainian relations and regional security issues.

 21:22,

YEREVAN, 21 FEBRUARY, ARMENPERESS. Criminal prosecutions and searches by the competent bodies of the Republic of Azerbaijan against the citizens of the Republic of Armenia and the Artsakh Republic are illegal and unfounded, Gor Abrahamyan, Adviser to the Prosecutor General of Armenia, told ARMENPRESS.  

“Those actions have political motives, also manifestations of hatred, national discrimination and hostility that underlie the war, which continue to this day. As for the measures taken by the Prosecutor’s Office, I would like to say that in all the cases when we receive such information, steps are taken through the appropriate channels, using our international cooperation tools, so that their international search initiatives do not proceed”, said Gor Abrahamyan.