Category: 2023

NEOS KOSMOS, Australia

Se[t 1 2023

FOX 11, Los Angeles

Sept 1 2023

GLENDALE, Calif. - Good Day LA's Araksya Karapetyan caught up with Emmy Award-winning actor Michael Goorjian whose much-anticipated film "Amerikatsi" is set to kick off the inaugural Armenian Film Festival in Glendale on Wednesday, Sept. 6.

The festival is set for Sept. 6-10 at the Alex Theatre, Laemmle Glendale and Hero House. 

Goorjian wrote, directed and stars as the main character Charlie in the film called"Amerikatsi," which translates to "The American" in English.

"Charlie's story is really about someone longing for their homeland. Someone who wants to connect with their roots, which I think many Americans can relate to," said Michael Goorjian. "I like making films that inspire people and give them hope. So That's what I would say is the heart of what Amerikasi is."

Watch the report at https://www.foxla.com/news/inaugural-armenian-film-festival-to-be-held-in-glendale.amp

https://www.foxla.com/news/inaugural-armenian-film-festival-to-be-held-in-glendale.amp

Sept 1 2023

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/488569/Armenia-seeking-access-to-Arab-markets-India-through-Iran

Sept 1 2023

Sept 1 2023

TBILISI — 

Armenia and Azerbaijan said Friday they had sustained casualties in fighting along their common border, northwest of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia's Defense Ministry said two of its servicemen had been killed and another wounded in shelling near the town of Sotk. Azerbaijan said that Armenia had struck positions in the Kalbajar region using drones, wounding two Azerbaijani servicemen. It said it was taking "retaliatory measures."

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbors since the years leading up to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

Despite sporadic discussions on a peace deal to agree on borders, settle differences over the enclave and unfreeze relations, tensions remain high and skirmishes along the shared border are a regular occurrence.

Reuters

https://www.voanews.com/a/armenian-soldiers-killed-in-azerbaijani-shelling-defense-ministry/7250431.html

Al Arabiya. UAE

Sept 1 2023

AFP - Four Armenian servicemen were killed and three Azerbaijani soldiers wounded on Friday, the two countries said, as they accused each other of engaging in a new round of clashes.

Reuters

Sept 1 2023

The incident came a day after Armenia accused treaty ally Russia of "absolute indifference" towards attacks on its territory.

Armenia accused Azerbaijan of massing forces close to the border, and striking its positions using drones, mortars and small arms fire. Azerbaijan denied gathering forces, but said it was taking "retaliatory measures".

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but inhabited primarily by ethnic Armenians, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbours since before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

The incident came a day after Armenia accused treaty ally Russia of "absolute indifference" towards attacks on its territory.

Armenia accused Azerbaijan of massing forces close to the border, and striking its positions using drones, mortars and small arms fire. Azerbaijan denied gathering forces, but said it was taking "retaliatory measures".

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but inhabited primarily by ethnic Armenians, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbours since before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

The incident came a day after Armenia accused treaty ally Russia of "absolute indifference" towards attacks on its territory.

Armenia accused Azerbaijan of massing forces close to the border, and striking its positions using drones, mortars and small arms fire. Azerbaijan denied gathering forces, but said it was taking "retaliatory measures".

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but inhabited primarily by ethnic Armenians, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbours since before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

PRESS TV, Iran

Sept 1 2023

Fresh border clashes have erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan, with both sides having sustained casualties.

The fighting broke out around their common border, northwest of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, on Friday.

According to Armenia's Defense Ministry, four of its troops had been killed and another wounded in shelling near the border villages of Sotk and Norabak.

Azerbaijan's authorities said Armenia had struck the country's positions across the border in the Kalbajar region, using drones, wounding three soldiers.

"We declare that all responsibility for the tension and its consequences lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia," Azerbaijan’s defense ministry said. 

Nagorno-Karabakh has been at the center of a dispute between Baku and Yerevan for more than three decades.

Since gaining independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, the two neighboring countries have fought two wars, in 1994 and 2020, over the mountainous territory.

Karabakh, while acknowledged as a part of Azerbaijan by the international community, has a predominantly Armenian population that has persistently opposed Azerbaijani governance since a separatist war in 1994.

In 2020, a new conflict erupted in Karabakh resulting in the loss of over 6,500 lives from both sides within a six-week period. The war concluded with a ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia, which led to Yerevan relinquishing control over significant portions of Azerbaijani territory that it had held for many years.

Accusations of ceasefire breaches are regularly exchanged between both parties.

Tensions remain high and skirmishes along the shared border are a regular occurrence despite mediation efforts by the European Union, United States and Russia.

Russia brokered a peace deal between the two sides in November 2020 an end to a 44-day war in the region. It has since deployed about 2,000 troops to the region to serve as peacekeepers.

European Union Council President Charles Michel, who mediated another round of peace talks between the two countries, stated on July 15 that peace and normalization of ties between Azerbaijan and Armenia could be achieved if both sides avoid violence and harsh rhetoric.

“Real progress depends on the next steps that will need to be taken in the near future. As a matter of priority, violence, and harsh rhetoric should stop in order to provide the proper environment for peace and normalization talks,” Michel said.

Sept 1 2023

Arayik Harutyunyan has resigned as de facto president of the Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, effective on September 1.

He made the announcement on Facebook on August 31, posting: "I made this final decision two days ago, taking into account my contacts in the past weeks with all domestic and foreign actors and the public."

There had been speculation for weeks about his possible resignation and he openly mused about it amid demonstrations this week in the region's de facto capital, Stepanakert. 

Harutyunyan took office in May 2020. Together with leaders of the Republic of Armenia, he oversaw the Armenian side's defeat in the Second Karabakh War in fall of that year which saw the de facto statelet lose most of the territory it claimed. 

The remaining area controlled by the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (usually referred to as Artsakh by Armenians) has been under Azerbaijani blockade since December 2022, and that blockade has been total or near-total since June 2023.

The resulting shortages of foodstuffs and essential supplies contributed to growing frustration with Harutyunyan's rule. 

In his resignation announcement, Harutyunyan wrote that the "unstable geopolitical situation" and "Artsakh's internal political and social environment" required a more flexible approach to the region's future that could start with his departure.

"My biography and Azerbaijan's attitude towards it artificially create a number of conditions that cause significant problems from the point of view of building our next steps and conducting a flexible policy. In addition, the defeat in the war and the subsequent difficulties in the country have significantly reduced the trust in the authorities, especially the president, which has seriously hindered the further course of proper governance," said the former president.

Azerbaijan declared Harutyunyan a "terrorist" during the 2020 war for allegedly ordering the shelling of civilians. Baku initiated a criminal case against him and placed him on an international wanted list.

Before stepping down, Harutyunyan pushed through a constitutional amendment that enabled Karabakh's legislature to elect an interim president in case of the incumbent's early resignation. 

Hence, the National Assembly will elect an interim president within ten days to serve out the rest of Harutyunyan's term ending 2025.

Along with his resignation, Harutyunyan also dismissed Gurgen Nersisyan as state minister, which is the second-highest-ranking executive position in the territory. Shortly afterward, Artak Beglaryan announced he was stepping down as advisor to the state minister. 

Harutyunyan named Samvel Shahramanyan, the former Security Council secretary who also headed the team negotiating with Azerbaijan earlier in March, as the new state minister.

The Ruben Vardanyan factor

The former president's loudest and most influential critic was Ruben Vardanyan, a Russian-Armenian billionaire who moved to Nagorno-Karabakh last September in order to take on a leadership role. 

Harutyunyan appointed him to the newly empowered position of state minister but sacked him from that post in February, after just four months in the job.

In a Facebook video address on August 19, Vardanyan, who has remained in Karabakh, demanded Harutyunyan's resignation, claiming that he had reneged on several previous promises to step down. 

The address came after a group of civilian militia supportive of Harutyunyan entered the parliament building in an apparent show of force against opponents calling for his resignation.  

That event in turn took place two weeks after the de facto parliament had elected MP Davit Ishkhanyan, an opponent of Harutyunyan's and a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun, as its new speaker. 

Tigran Grigoryan, a Karabakh native and the president of the Regional Center of Democracy and Security in Yerevan, told RFE/RL that Harutyunyan's resignation resulted from pressure from Vardanyan and the region's still-influential former presidents. 

"Vardanyan consolidated the former presidents and their supporters, as well as the opposition parties in Karabakh, and their collective demand compelled Harutyunyan to resign," he said. 

He was referring to former de facto presidents Bako Sahakyan (in office 2007-20) and Arkadi Ghukasyan (1997-2007), who are broadly considered to be allied with the former presidents of the Republic of Armenia (Robert Kocharyan and Serj Sargsyan) that are now in opposition there. 

Grigoryan noted rumors that Samvel Shahramanyan, the newly appointed state minister, would be chosen by MPs as the new president. 

"They're transitioning to create a collective body, consisting of the former leaders and security forces, as the new decision-maker. Shahramanyan is not an independent political figure but rather a representative of the group," he said, adding that it's still unclear what effect the change in leadership will have on the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Sept 1 2023