Category: 2023

 17:05,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Armenia did not veto the documents that were adopted during the CSTO summit in Belarus which it did not attend, Belarus State Secretary of the Security Council Alexander Volfovich has said.

He said that the documents were agreed upon beforehand.

The Belarusian foreign minister, Sergei Aleinik, confirmed that CSTO decisions are made by consensus. “I have had a telephone conversation with my Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan. We discussed, among other things, these issues and decision-making mechanisms. All decisions that will be made today will be absolutely legitimate. In accordance with the rules and procedures of the organization, all decisions are made by consensus of all member countries. We agreed that following the summit, the CSTO secretary general will visit Yerevan. And, naturally, we will forward all the decisions finalized here within the framework of the conciliation commission to our Armenian partners. And we will count on them to join these decisions,” BelTA quoted him as saying.

 15:28,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Some issues in the talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan require the presence of mediators, Deputy Foreign Minister Mnatsakan Safaryan has said.

“We’ve numerously said that there are issues where the presence of mediators is mandatory. There are issues where the presence of mediators has a very important role,” he said when asked whether Armenia is in favor of holding talks with Azerbaijan without mediators.

Such issues include the rights of the forcibly displaced population of Nagorno-Karabakh, Safaryan said, adding that Armenia attaches importance to the presence of international mechanisms in this issue. There are other issues that require guarantees, he said.

“At this moment the issue of the rights of the forcibly displaced population is being raised by Armenia,” Safaryan said.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed to hold a meeting on border delimitation on November 30.

 17:30,

GYUMRI, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. President of Iraq Abdul Latif Rashid has visited Gyumri as part of his official trip to Armenia.

He was accompanied by Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan.

The Iraqi president visited the TUMO Center for Creative Technologies and then participated in the Connecting Innovations Armenian-Iraqi Tech Initiative which took place in Sev Berd castle.

“We must now look ahead and do everything we can to make Armenia a technologically developed country. I am sure that the further cooperation, also intensification of the political relations, will benefit the development of this area as well,” Khachaturyan said, highlighting the friendship of Armenia and Iraq.

“When there’s an alternative, we become safer, when there isn’t, we are in danger. Let’s use the opportunities that Iraq has. For this, we need to get to know the Iraqi people and Iraqi economy’s demands better,” Khachaturyan added.

 President of Iraq Abdul Latif Rashid lauded the new level of cooperation between the two countries.

“Many Armenians are working in various cities in Iraq, in various sectors, we can have the new phase of cooperation not only on the state level, but also in business sectors,” he said.

 The Armenian President said that all prerequisites exist for strengthening the age-old friendship between the two countries, and that the IT sector can become a new area for cooperation.

 18:01,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of Armenia Narek Mkrtchyan on Thursday received the delegation of the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the People's Republic of China, headed by Vice Minister Zhan Chengfu.

During the meeting, the perspectives of sectoral cooperation and a number of issues of mutual interest were discussed, the ministry said in a press release.

The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs highly appreciated the role of long-standing friendly relations between Armenia and China and in this context emphasized the importance of joint work in the fields of social protection of both countries.

"We have effective cooperation with the Chinese Embassy in Armenia and have implemented many joint projects. We hope that further initiatives with the Ministry of Civil Affairs will also have tangible results," the minister said.

Zhan Chengfu, in turn, thanked for the reception and noted that the members of the delegation were impressed by Armenia.

"Both Armenia and China are developing countries, and we should help each other to find the right way of development. We have a lot to learn from Armenia and a lot of work to do together," said the head of the delegation, adding that they are ready to exchange experience in various fields.

''During the meeting, the parties also referred to the process of providing social support to forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh. Zhan Chengfu noted that they are ready to take necessary steps to overcome the crisis created in Armenia.

As part of the visit, separate discussions with the representatives of the sector with the participation of the delegation members, as well as visits to the care facilities operating under the ministry are planned,'' the ministry said.

 17:33,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aide Yuri Ushakov has said that Moscow expects Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s participation in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) summits scheduled to take place in Saint Petersburg in December.

 "I think they [Armenian delegation] will come to Saint Petersburg, where the traditional informal CIS summit will take place, and also the official EAEU meeting. By the way, at this meeting the chairmanship [of EAEU] will pass from us to Armenia, thus I believe that Pashinyan will arrive to accept the chairmanship from President Putin,” TASS quoted Ushakov as saying.

 18:30,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. All Armenian political prisoners, POWs and hostages illegally held in Azerbaijan must be released immediately in accordance with the international law.

This is noted in the report of the Center for Truth and Justice entitled “Azerbaijan Must Release All Armenian Political Prisoners, POWs and Hostages.”

The report indicates that on Sept. 19, 2023, an Azerbaijani offensive, the second in three years, set the stage for the ethnic cleansing of Armenians from their ancestral land of Nagorno-Karabakh. Within 10 days, over 100,000 Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakh and found refuge in neighboring Armenia.

During the Sep-Nov 2020 and Sep 2023 wars against Nagorno-Karabakh, the Azerbaijani authorities detained some 200 Armenian civilians and military personnel.

“Dozens remain in Azerbaijani jails illegally, some awaiting trials and others illegally convicted to lengthy jail terms,’’ reads the report.

It is noted that according to Azerbaijan’s prosecutor general, 300 former leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh are wanted  for alleged war crimes committed during the wars. Eight of these leaders were detained, humiliated in front of cameras, and transferred to prisons in Baku.

Referring to the hostages, the authors of the report noted that an unknown number of Armenian civilians were taken prisoner since 2020 by Azerbaijani security personnel in and around Nagorno-Karabakh and within the borders of Armenia.

As for POWs, according to the report, 36 Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) remain in Azerbaijani prisons.

“The 2020 war POWs should have been released in accordance with the 10 November 2020 ceasefire agreement. Now that both wars are over, all POWs from must be freed immediately in accordance with the Geneva Conventions. The majority of prisoners of war were taken a month after the official ceasefire in 2020, and in the area of Khtsaberd.

These political prisoners, POWs and hostages, some of whom have been convicted illegally to lengthy jail terms in Azerbaijan, must be freed immediately in accordance with international law, and at the very least as a confidence-building measure so that the ongoing negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan can produce results. The international community, in particular the U.S., Russia and EU mediators, as well as others, have an obligation to persuade Azerbaijan to free them unconditionally and immediately,’’ reads the report.

All the hostages are represented by name in the report, including the persons who held leadership positions in Nagorno-Karabakh: Arayik Harutyunyan, Bako Sahakyan, Davit Babayan, Arkadi Ghukasyan, Ruben Vardanyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, Davit Manukyan, Levon Mnatsakanyan, as well as captured civilians and military personnel.

 18:47,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. The Chair of the Armenian National Assembly Standing Committee on Labor and Social Affairs Heriknaz Tigranyan on Nov. 23 held a meeting with the UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion of Truth, Justice, Reparation and Guarantees of Non-Recurrence Fabian Savioli.

During the meeting Heriknaz Tigranyan highly appreciated the importance of the UN Special Rapporteur’s mandate and the mission of visiting Armenia in the period full of challenge, the National Assembly of Armenia said in a statement.

“Within the framework of the working visit the UN Special Rapporteur, as an independent expert has been trying to highlight the events happening in Armenia since the independence, which refer to the protection of human rights, the institute of damage compensation and the transitional justice.

Heriknaz Tigranyan presented the legislative reforms implemented in the judicial system, the protection of human rights. The works being done on the servicemen’s social guarantees and compensation mechanisms were discussed in detail.

The Committee Chair underscored that the social protection issues of the servicemen and their family members are always in the center of attention of the legislative and executive bodies.

 The member of the Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs Marina Ghazaryan also attended the meeting,’’ reads the statement.

 19:18,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a meeting with EU Ambassador to Armenia and Ambassadors of EU Member States accredited in Armenia.

Issues related to Armenia-European Union cooperation and joint programs, in particular, the agenda of reforms in Armenia and the continuous support of the EU to the strengthening of democratic institutions, were discussed, the PM's Office said in a readout.

The sides exchanged ideas on the processes taking place in the South Caucasus region. Reference was made to the humanitarian problems of more than 100,000 forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of Azerbaijan's ethnic cleansing policy, as well as to the steps taken by the Armenian government to overcome them. The support of the international community in solving the existing problems was highlighted.

Issues related to regional security and stability, the process of normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations were discussed.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan answered the Ambassadors' questions and presented the views of the Armenian government.

 19:02,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Chief of Staff of the Prime Minister Arayik Harutyunyan received the delegation led by Barbara Boeni Slaats, Regional Head of Cooperation South Caucasus at Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.

At the meeting, reference was made to the humanitarian problems of our compatriots forcibly displaced from Nagorno Karabakh and the programs implemented by the Armenian government in that direction, the press service of the Government said.

Arayik Harutyunyan highly appreciated the support provided by Switzerland to the Armenian Government related to both the problems of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh and to the ongoing reforms implemented by the Government.

An agreement was reached to continue cooperation on the reform agenda, in particular, the Public Administration Reform (PAR) strategy.

The Chief of the Prime Minister’s Staff emphasized that the priority of participatory management of the PAR strategy is one of the important directions, as it will improve the involvement of civil society in decision-making.

B. Slaats noted that bilateral programs with the Armenian government are progressing successfully and they are ready to cooperate in the direction of other development programs in Armenia.

 21:06,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS.  Gardman-Shirvan-Nakhijevan Pan-Armenian Union has issued a statement regarding the circulation of fake scientific political discourse by Azerbaijan. The Union has urged Azerbaijan to admit the numerous historical injustices committed against Armenians over the past century.

‘’We call on Azerbaijan to take tangible measures for the just restoration of the rights of Armenians who have suffered from Azerbaijani aggression at different times.

 The selective approach to historical facts, the re-editing of the past and the formation of one-sided visions of the future in accordance with it are among the brilliant examples of Azerbaijani political hypocrisy.

This explains the great desire of Azerbaijan, as a young state, to hide the complexity of the historical past, because the historical reality is one thing, and the invention of the desired past is another.

Consequently, the entire Azerbaijani historiography represents nothing more than a contrast between the desired and the reality, from which there are two ways out: either accept reality and strive to correct its consequences, or accept a position of complete denial, repeating the dangerous practice of ethnic cleansing, cultural genocide, complete violation of human rights and disregard for authoritative international structures.

It is not difficult to notice the destructive approach adopted by Azerbaijan. The most superficial study of Azerbaijani society clearly shows that all layers of this state are focused on one issue: the development of anti-Armenian discourses.

Various initiatives containing ambitions for the sovereign territory of Armenia, the activities of government officials hidden under the cover of non-political organizations, meaningless and baseless speeches, scientific discourses, festivals, presentations, congresses clearly show Azerbaijan’s real ideas about regional stability,” the statement reads.