WATCH: BBC interview with Serj Tankian, Artak Beglaryan on Nagorno-Karabakh humanitarian crisis

Emil Lazarian

 14:52, 2 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. The BBC has interviewed Armenian-American musician, System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian and Nagorno-Karabakh’s ex-ombudsman Artak Beglaryan on the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Tankian and Beglaryan spoke about the blockade of Lachin Corridor and the humanitarian crisis resulting from the illegal actions of the government of Azerbaijan.

Tankian warned that the government of Azerbaijan is bribing European legislators to achieve its goal, referring to the infamous Caviar Diplomacy, and that Baku is taking advantage of its oil supplies.

Beglaryan said that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has a geopolitical subtext and that ever since the conflict between Russia and the West worsened the Nagorno-Karabakhis became the collateral victims of that conflict.

Tankian said that the UK has economic interests in Azerbaijan, particularly the British Petroleum, and that’s why the UK is not calling out Azerbaijan. He called on the British government to use its influence on Azerbaijan and prevent the genocide and starvation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

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Lachin Corridor, the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia and the rest of the world, has been blocked by Azerbaijan since late 2022. The Azerbaijani blockade constitutes a gross violation of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement, which established that the 5km-wide Lachin Corridor shall be under the control of Russian peacekeepers. Furthermore, on February 22, 2023 the United Nations’ highest court – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – ordered Azerbaijan to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions.  Azerbaijan has been ignoring the order ever since. The ICJ reaffirmed its order on 6 July 2023.

Azerbaijan then illegally installed a checkpoint on Lachin Corridor. The blockade has led to shortages of essential products such as food and medication. Azerbaijan has also cut off gas and power supply into Nagorno Karabakh, with officials warning that Baku seeks to commit ethnic cleansing against Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh. Hospitals have suspended normal operations.




Azeri disinformation campaign targeting Armenia continues, more false accusations of border shooting

Jhanna Virabian

 15:27, 2 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani defense ministry has again falsely accused the Armenian military of opening gunfire at Azerbaijani outposts.

In a statement, the Armenian defense ministry said the Azeri accusations are disinformation.

“The release of Azerbaijani MoD as if on September 2, at around 12:58 p.m., the Armenian Armed Forces opened fire against the Azerbaijani combat outposts located in the southwestern part of the frontier zone, is another disinformation,” the Armenian defense ministry said on Facebook.

Azeri media spreading fake news on more Armenian casualties

Emil Lazarian

 15:58, 2 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani media are spreading fake news on more Armenian casualties, the Armenian defense ministry warned Saturday.

“The information disseminated by the Azerbaijani mass media as if there are casualties and wounded on the Armenian side as a result of the UAV’s attack deployed by the Azerbaijani AF, does not correspond to reality. As we have previously stated, on September 1, three servicemen were killed in action and two were wounded in the wake of Azerbaijani provocation. Other information regarding losses or casualties is false,” the Armenian defense ministry said in a statement.

Four Armenian Troops Killed In Clash With Azerbaijan

Emil Lazarian
BARRON’S
Sept 1 2023
  • FROM AFP NEWS
By AFP – Agence France Presse

Four Armenian servicemen were killed and three Azerbaijani soldiers wounded on Friday, the two countries said, as they accused each other of engaging in a new round of clashes.

Tensions between Baku and Yerevan have escalated sharply in recent months, as both sides accuse the other of cross-border attacks.

“As a result of an Azerbaijani provocation, four servicemen were killed and one wounded on the Armenian side,” Armenia’s defence ministry said, after earlier reporting two were killed.

The ministry said earlier that Azerbaijan had fired at Armenian positions near the town of Sotk, less than ten kilometres (six miles) from the Azeri border.

Azerbaijan said two of its soldiers were injured by an Armenian drone strike in the region of Kalbajar, on the other side of the border, while another was injured in cross-border fire.

“We declare that all responsibility for the tension and its consequences lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia,” Baku’s defence ministry said.

Both sides regularly blame each other for starting the violence and both sides accuse the other of spreading disinformation.

The latest clashes mark another blow to achieving peace between the two ex-Soviet republics, which have for decades been locked in a bitter dispute over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Yerevan and Baku have fought two wars for control over the region, which is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but largely populated by ethnic Armenians.

Armenia has accused Azerbaijan of blocking food and aid supplies to Armenian-populated towns in Nagorno-Karabakh via the Lachin corridor, the sole road linking Armenia to the region.

Yerevan and international aid groups have warned the humanitarian situation in the mountainous region is dire and deteriorating, with shortages of food and medicine.

The two sides have been unable to reach a lasting peace settlement despite mediation efforts by the European Union, United States and Russia.

https://www.barrons.com/news/armenia-says-azerbaijan-fired-at-positions-killing-two-4bcf845

[Sydney] Armenians demand govt pressure on ‘genocidal’ blockade

Hunanian Jack
NEOS KOSMOS, Australia
Se[t 1 2023

Armenian-Australians are demanding Foreign Minister Penny Wong diplomatically pressure Azerbaijan to end a blockade devolving into a humanitarian crisis.

Farid Farid (AAP)
1 September 2023 5:38pm

Hundreds of Australia’s Armenian diaspora have called on the government to increase pressure on Azerbaijan to lift a nine-month blockade over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh territory that has left thousands starving.

Marching in central Sydney on Friday waving Armenian flags and holding “Aid for Artsakh” placards, the boisterous crowd including many children ended up at the Department of Foreign Affairs office to make their voices heard.

Artsakh is the Armenian name for the landlocked mountainous region in the South Caucasus.

“It took 253 days for this government to wake up to the reality on the ground … that mothers are losing their unborn children because there is no gas,” said John Jack Kajakajian of the Armenian Youth Federation of Australia.

“We implore you and the people in this building to utilise all bilateral and multilateral channels to help bring an end to this genocidal blockade,” he said in a message for Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

The community says it received a letter of support from the minister after months of lobbying, affirming the International Court of Justice’s ruling.

The UN’s top judicial body ordered Azerbaijan earlier this year to ensure free movement through the Lachin corridor, Armenia’s only access to Nagorno-Karabakh, but has been ignored.

The two former Soviet countries have contested the region for decades with several wars breaking out, mostly recently in 2020.

Azerbaijan wants to bring the approximately 120,000 Armenians living in the breakaway region under its control and has blocked the Lachin corridor since December.

Nanor Shokayan, 27, who has family in the region and visited them last year a few months before the blockade, says they have been struggling to stay alive.

“They’re struggling for their daily loaf of bread, struggling for medical care – there’s absolutely no food,” she told AAP.

“The sad thing is that there’s no food but some internet access so when they do connect with us they’re seeing the silence of the international community which is very disheartening for them.”

Ms Shokoyan compared the ongoing blockade to the first genocide of the 20th century where as many as one million Armenians were killed by Ottoman soldiers.

“The Armenian people have been through one genocide in 1915 … and what we’re seeing today is the continuation of that very genocide on the same group of people.”

Earlier in the week, French politicians including Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo tried to send an aid convoy but were unsuccessful.

Neither the EU, United States nor Russia have managed to mediate the crisis between the long-feuding neighbours.

Source: AAP (with DPA)


Armenian troops killed in drone clashes with Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh

Aram Torosian
Jerusalem Post
Sept 1 2023

By REUTERS

Armenia and Azerbaijan said on Friday that they had sustained casualties in fighting around their common border, northwest of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia’s Defence Ministry said two of its servicemen had been killed and another wounded in shelling near the border villages of Sotk and Norabak. Azerbaijan said Armenia had struck its positions across the border in the Kalbajar region using drones, wounding three servicemen.

“[Russia has shown an] absolute indifference to the aggression against the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia”

Armenian Foreign Ministry

The incident came a day after Armenia accused treaty ally Russia of “absolute indifference” towards attacks on its territory.


Armenia accused Azerbaijan of massing forces close to the border, and striking its positions using drones, mortars, and small arms fire. Azerbaijan denied gathering forces, but said it was taking “retaliatory measures.”

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.


Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but inhabited primarily by ethnic Armenians, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbors since before the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

Despite sporadic discussions on a peace deal to agree on borders, settle differences over the enclave, and unfreeze relations, tensions remain high and skirmishes along the shared border are a regular occurrence. Two days of clashes in September last year saw around 300 servicemen killed on both sides.


Continued fighting, along with a months-long blockade of Karabakh by Azerbaijan, have strained once warm relations between Armenia and Russia, which is Yerevan’s traditional ally, and which has a peacekeeping contingent in Karabakh.

In a statement on Thursday, Armenia’s Foreign Ministry accused Russia of “absolute indifference to the aggression against the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia,” and of using a “false excuse” to avoid supporting Armenia.

In recent months, Russia has publicly backed Azerbaijan’s claim to Nagorno-Karabakh and blamed Armenia for the ongoing blockade of separatist-held Karabakh.


Inaugural Armenian Film Festival to be held in Glendale

Elizabeth Jabejian
FOX 11, Los Angeles
Sept 1 2023
By Araksya Karapetyan


GLENDALE, Calif. – Good Day LA’s Araksya Karapetyan caught up with Emmy Award-winning actor Michael Goorjian whose much-anticipated film “Amerikatsi” is set to kick off the inaugural Armenian Film Festival in Glendale on Wednesday, Sept. 6.

The festival is set for Sept. 6-10 at the Alex Theatre, Laemmle Glendale and Hero House. 

Goorjian wrote, directed and stars as the main character Charlie in the film called”Amerikatsi,” which translates to “The American” in English.

“Charlie’s story is really about someone longing for their homeland. Someone who wants to connect with their roots, which I think many Americans can relate to,” said Michael Goorjian. “I like making films that inspire people and give them hope. So That’s what I would say is the heart of what Amerikasi is.”

Watch the report at https://www.foxla.com/news/inaugural-armenian-film-festival-to-be-held-in-glendale.amp

Armenia and Azerbaijan report casualties in new border clashes

Lilit Nahapetian
The Print, India
Sept 1 2023
REUTERS
04:30 pm IST

TBILISI (Reuters) -Armenia and Azerbaijan said on Friday that they had sustained casualties in fighting around their common border, northwest of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia’s Defence Ministry said two of its servicemen had been killed and another wounded in shelling near the border villages of Sotk and Norabak. Azerbaijan said Armenia had struck its positions across the border in the Kalbajar region using drones, wounding three servicemen.

Armenia said Azerbaijan was massing forces close to the border, and striking its positions using drones, mortars and small arms fire. Azerbaijan denied gathering forces, but said it was taking “retaliatory measures”.

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbours since the years leading up to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

Despite sporadic discussions on a peace deal to agree on borders, settle differences over the enclave and unfreeze relations, tensions remain high and skirmishes along the shared border are a regular occurrence.

(Reporting by Felix Light; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

Armenia seeking access to Arab markets, India through Iran

Emil Lazarian
 TEHRAN TIMES 
Sept 1 2023
  1. Economy
September 1, 2023 

TEHRAN – Armenia is seeking to export its goods through Iran to the Arab countries of the region and India, as the country is trying to also increase trade with the Islamic Republic, Fars News Agency reported citing ARMENPRESS.

“Armenia and Iran attach great importance to the prospect of carrying out shipments through the Persian Gulf-Black Sea logistic route, and the Armenian side is maximally seeking to support the implementation of this megaproject, attaching great importance to the use of its own territory. The option of exporting Armenian goods through Iranian territory to Arab countries and India is also under discussion, and in this context, the parties have decided to find solutions through joint efforts and simplify the procedures applied from both sides on that road,” Armenia’s commercial attaché to Iran Vardan Kostanyan told ARMENPRESS.

“We are now looking into the untapped potential and opportunities to utilize them in bilateral cooperation. On the other hand, our neighbor is still under sanctions, therefore while carrying out economic policy we are unconditionally taking into consideration this fact. Iran provides state support and protection to companies investing in its economy,” Kostanyan said, highlighting direct meetings between business representatives.

According to Kostanyan, both sides are seeking new opportunities to further develop trade. The two countries plan to increase bilateral trade to one billion dollars, and then to three billion dollars.

He further noted that Iran plans to open eight new free economic zones, bringing the number of its free zones to 15.

Armenia’s membership to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and its land border with Iran gives opportunities for establishing enterprises and carrying out broad joint projects, he said.

Iran and Armenia are working to significantly increase trade turnover. Last year bilateral trade stood at $714 million, while the data of this year’s first half shows a 13 percent increase, which in turn shows that the positive pace of dynamics is maintained.

On August 25, an exhibition showcasing the products offered by Iranian and Armenian companies in the fields of agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism opened in Yerevan with the purpose of boosting bilateral trade between the two countries.

Hojatollah Abdolmaleki, the secretary of Iran’s Free Zones High Council and presidential advisor was personally leading a delegation to Armenia and attended the event.

EF/MA

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/488569/Armenia-seeking-access-to-Arab-markets-India-through-Iran

2 Armenian Soldiers Killed in Azerbaijani Shelling: Defense Ministry

Emil Lazarian

Voice of America
Sept 1 2023
TBILISI — 

Armenia and Azerbaijan said Friday they had sustained casualties in fighting along their common border, northwest of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia’s Defense Ministry said two of its servicemen had been killed and another wounded in shelling near the town of Sotk. Azerbaijan said that Armenia had struck positions in the Kalbajar region using drones, wounding two Azerbaijani servicemen. It said it was taking “retaliatory measures.”

Reuters was unable to verify the reports.

Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, has been a source of conflict between the two Caucasus neighbors since the years leading up to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and between ethnic Armenians and Turkic Azeris for well over a century.

Despite sporadic discussions on a peace deal to agree on borders, settle differences over the enclave and unfreeze relations, tensions remain high and skirmishes along the shared border are a regular occurrence.

Reuters

https://www.voanews.com/a/armenian-soldiers-killed-in-azerbaijani-shelling-defense-ministry/7250431.html