Category: News

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian had a meeting with French Secretary of State for European Affairs Harlem Desir.

During the meeting reference was made to the stabilization of situation in the Karabakh conflict zone and the steps targeted at restoring the negotiation process.

In this context the parties underlined that the main objective of the Armenian and Azerbaijani Presidents proposed by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs is the reinforcement of the ceasefire established by the 1994 agreement and implementation of confidence-building measures with a view of restoring the negotiation process.

Minister Nalbandian and Secretary of State Desir discussed the Armenia-EU relations, and the current talks on formation of a new Armenia-EU legal basis.

Minister Nalbandian attached importance to the start of the dialogue on visa liberalization on the basis of the existing achievements.

The parties exchanged views on a number of urgent regional and international issues.

Islamic State militants have attacked a cafe in Iraq frequented by supporters of the Spanish football club Real Madrid, killing at least 12 people, the BBC reports.

Three men opened fire with machine guns at the al-Furat Cafe in the mainly Shia town of Balad early on Friday.

The assailants fled and hours later one blew himself up after being cornered by Shia militiamen, killing four of them.

In a claim of responsibility, IS said the attack had targeted militiamen and did not mention any connection to Real.

But a statement from Real Madrid said 16 members of a supporters club had died in the attack.

“The club expresses its great sadness and offers its regards and condolences to the families and friends of the victims,” the statement said.

Armenia’s Iveta Mukuchyan has won the Wiwibloggs’ Eurovision Next Top Model 2016 contest.

Established in 2009, the competition has become the premier online modeling contest for women competing at Eurovision.

Iveta Mukuchyan received 31.45% (16,266 votes), followed by Samra of Azerbaijan with 22.71% (11,746 votes) and Poli Genova of Bulgaria with 6.95%  (3,596 votes).

Tamar Kaprelian — one-sixth of Armenia’s Genealogy at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 —won the Wiwibloggs’ search for Eurovision’s Next Top Model last year.

Armenia Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian met with his French counterpart French Jean-Marc Ayraul in Paris.

The Foreign Ministers of Armenia and France discussed issues related to the political and economic, humanitarian cooperation on the state, parliamentary and decentralized level.

Ministers Nalbandian and Ayraul hailed the high level of bilateral relations. They referred to the perspectives of further development and expansion of cooperation. Minister Nalabndian stressed that there are about 160 companies with French capital are operating in Armenia, and noted that our country welcomes the growth of French investments and new initiatives in that direction.

The process of settlement of the Karabakh conflict was high on the agenda of the meeting.

Minister Nalbandian briefed his French counterpart on the situation created as a result of Azerbaijan’s aggressive actions against Nagorno Karabakh, and stressed the importance of the consistent efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs towards excluding the reoccurrence of events that happened in early April and solving the conflict exceptionally in a peaceful way.

The interlocutors agreed that the use of force is unacceptable, and there is no alternative to peaceful settlement. They emphasized the importance of the 1994 and 1995 agreements on ceasefire and stressed the need for their full implementation.

In this context they attached importance to the creation of the mechanism of investigation of ceasefire violations and border incidents and the extension of liabilities of the team of eth Personal representative of the OPSCE Chairman-in-Office.

Minister Nalbandian reiterated that if favorable conditions are created, Armenia will continue to work jointly with the Minsk Group Co-Chairs towards solving the issue through negotiations.

Edward Nalbandian invited Jean-Marc Ayraul to Armenia.

The Azerbaijani side started heavy shelling of the NKR Defense Army positions all along the line of contact from 17:00 today, the NKR Defense Ministry reports.

More intensive firing was reported in the northeastern (Martakert) and northern (Talish) directions of the line of contact. The rival fired 116 shells from 82 mm mortars.

“The Azerbaijani side rushed to lay the blame for destabilizing the situation at the line of contact on the Karabakh side, but this does not correspond to reality,” the Ministry said.

The front divisions of the NKR Defense mostly remain committed to the agreement on ceasefire and resort to response actions only in case of extreme necessitytargeting the firing ranges of the rival.

Senegal’s Fatma Samba Diouf Samoura has been appointed as FIFA’s first female secretary general, the BBC reports.

She succeeds former secretary general Jerome Valcke, who was banned from football-related activity for 12 years.

Samoura, 54, spent 21 years working for the United Nations and will start at football’s governing body in June.

“It is essential Fifa incorporates fresh perspectives as we continue to restore and rebuild our organisation,” said FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

On May 12 the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia Arman Tatoyan met with Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland in Strasbourg.

Tatoyan presented to the Secretary General the gross human rights violations committed against the civilian population of the Republic of Nagorno Karabakh as a result of Azerbaijani aggression initiated in the beginning of April.

During the meeting the Defender presented to Thorbjørn Jagland specific examples of atrocities committed by Azerbaijani armed forces. He also handed to the Secretary General the published Report of NKR Human Rights Defender which analyzes those cases of atrocities.

Tatoyan underlined the devastating consequences of Azerbaijani aggressive policy of disseminating hatred and violence towards people of Armenian ethnicity which endangers the Council of Europe human rights protection system. Moreover, the Defender noted that such policy is being encouraged at state level and is of an absolutely intolerant nature.

It was noted that human rights violations are unacceptable under any circumstances, human rights protection cannot be limited by politics or borders.

The parties emphasized the role of the Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) in implementing the European standards in the country. More specifically, the importance of the Ombudsman institute in executing the European Court of Human Rights judgments was emphasized. The parties also discussed  issues related to prevention of domestic violence, protection of the rights of people with disabilities, as well as other issues in the field of human rights protection.

Asbarez – The Hayastan All-Armenian Fund proclaimed a joint appeal with all major Armenian organizations of the Western United States, to develop and strengthen Artsakh’s statehood and, especially today, to further its security:

At this time of crisis, when the people of Artsakh are engaged in a life-and-death struggle to defend our homeland against the blatant aggression of the Azeri armed forces,

We, the Armenian churches, organizations, and unions of the Western United States declare that:

ACTING in the spirit of pan-Armenian unity;

ASSERTING that the security of Artsakh is of indisputable and absolute importance to every Armenian;

RECOGNIZING the crucial and ongoing role which the Armenia Fund (Hayastan All-Armenian Fund) has had for the past quarter century in the development and strengthening of Artsakh’s statehood, by uniting the largest structures of the Armenian diaspora around this vision,

We REAFFIRM our unanimous support of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund’s mission and goals,

AND

APPEAL to all Armenian Americans to generously contribute to the Armenia Fund’s HELP ARTSAKH! Telethon, which will be broadcast by all Armenian television channels in Los Angeles on Saturday, May 14, 2016. This special Telethon is dedicated to addressing the urgent humanitarian needs of war-torn Artsakh.

Contributing to the security of the homeland is the duty of every Armenian.

May 9, 2016
Los Angeles, California

Western Diocese of the Apostolic Church of North America, Burbank

Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America, La Crescenta

Armenian Evangelical Union of North America

Armenian Catholic Eparchy of U.S. and Canada

Social Democrat Hunchakian Party of the Western USA

Armenian Democratic Liberal (Ramgavar) Party, U.S. Western Region

Armenian Revolutionary Federation, Western U.S. Central Committee

A.G.B.U. Western District Committee

Armenian Relief Society of Western USA

Armenian Assembly of America, Southern California Regional Council

Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandian met with Jean Bize, Chairman of the French Senate European Affairs Committee, in Paris.

The sides discussed efforts towards overcoming the consequences of large-scale military actions unleashed by Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh, possibilities of resumption of the negotiations.

Regarding that, Edward Nalbandian attached significance to addressed statement, issued by Jean Bize on April 7, assessment of the situation and proposed steps towards settlement of the issue. Necessity of implementation of a mechanism for investigation of the cease-fire violations was stressed.

During the meeting, Armenia-European Union relations, negotiations on a new legal framework for cooperation, start of the dialogue on visa liberalization were reflected on.

On the same day, Edward Nalbandian met members of Parliamentary Friendship Groups of the Senate of France and National Assembly of Armenia, with whom discussed a range of issues on the development of the Armenian-French relations, cooperation between legislative bodies of the two states, cooperation within Parliamentary Assemblies.

Overcoming of consequences of Azerbaijan’s aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh was in the center of the meeting. Edward Nalbandian thoroughly presented to the French Senators efforts exerted by Armenia and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs in this direction.

During the meeting, developments unfolded in the Middle East, fight against terrorism, migration crisis were touched upon

Hours after the OSCE monitoring in Martakert region, the Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire at tahe line of contact, leaving an Armenian soldier killed. This testifies to the fact that the Azerbaijan ignores the mediating efforts targeted at the settlement of the Karabakh issue, Armenia’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

The Azerbaijani side used artillery weapons of different calibers, mortars and grenade launchers as it violated the agreement on ceasefire starting from 19:30, May 11.

According to the NKR Defense Ministry, private of the NKR Defense Army Armen Hrayr Martirosyan, born in 1996, was killed in Azeri firing in the northern direction of the line of contact at about 20:00, the Ministry said.

Investigation into the details of the case is under way.

The activeness of the rival was pressured as a result of retaliatory measures taken by the front divisions of the NKR Defense Army.

The fact that the incident occurred hours after the OSCE monitoring in Martakert region comes to prove the urgency of implementation of investigation mechanisms, the Armenian Defense Ministry said.