Category: News

Russia believes the next meeting of foreign ministers in the “3+3” regional format could be held in Azerbaijan, followed by a meeting in Yerevan.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made the remarks, according to TASS news agency.

Lavrov said Moscow actively supported the “3+3” format, comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, Türkiye and Iran.

“I think the forthcoming meeting could be held in Azerbaijan, and the next one after that in Yerevan. That would be the right approach,” he said.

He said they were now waiting for Armenia and Azerbaijan to agree on which country would host the format’s next foreign ministers’ meeting.

Lavrov also stressed that the “3+3” format was a comprehensive regional platform and was not confined to any individual project.

He said the format allowed regional issues to be discussed in a broader context and that Moscow supported its continued work.

The platform’s previous three meetings were held in Moscow, Tehran and Istanbul, in that order. The “3+3” format was established to bring together the three South Caucasus countries—Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan—and three major regional powers: Iran, Russia and Türkiye. Georgia has not attended any meetings held under the format.

YEREVAN, 15 OCTOBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 15 October, USD exchange rate up by 0.06 drams to 361.49 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 1.01 drams to 405.41 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.0045 drams to 4.3065 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 0.24 drams to 479.12 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 925 drams to 47526 drams. Silver price down by 19.87 drams to 679.78 drams.

Armenian Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Khudatyan met with Manal Awad Mikhail, Egypt’s Minister of Local Development and Environment, who arrived in Armenia for COP17.

According to the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, Khudatyan welcomed his Egyptian counterpart and emphasized that COP17 is a good opportunity to expand practical cooperation between Armenia and Egypt.

The ministers discussed opportunities to expand cooperation between the two countries in waste management, renewable energy, territorial administration, and local self-government.

Khudatyan stressed the importance of studying Egypt’s experience in waste sorting, recycling, developing the circular economy, and engaging the private sector.

The sides also discussed the development of renewable energy.

The minister presented the results achieved in Armenia’s solar energy sector.

Convention on Biological Diversity Executive Secretary Astrid Schomaker described COP17 in Yerevan as a good opportunity to discuss global challenges related to biodiversity.

“Four years ago, in Montreal, countries made important commitments, agreed on 23 targets, and said they would implement them and halt biodiversity loss by 2050,” she said at a press conference on the State of Biodiversity Action report, the first global report on collective progress in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).

“We intend to live in harmony with nature. More than 140 countries have submitted national reports, and 90% of countries have adopted national targets. These are unprecedented figures, and there is progress, yes. However, we do not want to be naive: much more needs to be done. When we examine the reports, we see significant gaps and find that progress is uneven across different targets. COP17 is a very important moment to seize this opportunity and turn the findings into action,” Schomaker said.

Ahead of the opening of the COP17 Leaders’ Summit, the report’s launch provides a key opportunity to bring its findings into the global spotlight, presenting a robust evidence base on global progress and highlighting where action is advancing and where greater efforts are needed to achieve the goals and targets of the KMGBF.

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) was adopted during the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) following a four year consultation and negotiation process. This historic Framework, which supports the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and builds on the Convention’s previous Strategic Plans, sets out an ambitious pathway to reach the global vision of a world living in harmony with nature by 2050. Among the Framework’s key elements are 4 goals for 2050 and 23 targets for 2030. 

Biodiversity conservation must be a priority for society as a whole, as well as environment ministries, Armenian Environment Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan said at a press conference held as part of COP17.

“One of the main messages of Armenia’s presidency is that biodiversity cannot remain the responsibility of environment ministries alone. Protecting it must be a priority. That is why we emphasise whole-of-government and whole-of-society engagement,” the minister said.

Matevosyan added that hosting COP17 was both a major international responsibility for Armenia and a unique opportunity to strengthen action for nature in the country.

“Armenia’s extraordinary biodiversity is one of our greatest national assets, a form of capital. Protecting it requires stronger conservation and restoration of ecosystems, more effective management of protected areas, improved monitoring and greater integration of biodiversity into economic and development decisions,” Matevosyan said.

Yerevan will host COP17 from 19 to 30 October, bringing together delegations from countries around the world and representatives of international organisations and civil society to assess progress in biodiversity conservation and discuss further joint action.

The gap between countries’ ambitions and actual actions to protect biodiversity persists, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned at a press conference in Yerevan on the State of Biodiversity Action report, the first global report on collective progress in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), held ahead of COP17. 

The UN Secretary-General called for increased funding for nature conservation, the elimination of harmful incentives and subsidies, and the integration of biodiversity protection into government decision-making.

Presenting the global progress report on biodiversity, Guterres addressed the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. He recalled that the framework, agreed upon four years ago, sets out 23 targets to halt biodiversity loss and reduce pressures on natural systems.

The UN Secretary-General welcomed the fact that nearly 90% of the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity have set national targets. Local communities, Indigenous peoples, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector are also participating in the process.

At the same time, he said, the progress recorded is still insufficient to achieve the established goals.

“The war against nature is not over yet. And we are still seeing the very serious consequences of the three global crises: climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. They are all interconnected,” Guterres noted.

He stressed that greater financial resources must be mobilized and relevant capacities developed, particularly in developing countries. Countries must fulfill their commitments, and governments must review economic incentives that harm nature.

Guterres called for an end to harmful subsidies, stronger social protection measures, and the allocation of spending to programs that deliver positive outcomes for nature. He also emphasized the importance of cooperation with businesses to establish clear commitments and identify existing opportunities.

According to the UN Secretary-General, biodiversity conservation must be taken into account in policymaking, governance, and budgetary decisions.

He also addressed the drivers of biodiversity loss: climate change, the spread of invasive alien species, pollution, and the direct exploitation of natural resources, emphasizing that combating them requires interconnected action.

Guterres stressed the importance of international cooperation and the participation of the public and private sectors, civil society, young people, women, and Indigenous peoples. He also highlighted the importance of Indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge and experience in natural resource management.

The extractive industry is one of the main challenges to biodiversity conservation worldwide, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said at a press conference held in connection with the forthcoming COP17 conference in Yerevan.

“The key issue is influence. The extractive industry has far too much influence. Those destroying forests have far too much influence in different regions of the world. Those overfishing still have far too much influence because they retain economic power and exert excessive influence over political power.

“We need to change those relationships, and we have an ally: the fact that the situation is changing. Look, today fossil fuels are more expensive than renewable energy,” Guterres said.

The UN secretary-general stressed the need to change the balance of power, influence and authority so that governments would be more committed to tackling biodiversity loss and the resources used to fund support for biodiversity could be multiplied.

Guterres arrived in Armenia to attend the leaders’ summit to be held as part of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17), which will take place in Yerevan.

Yerevan will host COP17 from 19 to 30 October, bringing together delegations from countries around the world and representatives of international organisations and civil society to assess progress in biodiversity conservation and discuss further joint action.

Armenia has conducted the entire procurement process for organising COP17 transparently, Environment Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan said at a press conference held as part of the conference.

“We have studied the organisational experience of many different countries in considerable depth. I have not found a single country in the world that organises its procurement procedures as transparently as the Republic of Armenia. In a short period, we have tried to do everything possible to ensure Yerevan can properly welcome our guests and delegations to Armenia,” Matevosyan said.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres also addressed the question of corruption.

“We have considerable confidence that there is no corruption in the organisation of COP17,” he said.

Yerevan will host COP17 from 19 to 30 October, bringing together delegations from countries around the world and representatives of international organisations and civil society to assess progress in biodiversity conservation and discuss further joint action.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has expressed hope that Armenia and Azerbaijan will soon sign a peace treaty and fulfil all their obligations under the agreement.

He made the remarks at a press conference in Yerevan, responding to a journalist’s question about how strong peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan could be if Azerbaijan refused to return Armenian captives.

“I am a strong supporter of the peace agreement. I hope all the provisions set out in it will be implemented. I regret the problems concerning the captives and the other issues. I hope all these matters will be resolved quickly,” Guterres said.

Azerbaijan continues to illegally hold 19 Armenian captives, including representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh’s former military and political leadership. They have been sentenced to imprisonment on fabricated charges.

WWF press release 

There has been a stark 73% decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations over a 52-year period, according to WWF’s Living Planet Report (LPR) 2026. At the same time, the report finds that nature can recover if society follows clear pathways to trigger positive tipping points in the energy, food and finance systems.

While the overall percentage change is consistent with the previous report, the updated assessment incorporates additional population data and a longer time series, reinforcing the continued scale of biodiversity loss. This aligns with estimates previously reported, and combined with other metrics, shows the scale of nature’s decline.

The Living Planet Index (LPI), produced by ZSL (Zoological Society of London), includes  35,803 population trends of 5,790 vertebrate species from 1970 to 2022. The report notes the strongest decline is in freshwater ecosystems (-85%), followed by terrestrial (-69%) and then marine (-59%).  

Habitat loss and degradation is the most frequently reported threat affecting monitored wildlife populations, followed by overexploitation, climate change, pollution, invasive species and disease. These threats are, in turn, driven by broader systemic failures across the food, energy and finance systems. 

Although the overall trend is negative due to the magnitude of the declining trends, half of the populations included in the LPI are stable or increasing. The report also highlights recoveries in populations of green turtles, bluefin tuna, tigers and southern African elephants which demonstrate that targeted conservation interventions can deliver proven results. However, the declines registered by the LPI and other biodiversity indicators cannot be reversed by conservation efforts alone.  

Dr Kirsten Schuijt, Director General of WWF International, said: “Biodiversity continues to be degraded at an alarming pace. Yet amid these steep declines, there are grounds for hope. The Living Planet Report 2026 highlights evidence that many species populations are stable or recovering, alongside inspiring stories that show nature can rebound and change is possible. Recoveries in populations of species like tigers, bluefin tuna and green turtles show what years of sustained collective conservation effort can achieve.

“To continue and expand these conservation successes, the industries and systems which drive nature loss need to be transformed. Progress is already underway. Not everywhere, and not yet at the scale required, but enough to demonstrate that change is possible. It’s time to accelerate the scale of those systemic changes already underway and work together in harmony with nature to build a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient world. Together we can restore our living planet.”

From negative to positive tipping points

Biodiversity underpins economies and societies, providing food, water, clean air and medicine among other services and goods.  However, three systems are primarily driving the destruction of nature: the food system is the leading cause of habitat loss, the energy system fuels climate change, while the finance system bankrolls harmful activities.  Large, complex systems can be resistant to change but can be transformed for the better by creating the conditions to trigger positive tipping points. 

While environmental tipping points are often discussed in the context of risks, such as the collapse of coral reefs or the loss of the Amazon rainforest as a carbon sink, the same dynamics can also drive rapid positive change. The Living Planet Report includes research by the University of Exeter which finds that a positive tipping point can happen when a system crosses a threshold into a healthier state, and the change becomes self-reinforcing – getting faster, cheaper and harder to reverse.

·         Energy: A positive tipping point has been passed in the energy sector and change is accelerating, with solar power now the cheapest source of new electricity generation in most countries.  Despite this momentum, the energy transition is not yet happening fast enough, and progress varies significantly between countries and sectors.

·         Food and agriculture: Positive change is underway and showing early signs of progressing toward a tipping point, with many people and organisations around the world working towards nature-positive production, promoting sustainable trade and consumption, encouraging healthy and sustainable diets, and reducing food loss and waste. 

·         Finance: The finance system is still in the early stages of building toward a tipping point, with the sector needing to work rapidly towards stopping the financing of harmful activities, valuing nature and climate as material risks, creating regulatory certainty, and closing an annual US$1.3 trillion biodiversity financing gap.

An opportunity for action

These systemic shifts can be achieved if countries focus on delivering the goals they have agreed to under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) and Paris Agreement. With UN conferences on biodiversity and climate taking place in the next two months, governments have a vital opportunity to accelerate the move from ambition to implementation.

Coming first is biodiversity COP17 starting on 19 October in Yerevan, Armenia. Achieving the 2030 biodiversity targets – including halting and reversing biodiversity loss – will require faster implementation, greater investment, stronger political leadership and deeper action across the whole economy and society. Transforming long-established systems will only be successful if the transition is fair and inclusive.

Daudi Sumba, Chief Conservation Officer, WWF International, said: “While the window for a different future is narrowing, it remains open. Transforming complex systems at the speed and scale required won’t be easy, but by triggering positive tipping points it can happen quicker than we might think. The sooner we act, the greater the benefits are for people and nature. We have the knowledge, the tools and the pathways – what matters now is our collective resolve to act together and meet the scale of the challenge to put nature and the climate on the path to recovery by 2030.”

Dr Andrew Terry, Chief Conservation Officer at ZSL, said: “Abundant wildlife populations, and the intricate web of interactions between them, underpin the healthy ecosystems that allow us all to thrive. There is no workaround for this; human wellbeing and economic security depend on us working with nature, rather than against it.

“For too long, nature has been undervalued, and the Living Planet Index shows us the consequences – but these declines are not inevitable, and change is possible. Nature can recover, and the stories within the Index are a powerful reminder of this.

“Our global teams have seen species and ecosystems rebound when threats are reduced and conservation action is sustained. The more people join us in taking decisive and rapid action to protect wildlife and ecosystems across the globe, the sooner we can turn knowledge into action and reach positive tipping points to secure a healthier, more resilient future.”