Category: News

The has enlisted Armenia’s Vayots Dzor among the 15 wine trails worth getting sidetracked on.

Today, the choice of wine routes and tours from the essential (Bordeaux) and the scenic (Cape Town) to the historic (Armenia) or the unexpected (Brazil) is greater than ever, the CNN writes.

The article reads:

“According to the Bible, Armenia was the first wine-producing region in the world, since it was on the slopes of Mount Ararat that Noah planted the first vine after the flood.

Archaeologists agree – at least on the long tradition: a 6,100-year-old winery was discovered not long ago.

The local Areni variety has been unchanged for centuries, being highly resistant against disease with a thick skin that helps shield it from cold extremes.

The easiest wine-growing region to get to from the capital, Yerevan, is Vayots Dzor, where a microclimate ensures 300 sunny days a year.

Most organized tours zoom in on the Areni Noir, an incomparable red that put Armenia on the map when it was launched internationally in 2012.”

The 15 best routes include also Hunter Valley (Australia), Napa and Sonoma (California), Alentejo (Portugal), Cape Winelands (South Africa), Route des Vins (Alsace, France), Santorini (Greece), Maipo (Chile), Okanagan (Canada), Tuscany (Italy), Bento Goncalves (Brazil), Mendoza (Argentina), Rioja (Spain), Moselle Valley (Germany), Bordeaux (France).

New United signing Henrikh Mkhitaryan will thrive under Jose Mourinho’s playing style and training methods, according to former Armenia coach Raymond Verheijen, according to . 

The midfielder, who is Armenia’s all-time top scorer, made the £26 million move to Old Trafford from Borussia Dortmund last week.

The 27-year-old is expected to slot in on the right wing of Mourinho’s new-look side and could make his debut in that famous red shirt against Wigan on Saturday.

Although he is the first Armenian to ever play in the Premier League, Verheijen believes Mkhitaryan’s time at Dortmund will stand him in good stead in adjusting to the rigours of English football.

“What I think has been very smart is that he went from Shakhtar to Dortmund and from Dortmund to United.” he told M.E.N. Sport.

“I think the Bundesliga has made him sufficiently strong to take the next step to the Premier League. He will need time to adapt, but I trust Mourinho and his staff to let him gradually adapt to that level.”

Known for his blistering pace, Mkhitaryan once joked that had he not made it as a footballer, he would have been a sprinter instead.

This was a quality that struck Verheijen, who has also worked with Manchester City, the Netherlands, Barcelona and Russia, when he was involved with the Armenia national team in 2012.

“There is one characteristic of him that I have almost never seen with other players and that is the fact that he has an acceleration after an acceleration,” he said.

“When he starts dribbling, he accelerates quickly but then, just before somebody tries to challenge him, he can accelerate for a second time. That is something that I thought was very special.

“That is a talent that he has which makes him difficult to defend, especially in the counter-attack. United need to make sure he gets the ball as quickly as possible.”

One of Mourinho’s hallmarks is “his less is more” approach to training, with extensive ball work sessions favoured over fitness focused drills without the ball.

Verheijen previously criticised Mourinho’s predecessors, Louis van Gaal and David Moyes, for over-training United’s players and feels Mourinho’s approach will get more out of Mkhitaryan et al.

“If you look with Chelsea winning the title two years ago, they played with the same XI in almost every game,” he said.

“I think the same will happen this year with United. He will have significantly less injuries than Van Gaal and Moyes and he will play with the same XI much more often.

“When you do play and train with the same XI more often, the communication between your players and the tactical understanding between your players increases dramatically.”

Photo: AFP

 

Turkey has said it wants to develop good ties with Syria – in an apparent reversal of its policy towards its war-stricken neighbour, the BBC reports.

Turkey has long said the only solution for regional peace would be for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to go.

But Turkish PM Binali Yildirim insisted good ties with Syria were needed “for the fight against terrorism” and for stability in the region.

Turkey has recently moved to end rifts with both Russia and Israel.

Turkey-Syria diplomatic ties were severed after the Syrian conflict began in 2011 and Turkey has since argued that only Mr Assad’s departure could bring stability.

But Mr Yildirim said in comments broadcast live on television: “It is our greatest and irrevocable goal: developing good relations with Syria and Iraq, and all our neighbours that surround the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

“We normalised relations with Russia and Israel. I’m sure we will normalise relations with Syria as well. For the fight against terrorism to succeed, stability needs to return to Syria and Iraq.”

Since taking office in May, Mr Yildirim has repeatedly said that Turkey needs to “increase its friends and decrease its enemies.”

Photo: NASA

 

The American space agency’s new Juno mission to Jupiter has returned its first imagery since going into orbit around the gas giant last week, the BBC reports.

The picture shows a sunlit portion of the planet, together with three of its big moons – Io, Europa and Ganymede.

The fourth major satellite – Callisto – is out of view.

Juno is currently moving away from Jupiter on a large arc, but will sweep back in during August, enabling its “JunoCam” to take even better images.

At the moment, scientists are just relieved to know that the equipment is in good health after its encounter with Jupiter’s harsh radiation environment during the spacecraft’s orbit insertion manoeuvre on 5 July (GMT).

The mission team is now turning on all the probe’s instruments to check their status.

Paul Pogba may stay put at Juventus despite talks about the French midfielder’s possible move to England or Spain, his agent Mino Raiola has said, Reuters reports.

The 23-year-old Pogba, who played a pivotal role in France’s run to the Euro 2016 final, has been strongly linked with a return to English Premier League club Manchester United with Champions League winners Real Madrid also eyeing him.

However, a fee touted to be around a world record 100 million pounds ($130.65 million) could see Real priced out of a move for Pogba, according to British media reports.

“There is a lot of talk about Paul’s future, but maybe he will not leave Juventus,” Raiola told The Times.

“He is in no rush to leave, and Juventus do not want him to go. They want him to renew his contract. Paul is not desperate to move. We are very happy at Juventus and they are a club that want to keep their star players.”

Pogba’s contract at Juventus runs until 2019, while Raiola has worked closely with United during the close season as he wrapped up deals for his clients, midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan and striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Radisson Blu upper upscale international hotel was solemnly opened in Armenia’s capital Yerevan today. President Serzh Sargsyan was present at the opening ceremony.

The President of Armenia toured the premises of Radisson Blu Hotel Yerevan, which joined the ranks of the luxury hotels in Yerevan, familiarized with the works and investments, created jobs (nearly 135), and services offered by the hotel.

“We are truly excited to bring our  signature style and Yes/Can! service to Yerevan. We are thankful to our partner, Golden Palace LLC for the fruitful collaboration, the perfect new 5 star product, which is combined with an amzing location that has it all –  tranquility, garden greens, proximity to all attractions, plus a magnificent view of the city and Mount Ararat. Putting all of these together does make the Radisson Blu hotel, Yerevan, the place to be and to experience memorable moments,” said George Miu, the General Manger of  Radisson Blu Hotel Yerevan.

“We are delighted that Radisson Blu has chosen Armenia as its next stop to grow and develop in the area,” he added.

Photo: Getty Images

 

David Cameron will chair his final cabinet meeting as prime minister later as Theresa May prepares to take over, the BBC reports.

Mrs May had been expecting a nine-week Conservative leadership race, but rival Andrea Leadsom withdrew on Monday.

Mr Cameron will tender his resignation to the Queen on Wednesday, leaving Mrs May, home secretary since 2010, to appoint her own ministerial team.

Mrs May said she was “honoured and humbled” to be taking over and pledged to make a success of the UK’s EU exit.

Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan had a phone conversation with Iran’s First Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri today.

The interlocutors hailed the relations between the two countries, which keep developing in an atmosphere of mutual trust.

The parties discussed a wide range of issues related to the further expansion and deepening of economic cooperation between Armenia an Iran.

PM Abrahamyan asked Eshaq Jahangiri to increase the volume of gas supply to Armenia, considering that the delivery of Russian natural gas to Armenia has been halted for a month because of reconstruction works  on the damaged parts of the pipeline on the Georgian territory. The response from the Iranian side was positive.

Other issue of mutual interest were also discussed.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will pay a working visit to Moscow on July 14-15.

“Secretary Kerry will travel to Moscow where he will begin a series of meetings with senior Russian officials to discuss Syria, Ukraine, Nagorno-Karabakh, among other issues,” Spokesperson for the US Department of State John Kirby told the daily briefing.

“The security of Nagorno Karabakh can be guaranteed only outside Azerbaijan,” Armenian President Serzh Sarsgyan said in an interview with Al Mayadeen TV, a pan-Arab news station.

“It’s up to the people of Nagorno Karabakh to determine their final status just like it happens all over the world. Had self-determination not been respected, the UN would consist of 60-70 states today. The same Armenia and Azerbaijan would not be independent countries,” President Sargsyan said.

“Nagorno Karabakh has never been part of Azerbaijan,” President Sargsyan said. He reminded that Karabakh was annexed to Azerbaijan at the decision of the Caucasus Bureau of the Communist Party.

“The same happened to Nakhijevan, which has been completely cleansed of Armenians, where the Armenian historical-cultural monuments have been razed to ground, and no one, including UNESCO, has able to prevent the crime,” the President said.

He stressed that it’s impossible to convince the people of Nagorno Karabakh to live under Azerbaijani jurisdiction.