12:34, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. At its meeting today, the Board of the Central Bank of Armenia decided to reduce the refinancing rate by 0.25 pp, setting it at 10.25%, the Central Bank said in a press release.
The Lombard repo facility rate is set at 11.75 %, and the Deposit facility rate is at 8.75 %.
14:45, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. Former Minister of Defense Davit Tonoyan has claimed that when he took office in 2018 the Armenian military was capable of withstanding a significantly superior enemy force.
Tonoyan made the remarks in parliament during a session of the 2020 war commission when asked to comment on the state of the military at the time he took office as Defense Minister. He told lawmakers that the Armenian Armed Forces were fit to engage in defensive battles and were capable of withstanding an attack by a twice or three times more superior enemy force, taking into consideration the degree of combat readiness, the geography and positions.
“Why am I saying twice or three times more superior? I mean that in terms of engaging in a defensive battle the readiness degree of the armed forces was satisfactory. This isn’t my assessment, this is a calculated and substantiated information,” Tonoyan said.
Vahagn Alexanyan, an MP representing the Civil Contract party, asked Tonoyan to specify whether the Armenian military was outnumber two or three times in terms of equipment of the Azeri forces when the 2020 war began. Tonoyan clarified that his response was to a question about the state of readiness of the military and not about the ratio of the forces when the war began.
14:54, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. The ECHR has given Azerbaijan by August 8 to provide information about Vagif Khachatryan, the resident of Nagorno-Karabakh who was kidnapped by Azerbaijani border guards while being evacuated by the Red Cross to Armenia for treatment, the Office of the Representative of Armenia for International Legal Matters said in a statement.
Azerbaijan must provide information on the location and condition of detention of Khachatryan, as well as the latter’s health, any received treatment and possible return.
Earlier Armenia applied to the European Court of Human Rights with a request to indicate provisional measures against Azerbaijan.
18:06, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. Today, Ralph Yirikian, the Director General of "Ucom" CJSC, personally oversaw the unloading process of the equipment of Ericsson, one of the global giants in the supply of modern ICT products, solutions, software, and services, which arrived in Armenia. During a recent press conference, the Director General highlighted that the modernization and expansion of both mobile and fixed networks in Armenia are key pillars of Ucom's 5-year strategy. The company has already initiated the modernization of the mobile network to make it 5G ready, collaborating with industry leaders like Ericsson.
"We have previously announced the commencement of the re-equipment, development, modernization, and network expansion works, which will be carried out in several stages. The equipment for the first part of the initial phase has already arrived, and we are currently in the process of unloading and installing them at different stations. I want to once again remind our subscribers that a little patience will be required during this extensive network improvement, as there may be intermittent interruptions or temporary degradation in service quality. However, the ultimate goal is to achieve excellent mobile network quality and provide an exceptional experience for our unique and beloved subscribers," stated Ralph Yirikian, Director General of Ucom.
Besides modernizing the network, Ucom is set to revamp several of its services by replacing the outdated technological platforms and solutions with the most advanced and innovative alternatives.
17:16, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, 1 AUGUST, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 1 August, USD exchange rate up by 0.04 drams to 386.18 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 2.08 drams to 424.03 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.02 drams to 4.21 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 2.46 drams to 494.19 drams.
The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.
Gold price up by 206.14 drams to 24467.54 drams. Silver price up by 1.64 drams to 302.39 drams.
18:32, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. ArtsakhX, a messenger designed specifically for Nagorno-Karabakh to ensure untinterrupted communication in the event of blackouts has been officially launched, the Nagorno-Karabakh authorities announced Tuesday.
ArtsakhX is encrypted with NATO-approved military grade End-to-End AES-GSM-256 algorithm.
The app was developed as part of a memorandum signed between the Government of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) and Zangi.
Zangi CEO Vahram Martirosyan announced ArtsakhX in an with ARMENPRESS earlier in July.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1116580.html?fbclid=IwAR1vbqjA1mPmYspsAHDxJOfUoRolpr1KQZWF0bq_X98-n_8OQ8Y1wF7oJfk
19:19, 1 August 2023
STEPANAKERT, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. Nagorno-Karabakh authorities have reiterated readiness to discuss reasonable proposals on organizing meetings between their representatives and the authorities of Azerbaijan, the Nagorno-Karabakh foreign ministry told ARMENPRESS.
ARMENPRESS asked the Nagorno-Karabakh foreign ministry to comment on the media reports regarding a possible meeting between representatives of Stepanakert and Baku.
"While recognising the significance of public interest in both Artsakh and Armenia regarding the possibility of initiating a dialogue between Stepanakert and Baku, we believe it would be inappropriate to comment on specific meetings, which were cancelled due to reasons not related to us. We would like to emphasise that the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh have always been open to discussing reasonable proposals aimed at facilitating dialogue between representatives of Artsakh and Azerbaijan. Moreover, Artsakh, for its part, has consistently put forward initiatives and proposals aimed at arranging meetings between representatives of Artsakh and Azerbaijan, with the involvement of mediators. We firmly believe that the success of any dialogue relies on the sincere willingness and good faith of both parties to resolve their differences. There is such willingness on our part. If the Azerbaijani side also shows it, this will pave the way for the beginning of the dialogue. At the same time, we reiterate our position that dialogue between Artsakh and Azerbaijan should take place within an agreed international format, supported by an appropriate mandate. This approach will facilitate increased engagement of the international community in the negotiation process, bolster its legitimacy and sustainability, and ensure reliable guarantees for the implementation of potential agreements between the parties," the Nagorno-Karabakh foreign ministry told ARMENPRESS.
20:56, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. On August 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan had a telephone conversation with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mirjana Spoljaric Egger.
Mirzoyan and Mirjana Spoljaric Egger discussed the humanitarian crisis resulting from the illegal blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan, the foreign ministry said in a readout.
Ararat Mirzoyan stressed the imperative to immediately lift the blockade of the Lachin corridor and the urgency of delivery of food, medicine and other basic necessities to Nagorno-Karabakh.
Minister Mirzoyan stressed the importance of ensuring under current circumstances the proper and continuous functioning of the ICRC, the only international humanitarian organization with access to Nagorno-Karabakh and described Azerbaijan's attempts to hinder the humanitarian activities of the ICRC and discredit it as condemnable. In this context, Minister Mirzoyan touched upon the abduction of Vagif Khachatryan by the Azerbaijani border service on July 29, who, having serious health issues, was being transported from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia for medical treatment. The minister called this act perfidious and unacceptable, running counter to the norms of international humanitarian law and aimed at ethnic cleansing of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.
20:38, 1 August 2023
YEREVAN, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. The State Border Service of Azerbaijan has claimed to have arrested an Armenian citizen for allegedly violating the state border.
In a statement, the State Border Service of Azerbaijan claimed that a citizen of Armenia, identified as Rashid Aramayis Begleryan (born 1962) was arrested for allegedly breaching the Armenia-Azerbaijan border in the area of Aghavno village on August 1.
At the time of writing the Armenian authorities had not made any public statements on the matter.
UPDATES:
21:14 – The man arrested by Azerbaijani border guards for allegedly violating the border whom Azeri authorities described as a citizen of Armenia is actually a citizen of Nagorno-Karabakh who accidentally crossed into Azeri-controlled territory after getting lost, Nagorno-Karabakh authorities reported.
21:14, 1 August 2023
STEPANAKERT, AUGUST 1, ARMENPRESS. The man arrested by Azerbaijani border guards for allegedly violating the border whom Azeri authorities described as a citizen of Armenia is actually a citizen of Nagorno-Karabakh who accidentally crossed into Azeri-controlled territory after getting lost, Nagorno-Karabakh authorities said on Tuesday.
The arrested citizen, Rashid Beglaryan, born in 1962, is a local of Shushi who was displaced as a result of the 2020 war and was living in the village of Hin Shen of Shushi region, according to the official InfoCenter of Nagorno-Karabakh. According to preliminary information the man appeared under Azerbaijani control as a result of getting lost. Authorities are clarifying the circumstances.
Nagorno-Karabakh authorities said they’ve notified the Russian peacekeepers on the incident.