Category: News

Photo: AP

 

Dozens of world leaders are gathering in Israel to pay tributes to Shimon Peres, one of the country’s founding fathers, who died on Wednesday aged 93.

A funeral procession is en route to the national cemetery in Jerusalem, where Mr Peres will be laid to rest.

Guests include the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who will visit Israel for the first time since 2010.

The visit comes at the request of Mr Abbas.

As a negotiator for the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), he was one of the people who signed the Oslo peace accords in 1993, for which Mr Peres won a Nobel Peace Prize the year after, along with Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin.

President Serzh Sargsyan visited today the DigiTech Expo-2016 annual technological exhibition opened at the Yerevan Expo Exhibition Complex of the Yerevan Scientific and Research Institute of Mathematical Machines.

The main goal of the Exhibition, which will be held September 30-October 2 under the title A Feast for the Technological Armenians, is to create a favorable communication environment for the companies, customers and the public engaged in the technological sphere as well as to present the real situation with the Armenian information and telecommunication technologies, achievements, and prospects.

The President of Armenia toured the exhibition hall, familiarized with the products and services presented by the companies, conversed with the representatives of the companies about their work and future development programs. Among over 120 companies participating this year at the DigiTech-2016 besides the prominent local companies, there are leading firms from the Russian Federation, US, China, and India.

At a separate hall of the Yerevan Expo the organizers and responsible officials of the exhibition presented to Serzh Sargsyan the process of implementation of the innovative technologies in the military equipment production, reported on the results of this stage of the cooperation established by the Presidential directive between the companies engaged in the military production and companies producing information technologies, forthcoming plans aimed at the full utilization of the potential existing in the area of information technologies for the benefit of development of the military industry of Armenia.

Asbarez – A famous saying tells us that “opportunity knocks,” but, sometimes, it uses a cell phone instead.

Two years ago, the widely respected Armenian actor, Levon Sharafyan, received an unusual phone call while relaxing at his home in Glendale, California. An American filmmaker had been searching for him for several weeks and wanted urgently to meet.

That filmmaker was Christopher Chambers, a director casting his first feature film, “Aram, Aram,” a coming-of-age drama set in Little Armenia. Chambers wanted to cast Sharafyan in the Lead Role of his film after seeing Sharafyan in an Armenian television series streamed over the internet.

Despite the fact that “Aram, Aram” would be a low-budget film with a long, difficult schedule and despite the fact that Chambers spoke no Armenian at all, Sharafyan agreed to star in the film.

Long heralded for the range and depth of the roles he inhabits, Sharafyan first gained fame acting on the stage in his hometown of Yerevan. He eventually performed in every Shakespearean Tragedy, touring around the globe from Yerevan to Moscow to Paris to London to Glendale. Sharafyan later became a familiar face in Armenian television and film, starring in over 500 episodes of television and over 30 films.

Of Sharafyan’s decision to act in his film, Chambers said, “Mr. Sharafyan is a famous, well-loved star of both the stage and screen in Armenia, he took a huge risk when he agreed to star in this independent film directed by a no-name American director.”

Boasting a Lead Cast of all Armenian actors, “Aram, Aram” first premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival, receiving critical acclaim for the powerful performances of Sharafyan and his 12 year-old co-star, John Sevag Roohinian.

The Award-Winning film played at film festivals in Montreal, Yerevan, Armenia, Sydney, Australia and many more cities. This Saturday, October 1st, “Aram, Aram” screens at the Glendale International Film Festival at MGN Five-Star Cinemas where it has been nominated for an impressive six awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Sharafyan’s performance.

Upon hearing of his Best Actor Nomination, Sharafyan reflected, “It was a nice surprise for me to learn about it. I am very happy that my work on “Aram, Aram” has been recognized. It is an honor to receive this nomination.”

When asked what he thinks of his own performance in the film, Sharafyan replied with his trademark humility, “I would like to invite all my fans from my favorite city of Glendale to see the film this weekend,” he paused before continuing as a twinkle came to his eyes, ”Let the audience give us their opinion – I value that more.”

Archbishop Raphael Minassian hopes that the Papal visit to Azerbaijan and Georgia will promote peace in the region. The small Catholic community in Georgia, which Pope Francis is visiting on Friday and Saturday, is made up of Latin, Chaldean and Armenian rites.

The Armenian presence in Tbilisi and the region on the border with the republic of Armenia dates back to the 4th century. Today the community is under the care of the Ordinary for Armenians in Eastern Europe, Archbishop Raphael Minassian.

Ahead of the Pope’s trip to Georgia, the Archbishop talked to Philippa Hitchen of about the relationship of the Armenian community between Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Archbishop Raphael Minassian discusses the history of Armenians in Georgia: “The relationship with this country is very old and very constant because Tbilisi was the culture and the city of the Armenians for centuries. It is very normal to see the presence of the Armenians in this country.” He says that the presence in Georgia, “of Armenians is over 200,000 and Armenian Catholics are over 150,000.”

The Archbishop says that the Armenian community in Georgia can act as a bridge for peaceful relations. “In the relationship between the Orthodox and the Catholic Churches, the friendship remains as a base of all kinds of relations.” He also mentions that the Georgian government has been assisting the Catholic Churches, the Chaldean, Latin, and Armenian Catholics, for two years.

Although the Armenian community and the Georgian government are able to maintain a positive relationship, the Archbishop admits that they do experience problems. He says that “Both of them are working strongly for the propaganda of faith and the consolation that we have to encourage and accept it. Even if we are not working together we should work for the same case.” He also says that they are proud to be Christians in this country.

Archbishop Minassian says that Pope Francis has a hard situation on his shoulders: “He is obliged to work with a society where they preach liberty and they are in the situation of domination. They speak about rights and they are the people that strip the rights of human society and at the end if I were to say the word peace, they are the war makers. I am talking about presidents, kings, societies, governments, and all of these, the Holy Father has to pass by and say the reality, defend the rights, defend the liberty, and give peace to everybody. We lost the meaning of these three words and have to rebuild again.”

The Archbishop discusses his thoughts on the Pope’s appeal for peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan: “You know, in a way they used the religion for political issues and the possibility to have peace is very easy. The most important point is between the two nations or the two presidents who have to forget the people because they are the minority of the minorities that are leading the country. I think that if you take out all of the governments all of the people would live in peace.”

Although the governments are taking steps towards peace, the Archbishop hopes that more can be done. “There is work going on for peace, but I hope that also in the visit of his Holiness to Azerbaijan would encourage them also accept the realities because all of us in this world are passengers. No one owns anything in this Earth. So it is not useful to have these wars between people that can live peacefully and very happily.”

Photo: AFP

France has begun air strikes against so-called Islamic State in Iraq from the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, reports say, the BBC repots.

A number of Rafale fighter planes took off from the carrier early on Friday, news agency AFP said.

It quoted an officer on board, who said the planes would take part in an attack on Mosul, an IS stronghold in Iraq.

The Charles de Gaulle, France’s only aircraft carrier, was sent to the region earlier in September.

This is the ship’s third mission with the US-led coalition in Iraq and Syria, since February 2015, when France stepped up its military operations following the attacks in Paris.

Pope Francis has arrived in Georgia at the start of a three day trip to the Caucasus which will also take him Sunday for a brief visit to Azerbaijan, Radio Vatican reports.

On Friday, Georgian government, civil and religious leaders and members of the Catholic community turned out at Tbilisi’s international airport to greet the pontiff, whose plane touched down shortly before 3:00 pm local time.

Meeting national authorities and members of the diplomatic corps in Tbilisi, Georgia Friday, Pope Francis described the Caucasus nation as a “blessed land, a place of encounter and vital exchange among cultures and civilizations” which, since the 4th century, “discovered in Christianity its deepest identity and the solid foundation of its values.”

The Pope was speaking at the Presidential palace shortly after his arrival in the Georgian capital.  In his address, he recalled his meeting in the Vatican last year with President Giorgi Margvelashvili and thanked him for the invitation to visit his country whose values, expressed “in culture, language and traditions,” he said, place it fully “within the bedrock of European civilization.”

Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region (ANCA-WR) announced that it will bestow its 2016 Advocate for Justice Award to Congressman Brad Sherman for consistently being one of the strongest voices in our nation’s capital on many issues important to the Armenian community, including justice for the Armenian Genocide, and the security and prosperity of the Republics of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh Republic.  Congressman Sherman will personally accept the award at the organization’s Annual Gala to be held on October 16, 2016 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

“Congressman Brad Sherman has been one of our staunchest and most consistent advocates in the United States Congress for a period of twenty years, and we are so gratified to work with him on so many issues important to the advancement of the Armenian Cause. With his vast knowledge of geopolitics in the Near East and Caucasus region, his legal expertise on a wide array of issues facing us, and his commitment to justice, we are fortunate to have Congressman Sherman represent us with such passion and unwavering persistence.  The ANCA-WR Board of Directors is proud to honor Congressman Brad Sherman with its 2016 Advocate for Justice award, and we look forward to continuing our close and productive relationship with him,”  stated ANCA-WR Chair Nora Hovsepian.

“I am honored to be recognized by the Armenian National Committee of America as the 2016 Advocate for Justice.  In collaboration with the ANCA, I have consistently focused on recognizing the Armenian Genocide and increasing aid to Armenia, Artsakh, and Javakh.  I look forward to continuing my work on these issues in support of a stronger U.S-Armenia relationship. The ANCA has done a tremendous job representing the interests of the Armenian community.  I want to extend my best wishes for a most memorable event and continued success in all your future endeavors,” noted Congressman Sherman.

First elected in 1996, Rep. Brad Sherman has, over the past two decades, consistently and effectively championed the views, values and policy priorities of Armenian Americans throughout California and across the United States.  His perfect A+ grades reflect his unfailing support for our homeland and heritage, as does the prestigious Mkhitar Gosh Award he received from the Republic of Armenia.

Congressman Sherman’s leadership on issues of special concern to Americans of Armenian heritage encompasses the full array of our community’s foreign policy priorities – from a just resolution of the Armenian Genocide, security for the independent Nagorno Karabakh Republic, increasingly strong U.S.-Armenia bilateral relations, and humanitarian support for at-risk Armenians across the Middle East.

Since taking office he has co-sponsored every Armenian Genocide Resolution, leveraging his seniority on the House Foreign Affairs Committee to secure the adoption of this human rights measure by the panel on a number of occasions, including high-profile legislative battles in 2007 and 2010.  Additionally, Congressman Sherman has openly and aggressively pressed Presidents of both parties – from Clinton and Bush to Obama – to end U.S. complicity in Turkey’s obstruction of justice for this crime.  He has, as well, worked to block U.S. arms sales and transfers to Turkey that potentially threaten the security of Armenia, Greece, or Cyprus.

Long an ardent defender of Artsakh’s freedom and security, Congressman Sherman – along with House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce – earlier this year spearheaded the Royce-Sherman letter. This bipartisan Congressional letter, signed by more than 50 legislators, called on President Obama to press Azerbaijan to stop blocking the implementation of proposals to strengthen the Nagorno Karabakh ceasefire. Among these proposals (backed by the U.S. and the OSCE, endorsed by both Armenia and Artsakh, but rejected by Azerbaijan) is the deployment of gunfire locators, the addition of observers, and the withdrawal of snipers and heavy arms from the line of contact.  Parallel to his work supporting the ceasefire, he has – in the wake of Baku’s April 2016 offensive – formally called upon the Obama Administration to launch a “Leahy Law” investigation to determine if Azerbaijani forces that committed human rights abuses against Artsakh citizens and soldiers had received any military assistance from the U.S. government.

As early as 2012, Congressman Sherman began advocating for the right of Nagorno Karabakh to begin operating the Stepanakert airport, publicly condemning Baku’s threats to shoot down civilian planes using this facility. In that same year, he was among the most vocal U.S. legislators to protest Azerbaijan’s release and pardon of unrepentant anti-Armenian axe-killer Ramil Safarov.  In 2011, he was the key to securing written assurances from the Export-Import Bank that its financing of satellite purchase by Baku would not add any military capability to the Azerbaijani armed forces.  He has, consistently, marked anniversaries of the Baku/Sumgait pogroms, always protested publicly against Azerbaijan’s anti-Armenian aggression, and consistently defended the Section 907 restrictions on direct U.S. aid to the Azerbaijani government.

On foreign aid, Representative Sherman – long a strong champion of robust levels of economic development assistance to Armenia, frequently questioning USAID and State Department officials when they appeared before Congress.  On issues of international development, he is, though, perhaps best known for his pioneering “Sherman Amendment” during consideration of the Fiscal Year 1998 foreign aid bill.  His leadership, within the Foreign Affairs Committee and with his House colleagues, developed the bipartisan consensus needed to launch the U.S. aid program to Nagorno Karabakh – an unprecedented effort that has, over the past two decades, provided tens of millions of dollars in humanitarian assistance to Nagorno Karabakh.  Congressman Sherman has been a legislative leader in seeking targeted U.S. aid to the Armenian-populated Samtskhe-Javakheti region of Georgia, and also supports U.S. and international assistance to help Armenia settle refugees from the Middle East.

As a legislative leader of Armenia’s aid to trade transition, Representative Sherman was a driving force behind 2015’s signing of a U.S.-Armenia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.  He is currently the leading Congressional voice in support of a U.S.-Armenia Tax Treaty, having twice questioned Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew during hearings about the urgent necessity of removing the threat of double taxation as an obstacle to the growth of bilateral commercial relations.

Congressman Brad Sherman, from Sherman Oaks, was born and raised in southern California and represents California’s San Fernando Valley. He has been in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1997, serving his tenth term in Congress. Congressman Sherman is a senior member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Previously, the organization announced that it will honor California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson with the Man of the Year Award, Varoujan Koundakjian posthumously with the Legacy Award, California State Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian with the Legislator of the Year Award, Golden State Warriors Coach Steve Kerr and the Kerr family with the Humanitarian Award, and German Parliament Member Cem Ozdemir and the German Bundestag with the Freedom Award.  As a part of the program that evening, a special recognition and presentation will be made to and by filmmakers of the newly-completed Armenian Genocide-era film, “The Promise, which will include a short clip from the film with behind-the-scenes footage compiled especially for this event.

Photo: ESA

 

Europe’s Rosetta probe has ended its mission to Comet 67P by crash-landing on to the icy object’s surface, the BBC reports.

Mission control in Darmstadt, Germany, was able to confirm the impact had occurred when radio contact to the ageing spacecraft was lost abruptly.

The assumption is that the probe would have been damaged beyond use.

In the hours before the planned collision, Rosetta sent back a host of high-resolution pictures and other measurements of the icy dirt-ball.

“I can announce full success of this historic descent of Rosetta towards Comet 67P,” said European Space Agency mission manager Patrick Martin.

“Farewell Rosetta; you’ve done the job. That was space science at its best.”

Scientists expect all the data gathered at 67P in the past two years to keep them busy for decades to come.

The George C. Marshall Center (GCMC) of Security Studies hosted an alumni outreach event in Yerevan, Armenia on September 29^,  2016.  Thirty alumni and guests from multiple Armenian institutions attended the event which was led by GCMC staff.  The event featured two distinguished GCMC alumni – Ms. Hayarpi Mkhitaryan from the Armenian National Security Council and Ms. Yelizaveta Margaryan from the Ministry of Finance – who presented their views on the topic of “Corruption as a National Security Threat.”  Their presentation was followed by a question and answer session.

U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Richard M. Mills, Jr. welcomed the Marshall Center alumni and congratulated them on the important role they have played in “collectively contributing to a better and more robust understanding in Washington and many European capitals of the unique security and defense challenges facing Armenia and the Caucasus region.”  Ambassador Mills added that “the intersection of corruption and national security is an issue of critical importance in Armenia and around the world, and I am pleased to see these two professionals, and the distinguished alumni and guests who have gathered here today, address this subject with such seriousness.”

The U.S. and German-sponsored George C. Marshall Center of Security Studies offers a unique opportunity to examine global and regional trends, contemporary security issues, national security strategies, defense planning, approaches to crisis management, countering corruption, and other related areas.  Armenia has participated in this program since 1995, sending 15 students per year on average to the GCMC.  Currently there are approximately 240 GCMC alumni in Armenia who hold a broad range of positions within the Armenian government, as well as other agencies and institutions.  GCMC carries George C. Marshall’s vision into the 21st century, following the motto “Democracy through trust and friendship.”

On September 28, Edward Nalbandian, the Acting Foreign Minister of Armenia, delivered a lecture entitled “Nagorno-KArabakh: Is Solution Visible” at Stanford University’s Institute for International Studies.

Professors, fellows and students of the Stanford University attended the meeting. In his opening remarks Michael McFaul, the Director of the Institute, mentioned that is a profound honour to launch the series of lectures after the opening of the academic year by hosting the Foreign Minister of Armenia to get first-hand information on the current situation in the process of settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.

In his speech Edward Nalbandian, particularly, said:
“Ladies and Gentlemen,

One year ago a well-known academic magazine “Politique Internationale”, published in Paris my article entitled Nagorno-Karabakh: Is a Solution Visible?

I stressed in it that the conflict cannot be solved until Azerbaijan gets rid of its illusion that it can gain unilateral advantages through military means. It took only a year to witness the vivid demonstration of that reality.

This April Azerbaijan unleashed a large scale preplanned aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh, with the use of offensive weaponry – aviation, heavy artillery, rocket systems, tanks – accompanied by gross violations of international humanitarian law, such as indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas, DEASH-style mutilation of bodies and beheadings. It goes without saying that these actions that resulted in hundreds of casualties from all sides, have seriously undermined the negotiation process.

So, it is about a very complex situation that I am going to address you today and the April escalation is only the last act of the long conflict. In a few words I would like to present the essence of the conflict for those who are not much familiar with it and then I will try to address the main issue: what are the prospects of the settlement.

Nagorno-Karabakh – historically one of the regions of Armenia and always having an overwhelming majority of Armenian population was arbitrarily annexed to Soviet Azerbaijan in 1921 by Joseph Stalin.

70 years passed, on the eve of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the people of Nagorno-Karabakh voted at the referendum for an independent statehood in line with the then existing legislation and international norms.

Years later on the Kosovo case the International Court of Justice would consider that general international law contains no applicable prohibition of declarations of independence.

However, Azerbaijan in defiance of the international law, its norms and principles which first of all urge to refrain from use of force or threat of use of force, tried to suppress the aspirations of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh for self-determination through coercive measures. It started with Armenian massacres in late 80s – beginning of 90s in Azerbaijani cities of Sumgait, Kirovabad and capital Baku. Many were killed, hundreds of thousands were expelled from their homes. Nobel Peace Prize winner and famous human rights defender Andrei Sakharov on the pages of the New York Times called it a threat of a new genocide of the Armenian people.

Azerbaijan continued with large scale military offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh committing new atrocities.

The May 1991 US Senate resolution condemned the attacks on innocent Armenian children, women, and men in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. Previously adopted US Congress resolution reads that the United States supports the fundamental rights and aspirations of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh. A similar resolution was adopted by the European Parliament.

During the war against Nagorno-Karabakh Azerbaijan used mercenaries from Afghanistan closely linked to notorious terrorist organizations. That was widely reported in the international media outlets, including the Washington Post. The heavy, indiscriminate use of force, massacres and ethnic cleansing perpetrated by Azerbaijan against the Armenian population was yet another confirmation that the struggle of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh was existential and legitimate.

The hot phase of the conflict ended in May 1994 when Azerbaijan was obliged to negotiate a truce due to its military loses and sign a cease fire agreement with Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia. In July 1994 and February 1995 new trilateral agreements were signed on consolidation of the cease fire. The terms of these agreements do not expire and they are in force till now. The July 1994 document stipulates to maintain the ceasefire regime until signing of the big political agreement.

However, as a rule Azerbaijan has been regularly violating those agreements. Baku instead of engaging seriously in the negotiation process has concentrated its efforts on military buildup having in mind the illusion of military option for conflict resolution.

A clear case of negotiations at the barrel of a gun. Its military budget reached $4.8 billion in 2015, a 30-fold increase since 2003, when Ilham Aliyev succeeded his father as the Head of State.

We warned – if there is a gun on the stage, it will fire. And that gun fired many times and most recently as I mentioned this April.

Armenia together with the mediators, the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – the USA, France and Russia exert efforts for exclusively peaceful settlement. Several times in this framework parties were close to the resolution, but at the very last moment Azerbaijan made a step back derailing the process. This was the case with Paris principles of 2001, negotiated with active involvement of the then French President Chirac, when President Heydar Aliyev backtracked. Another example was the round of negotiations with active mediation of the then Russian President Medvedev, when at the Kazan summit of 2011, the son Aliyev backtracked again. To mention just two examples.

As you see there has never been a deficit of high-level international interest in solving the issue. Moreover, starting from 2009 the presidents of the U.S.A., Russia and France made five statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution. They proposed a package of basic principles, which constitute an integrated whole, as a foundation of future comprehensive agreement. Unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia accepted it as a basis for negotiations.

The Presidents of the Co-Chair countries have proclaimed a rather civilized formula for the settlement – ballots instead of bullets. The proposal stipulates determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh through a legally binding expression of will of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not resolved yet, since one of the negotiating parties, namely Azerbaijan is not ready to go along with this proposal and by all means strives to undermine the peace process. The mentality that supports medieval barbarism, demonstrated again in April, can hardly accept the civilized approaches of the modern world.

The leadership of Azerbaijan which adopted a xenophobic, aggressive anti-Armenian stance. Baku frequently uses the slogan – “Armenians of the world are our enemies number one”. History knows such cases of ethnic hatred, including in the recent past, isn’t it? The eleventh year textbook of Azerbaijan’s school reads “Armenians are the generic enemies of the Turkic peoples”. It is the generation raised under such propaganda that committed despicable crimes during the 4 days aggression this April. It is this generation that witnessed the glorification of an Azerbaijani officer who killed by axe a sleeping Armenian officer in Budapest while both were at the NATO training course. Subsequently the murderer was handed over to Azerbaijan where he was proclaimed as a hero and example for youth.

Most of Armenian historic, cultural and religious monuments have been destroyed in Azerbaijan, including a masterpiece of the medieval Armenian art – the cemetery of thousands of cross stones in Jugha. American Ambassadors to Azerbaijan were several times refused by Baku authorities to visit the site. A prominent Azerbaijani novelist was ostracized and persecuted for writing about the Armenian massacres in Azerbaijan and for the calls of reconciliation. All those civil society representatives who have been engaged in people to people contacts with the civil societies in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia were put behind the bars as “Armenian spies”. The leadership of Azerbaijan tries not only to mute the independent voices from within the country but from the outside world as well. More than hundred journalists have been included in the so called Azerbaijani black list just for visiting Nagorno-Karabakh and writing about it. Indeed, as the Washington Post wrote the Azerbaijani leadership not only crushes individual lives but tries to imprison the very concept of freedom itself.

This doesn’t come as a surprise for the state considered to be among the 10 most censored countries in the world.

If there are any proven remedies for conflict settlements then the preparation of the public for peace and not war should stand in the center. This is what the Co-Chairs are continuously urging. Building trust and confidence is another important dimension again strongly encouraged by the international mediators, especially after the April escalation. To restore the trust in the process of the conflict resolution, measures should be taken to prevent use of force and create conditions conducive to the advancement of the peace process.

This was the main aim of the two Summits on Nagorno-Karabakh held in Vienna in May organized by the U.S. Secretary of State and in St. Petersburg in June hosted by the Russian President. First of all, it is a necessity to implement what was particularly emphasized and agreed upon in the framework of these Summits – the full adherence to the 1994-1995 trilateral ceasefire agreements, the creation of mechanism for investigation of ceasefire violations, which can serve also as a mechanism for prevention, the expansion of the capacity of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, which monitors the ceasefire.

These proposals are not new, they have been reiterated by the Co-Chairs many times, Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia have accepted them, Azerbaijan rejected. It is interesting to note that House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce and Ranking Member Eliot Engel together with more than 80 other Congressmen have endorsed these and some other confidence building measures. They urged to publicly condemn specific acts of aggression along the line of contact. Indeed, the party which violates the ceasefire, which rejects the confidence building measure, which refuses the proposals of the mediators should stand accountable. Otherwise impunity will encourage to continue destructive policy. Baku criticizes the Co-Chairs, including the United States for islamophobia, and conspiracy against Azerbaijan, calling the mediators useless tourists.

Ladies and gentlemen,

By establishing the independent United States through the Declaration of Independence 240 years ago the founding fathers of this great country proved that nothing can deprive peoples of their right for independence. This is what the people of Nagorno-Karabakh have been aspiring for – the liberty to freely organize their life in a democratic manner, based on the principle of self-determination. This right is enshrined as the purpose of the United Nations Charter and in many other international documents. The visible solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict goes through ballots not bullets.”

Following the remarks Edward Nalbandian answered the numerous questions of the attendees.