Category: News

OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier has said that “the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh has seen a worrying deterioration on the ground.”

“The hostilities that had erupted in April 2016 contributed to the highest number of soldiers and civilians killed and wounded in a single year since the May 1994 ceasefire,” he said at a Security Council open debate on protracted conflicts in Europe.

Lamberto Zannier emphasized that the use of heavy weapons and the clear targeting of villages set a disturbing precedent, with a high risk of further fighting.

Photo:  Sputnik/ Sergey Guneev

 

Armenian Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan has said Russia’s base in Gyumri is “a very important component” of Yerevan’s security strategy.

The WBO eliminator at super middleweight between former WBA light heavyweight contender Robin Krasniqi (46-4) and and former WBO champ Arthur Abraham (45-5) will go ahead April 22 at the Congress Center in Erfurt,  reports.

It´s a fine matchup with the winner heading for a world title fight while loser faces a long way back.

Members of the European Parliament Frank Engel, Eleni Theocharous and Jaromir Stetina have issued the following joint statement on the Constitutional Referendum in Artsakh. The statement reads:

On the 20th February, the people of Artsakh voted on the draft Constitution that the authorities of the Republic submitted to their consideration. The turnout of over 76% is resounding proof of the intention of Artsakh voters to take an active part in the shaping on their democracy. The vote took place after a campaign during which both camps expressed their ideas and convictions freely. Promoters and opponents of the draft Constitution confronted their positions in the parliamentary and public debate.

The people of Artsakh said yes to their new constitution, which heralds significant changes in the institutional functioning of the country.  It also clearly spells out that the Republic of Artsakh upholds and protects the rule of law and the rights and the freedoms of the people. This message, relayed by the population of Artsakh through their decisive approval of the draft constitution is particularly significant in the South Caucasus.

A people, a population, a nation who believe in their state and refine their republican institutions should not be ignored by the international community. These people, these voting citizens exist. Their existence is not affected by the absence of international recognition of their country. The people of Artsakh, a nation under constant threat of military attack by an aggressive neighbor, continue to oppose democratic vitality and maturity to the international denial of their state.

Members of the European Parliament

Frank Engel,  Eleni Theocharous, Jaromir Stetina

Photo: AP

 

US President Donald Trump has named Lt Gen HR McMaster as his national security adviser, the BBC reports.

He will replace Lt Gen Michael Flynn who was fired after just three weeks and three days in the job.

A lieutenant general with the US Army, HR McMaster served in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he worked on a government anti-corruption drive.

Mr Trump’s first choice, retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, turned down the role, citing “personal reasons”.

The European Friends of Armenia () has published its report about the referendum observation mission in Nagorno Karabakh / Artsakh Republic. The referendum on 20 February 2017 changes the local constitution to a strongly presidential system, and changes the name from formerly “Nagorno Karabakh Republic (Artsakh)” to “Artsakh Republic (Nagorno Karabakh)”.

“From all we have seen and the data we collected across Artsakh, the referendum was well administered and seen by most citizens as an obligation to respond to the threat from Azerbaijan, especially in the light of the largescale attack in April 2016. The result clearly represents the democratic choice of the people, while some improvements remain necessary to further increase local and international trust in future votes.” summarised Dr Michael Kambeck, Acting Director of EuFoA.

A full report will follow in a few weeks.

Please find the full text.

“The referendum held on February 20 is yet another evidence of the determination of the people of Artsakh to organise their public life by democratic processes,”Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandia said in a statement.

“The current Constitutional Referendum is aimed at choosing the system of governance that the people of Nagorno-Karabakh consider more relevant to their needs,” he added.

“It is commendable that more than hundred international observers representing three dozen countries assessed the Referendum as well organized, transparent and in line with international standards,” Minister Nalbandian said.

“The exercise of fundamental freedoms is a universal right that cannot be subject to limitations. For quarter of a century Nagorno-Karabakh has been conducting processes inherent to democratic societies and there is no doubt that the people of Artsakh have certainly gained the right to live according to the same universal values that the free democratic world enjoys,” the Foreign Minister added.

“Once again the people of Artsakh demonstrated that their will to build democratic society is irreversible notwithstanding all odds of continuous use of force and threat of force, economic blockade and other hostile actions perpetrated by Azerbaijan. It does not come as a surprise that the ongoing democratic processes in Artsakh are met with such an extreme discontent in Azerbaijan – a country notorious with its human rights violations,” Minister Nalbandian concluded.

Azerbaijan’s president has appointed his wife as the first vice president of the ex-Soviet nation, the Associated Press reports.

Ilham Aliyev on Tuesday named his wife Mehriban to the position created after a constitutional referendum in September. She has served as a lawmaker and headed a charity in the past.

Aliyev’s government has long faced criticism in the West for alleged human rights abuses and suppression of dissent.

Aliyev’s critics saw September’s referendum that also extended the presidential term from five to seven years as effectively cementing a dynastic rule. Aliyev succeeded his father in 2003.

Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan will leave for Georgia on February 23 for a two-day official visit at the invitation of his Georgian counterpart Giorgi Kvirikashvili.

Within the framework of the visit PM Karapetyan is expected to have meetings with Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili and Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili.

A wide range of issues on the agenda of Armenian-Georgian cooperation will be discussed.

The NKR Foreign Ministry has issued a statement on the Constitutional Referendum held in Artsakh on February 20:

On 20 February 2017, a national referendum on a new draft Constitution was held in the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh Republic). The turnout has been 76, 44 per cent of the registered voters, of which 87, 6 per cent supported the adoption of the new Constitution. Around 100 international observers from 30 countries monitored the voting process and positively assessed the organization and conduct of the referendum noting their transparency and compliance with international standards.

The new Constitution is to continue the traditions of state building enshrined in the first constitution, further strengthen the sovereignty of the country, and promote human rights and the rule of law, to improve public administration, enroot the independent judiciary and reform the local self-government. A key innovation was the increase of direct participation of citizens in public affairs by providing them with the right to legislative initiative, as well as on proposing amendments to the Constitution.

The referendum on 20 February has become another act of expression of will by the people of Artsakh, in exercising their right to determine their own future, as enshrined in fundamental international documents.

The attempts of Baku to suppress by all means, including military, this inherent right of the people of Artsakh, lead to the outbreak of the armed conflict. It remains a major source of persistent tension in the region and the reason for the lack of progress in the settlement of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict.

The democratic development of Artsakh’s statehood is an irreversible process. Reluctance of Azerbaijan to recognize this fact through denial of the right to self-determination realized by the people of Artsakh is an attempt to return to the past, which is doomed to failure.