Category: News

TBS’s late-night show host Conan O’Brien is taking his show to Armenia, according to the

The Conan star will be the first American late-night host to ever do a show from the country. O’Brien’s longtime Armenian assistant, Sona Movsesian, will join him when they shoot the installment of his TBS show, which will air at 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 10.

The trip will mark the first time in Aremia for both O’Brien and Movsesian. “I think it’s every boss’s responsibility to take their assistant back to their ancestral land,” said O’Brien. “That’s why I’m going to make sure my next assistant was born in a five-star resort in Tuscany.”

In addition to doing shows in New York, Chicago, Dallas and Atlanta, the host most recently filmed Conan from Comic Con in San Diego. In the spring, he made headlines as the first American late-night host to shoot in Cuba in more than 50 years.

O’Brien is planning to continue to do shows from various locations around the globe, with specific details being released over the next few months.

Conan airs Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m.

British-born economist Angus Deaton has won the 2015 economics Nobel Prize for his work on consumption, poverty and welfare that has helped governments to improve policy through tools such as household surveys and tax changes, Reuters reports.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the microeconomist’s work had been a major influence on policy making, helping for example to determine how different social groups are affected by specific changes in taxation.

“To design economic policy that promotes welfare and reduces poverty, we must first understand individual consumption choices,” the award-giving body said in announcing the 8 million Swedish crown ($978,000) prize.

“More than anyone else, Angus Deaton has enhanced this understanding,” it said.

Deaton, 69, has spearheaded the use of household survey data in developing countries, especially data on consumption, to measure living standards and poverty, the academy said.

A multi-national inspection group of the Republic of Turkey is carrying out inspection in Armenia deom October 11 to 14 under the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty, Press Service of the Armenian Ministry of Defense Reports.

The inspection aims to check the authenticity of information provided by the Republic of Armenia on the quantity of armaments, equipment and military staff restricted by the CFE Treaty, the scheme of the military units and plan of the buildings.

Five resolutions were adopted during the 31st Ministerial Conference of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) in Yerevan, one of them related to the “prevention on genocide” initiated by Armenia. The resolution refers to the OIF Secretary General Michaëlle Jean’s statement on the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, in which she paid tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims and expressed her support to the Armenian people.

The resolution notes that the Organization strongly condemns all genocides and crimes against humanity that have claimed a huge number of human lives, pays tribute to the memory of the victims of those crimes and pledges to take measures to reinforce the mechanisms of prevention of genocides and crimes against humanity.

Under the resolution, the Organization undertakes to reinforce the cooperation between states and governments to put an end to the impunity of those responsible for the crimes.

Also, the Ministerial Conference adopted resolutions on “Francophonie as an area of peace, tolerance, plurality, dialogue and mutual understanding,” “Challenges to the 21^st Conference of the member states of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Changes (UNFCCC),” “Refugees and Migrants,” “Youth Participation in Francophone Structures.” The first two were initiated by Armenia.

Turkey’s military transport helicopters have penetrated into Armenia’s air space twice in the recent days, Armenia’s civil aviation department told TASS on Saturday.

“On October 6 and 7 transport helicopters of Turkey’ Armed Forces violated the air space of Armenia,” the source said.

“Air traffic controllers of the Armaeronavigation company have got in contact with their Turkish counterparts who referred to bad weather,” he said noting that the country’s air border was breached in the direction of the city of Armavir, some 48 kilometres from the Armenian capital city of Yerevan, and that the helicopters were en route from the Igdir to Kars regions in Turkey’s east, bordering Armenia.

President Serzh Sargsyan has sent a letter of condolence to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of the Republic of Turkey over the that occurred in Ankara in October 10.  The incident left a few dozen innocent people dead and more than a hundred injured.

The RA president has strongly condemned terrorism with all its expressions.

“Please accept my condolences over the incident. I wish steadfastness and strength of spirit to the victims’ relatives, and a speedy recovery to the injured,” reads the Armenian president’s condolence letter.

President Serzh Sargsyan participated today in the opening session of the 31st Ministerial Conference of the International Organization of La Francophonie at Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concerts Complex. About 500 representatives from organization’s member countries and of the General Secretariat of the International Organization of La Francophonie have arrived in Armenia to take part in the 31st session of the conference. Armenia’s president delivered an address at the conference.
Address by President Serzh Sargsyan at the 31st Ministerial Conference of the Francophonie
Honorable Chairperson of the conference,
Mrs. Secretary-General,
Dear heads of delegation,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I am greatly honored to herald the beginning of this representative meeting, the 31st Ministerial Conference of the International Organization of La Francophonie. This is an exceptional event for our country, and Armenia is hosting the members of the great Francophone family with the same exceptional sincerity and devotion. This conference is a wonderful chance for all of us to once again honor the Francophone culture and sum up the solemn Francophone atmosphere prevailing in Armenia during the whole year. I cordially welcome all of you to Yerevan.

Let me also congratulate Michaëlle Jean, the newly-elected secretary-general of the International Organization of La Francophonie, who is participating in the works of the organization’s ministerial conference for the first time since taking office. Throughout this brief period of tenure, Mrs. Jean has tried her best to present the organization and its constituent institutions in the international arena. I am confident that under her able leadership, the organization will continue the best traditions of more than decade-long activities carried out by previous Secretary-General Abdou Diouf, the former president of Senegal, and will achieve further success in the organization’s works. Congratulations, Mrs. Michaelle!

Armenia has ages-old ties with many of the Francophone family countries. About one millennium ago, French was the language of official business correspondence and arts in the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia which was situated along the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Today Armenia consistently fulfills the commitment undertaken under its membership in the Francophonie to popularizing and advancing the French language.

Currently, being a part of an organization representing 80 states and governments from five continents, including also separate entities, affords us new opportunities to reinforce our historical ties and establish and deepen new ones.

Mr. Chairperson,

Presently, we live under conditions of new crises and threats that have emerged in the international arena, and can witness further widening of dividing lines. Hence, special importance have begun to acquire international and regional organizations which try to unite and not to divide. We must reinforce our institutions, raise their effectiveness and importance. In this respect, the International Organization of La Francophonie holds vital significance: our unity is grounded first of all on values – isn’t it? – which is a precious and eternal unifying factor in the present world.

Unfortunately, there are also conflicts and crises that continue to pose a threat to the security of some regions of the Francophone space and endanger their sustainable development. It was no accident that the main subject of the conference proposed by Armenia is “The Peace, Tolerance, Dialogue and Mutual Understanding in the Francophone Space.” We believe that through tolerance we can avoid a lot of problems and on the contrary, intolerance can result in crises, conflicts and even in the commitment of genocide, the gravest crime against humanity. We know about it from our own experience.

Availing myself of this opportunity, I would like to stress the Francophone family’s solidarity and support for the Armenia people in the context of the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide Centennial, which was expressed in the statement made by the organization’s secretary-general. We strongly believe that such crimes are possible to prevent only through concerted efforts and taking lessons from the past, preserve and respect universal values, including those of the Francophonie. Our goal is to build a society grounded on the principles of tolerance, peaceful existence and democracy.

There are other fields where we can work together – protection of human rights, migration, environmental protection, issues pertaining to economic development and youth: those all have long been classified as priorities by the Francophonie.

I would like to lay special emphasis on the problem of climate change monitoring. It is the overall responsibility of each and every one of us to secure a healthy and safe future for our generations. In this respect, I am confident that the Francophone community will made its contribution to the success of the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Paris at the end of this year.

Mr. Chairperson,

Dear colleagues,

By hosting this conference in Yerevan three years after Armenia’s full-fledged membership, we want to reaffirm our country’s devotion to the International Organization of La Francophonie, a space of cooperation and dialogue, under the auspices of which flourishes the Francophonie’s treasure – its diversity. For us, the Francophonie is a culture, mentality and a set of moral values.

I wish the conference productive work, and I also wish you an active and pleasant cognitive stay in Armenia.

I welcome you!

Two explosions at a peace rally in the Turkish capital Ankara have killed at least 86 people and injured 186, according to officials, the BBC reports.

The blasts took place near the city’s central train station as people gathered for a march organised by leftist groups.

The attack is the deadliest of its kind in modern Turkish history.

Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the “loathsome attack that targeted our unity and our togetherness”.

Government officials are investigating reports that a suicide bomber was behind at least one of the explosions.

Pope Francis and Angela Merkel are among the favourites to receive the Nobel Peace Prize when it is announced in Norway on Friday morning, the BBC reports.

The Pope’s opposition to nuclear weapons and role in a deal between the US and Cuba boosted his chances, said Norwegian state broadcaster NRK.

Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, has been tipped for her stance on the refugee crisis unfolding in Europe.

But the prize committee’s decision is notoriously hard to predict.

Other contenders for the award include:

• Mussie Zerai, an Eritrean priest who founded a humanitarian organisation for refugees
• Denis Mukwege, a gynaecologist from the Democratic Republic of Congo who has treated thousands of gang rape victims
• Clive Stafford-Smith, the veteran human rights campaigner and lawyer.

Among the more high profile nominees for the $1.1m prize are:

• Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor who leaked details of US surveillance programmes to the press
• John Kerry and Javad Zarif, the US and Iranian foreign ministers who brokered a historic nuclear deal
• The charity Medecins Sans Frontieres, for its work on the West African Ebola outbreak.

The Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire 90 times at the line of contact with Karabakh forces 90 times overnight.

He rival fired more than 700 shots from weapons of different caliber (including 82mm mortars) in the direction of the Armenian positions.

The front divisions of the NKR Defense Army keep control of the situation at the line of contact and confidently continue with their military duty.