While before the elections, the political authorities are busy brainwashing the citizens, trying to create moods by making announcements about the rapid developments and growth of the economy, processes are taking place in the economy that do not fit into the optimism of the authorities. Despite the growth of economic activity, including the growth of industry, exports from Armenia have decreased again. It decreased after last year’s decrease.

In January last year, a record drop in exports was recorded. was almost halved. On top of that, 13.5 percent less goods were exported from Armenia in January of this year.

Only 176 billion drams or about 464 million dollars were exported, including re-exports.

Re-exports, as in the previous few years, continue to make up quite a large weight in Armenia’s exports. Almost half of exports last year were re-exports. This year, re-exports are not small, but judging by the recorded declines, they continue to decrease.

In contrast to re-exports, it is worrying that ready-made food exports have decreased. This is the main export sector that is directly related to the economy of Armenia. There are mostly no or very few re-exports here. But here and there, a decline has been recorded here as well. The export of ready-made food was reduced by 16 percent at the beginning of this year.

The export of precious metals and stones has decreased sharply. Last year it was 176 million dollars, this year it was 96 million. It decreased by 80 million or more than 45 percent.

Decreased due to reduced known re-exports of gold.

Like gold, the re-export of a number of other products, particularly equipment and machinery, continues to play a crucial role in Armenia’s economy and export indicators. On indicators, but not on the economy.

The import has also decreased, and again, after last year’s decrease. Last year the decrease was almost 34 percent, this year it was more than 11 percent.

Domestic trade turnover has hardly increased. Instead, economic activity was primarily driven by construction, where almost 19 percent growth was recorded. Although the income tax refund program was withdrawn from Yerevan, construction continues to grow at a high rate. This is not because the construction is moving forward with inertia, but because the benefit of the return of income tax was only theoretically removed from Yerevan. There are many unfinished constructions that still retain that privilege. As a result of this, the growth of construction takes place. When the construction of the buildings built with previously issued permits in Yerevan will end, the “golden” era of construction will also end. It will be at the end of this year or at the beginning of next year.

For now, it is growing dynamically, although there is intrigue in this growth. In the construction industry, official statistics showed an increase of almost 19 percent at the beginning of the year, when in that same period, far fewer people were employed in construction. One can hardly think that this discrepancy was caused by the increase in productivity.

Something is wrong, has the shadow of the labor market grown, or have the official statistics tried too hard to present high growth?

After a fairly deep decline last year, the industry picked up early this year. At first glance, a tangible increase was registered: 10.6 percent. Although the decline of the previous year was almost the same, 10.4 percent. But let’s leave aside last year’s decline. The growth registered in the industry at the beginning of the year is mainly at the expense of mining and electricity production. More than 25 percent increase in production volume was recorded in the mining industry. And again, after last year’s decline.

Electricity production also increased by 17 percent. But as strange as it is, the growth of the manufacturing industry is very modest, barely 4.3 percent. That’s after the more than 16 percent decline of last year.

The year began with a decline in tobacco production, which had been growing at a fairly high rate in recent years. There is a slight increase in the production of beverages after a deep decline in the previous year.

At the beginning of the previous year, the production of beverages decreased by more than 25 percent. It has grown by 3.3 percent this year, but it still has a long way to go to recover.

The impact of the so-called Russian gold processing has not yet begun to manifest itself in the processing industry this year. There is a slight uptick in base metal production, but it is not the uptick we see in Russian gold movements. When Russian gold begins to circulate in the processing industry, we have significant increases in indicators, as we had at the end of last year. Imagine, in December of last year the production of basic metals, which included Russian gold, reached 173 billion drams, in January of this year it was only 26 billion drams. 6-7 times less when there is no Russian gold.

Apart from processing of Russian gold, there is also the production of jewelry in the processing industry, where a decline in production volume was recorded this year as well. Of course, it does not reach the decline of the previous year. Last year the decline was 37 percent, this year it was 1.4 percent.

There are no significant changes in both the industry as a whole and the processing industry. The effect of last year’s declines is particularly noticeable. After those declines, some increases are registered, the authorities seem to have developments.

The other sector, which has become the engine of economic activity in Armenia, is services, which is known, first of all, for the growth of the financial sector and entertainment services. Although there has been a significant slowdown in the growth rate in the services sector, compared to the previous year.

HAKOB KOCHARYAN

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Iran confirmed that Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani was killed as a result of American-Israeli missile strikes.

A complaint was filed in Switzerland against SOCAR Trading for its role in financing Azerbaijan’s campaign against the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh.

It was said in the statement of the committee for the protection of fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The committee for the protection of the fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, established by the Parliament of Nagorno-Karabakh in December 2023, together with the “Switzerland-Armenia” association, in 2026. filed an official complaint against SOCAR Trading SA in Switzerland on March 18.

The complaint states that the company violated international standards of responsible business conduct by providing financial support to a state responsible for the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh.

“Material support” for ethnic cleansing

The complaint was formally submitted to the Swiss National Contact Point (SECO) in accordance with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD / OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises 2011 and 2023. guidelines. According to the “Specific Instance” procedure of the OECD Guidelines, the Swiss National Contact Point will now investigate the complaint and decide on further actions and remedies.

“SOCAR Trading” is the Swiss-based subsidiary of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), which is the commercial and financial link of Azerbaijan’s oil sector and a key source of revenue for the Azerbaijani state. In September 2023, Azerbaijan’s military offensive led to the complete displacement of the Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh, effectively ending the centuries-old presence of Armenians in the region.

Based on the analysis of many respected experts, including the first chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo, the organizations that filed the complaint allege that this campaign amounted to ethnic cleansing and possibly genocide.

The complaint alleges that SOCAR Trading, through its financial and commercial activities, has contributed to the replenishment of the economic resources of the Azerbaijani state and, therefore, according to OECD guidelines, had a clear obligation to conduct thorough human rights due diligence and respond to the risks arising from its activities.

“Forcible displacement of about 150,000 Armenians from their homeland in the South Caucasus is one of the most serious humanitarian crises of recent decades,” emphasized Garnik Kerkonyan, an international lawyer based in Chicago and a member of the Committee. “Companies that financially support the state responsible for these actions cannot ignore their obligations arising from international standards.”

Switzerland’s mandate for establishing peace in Nagorno-Karabakh

During the press conference held today in Geneva, the appellants also reminded that exactly one year ago, both chambers of the Swiss Federal Assembly adopted a petition instructing the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs to organize a peace forum between representatives of the people of Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh. A year later, no such forum has yet been convened.

The committee and its partners have expressed their continued expectation that the Swiss authorities will implement this recommendation of the parliament, which they believe can play an important role in building a just and lasting peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“Switzerland should be actively involved in the protection of indigenous peoples and ensuring their right to self-determination, as guaranteed by the United Nations Charter,” said Sargis Shahinyan, the honorary president of the “Switzerland-Armenia” association. “As a neutral state, Switzerland is in a favorable position to play a constructive role in bringing a just resolution to this decades-long conflict.”

“Lasting peace cannot be built on ethnic cleansing,” said Joel Veldkamp, ​​director of public interest protection at the Zurich-based Christian Solidarity International NGO, who also spoke at the press conference. “The new conflict with Iran has made clearer than ever the importance of building long-term peace and security in the vital South Caucasus region.”

Steps in the UN Human Rights Council:

At the same time, two members of the Committee for the Protection of Fundamental Rights of the People of Nagorno-Karabakh are participating in the annual session of the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in Geneva.

Addressing the plenary sessions through several accredited non-governmental organizations, they drew the Council’s attention to the facts of Azerbaijan’s continued illegal detention of Armenian hostages in Baku prisons, Azerbaijan’s refusal to comply with the November 17, 2023 decision of the International Court of Justice (requiring to ensure the safe return of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians to their historical homeland), as well as the ongoing destruction of Armenian spiritual and cultural monuments in Nagorno-Karabakh.

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Samvel Karapetyan’s “Strong Armenia” party has presented a part of its political program, which is related to the security sector. As the party council member Narek Karapetyan noted during the presentation, the program was developed with the participation of prominent specialists and recognized military experts, including foreign ones.

The legendary Artur Avanesyan (“Kandaz”) joined Karapetyan’s team. Avanesyan’s name is well known to the military, the outstanding detective of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army has 30 years of combat experience, he was sent to the most dangerous areas many times during clashes with the enemy.

In his speech, Avanesyan stated that Armenia needs an army that knows its opponent well and can act accordingly. The combat officer noted that the complex system of “smart borders” is proposed to be implemented within the framework of Karapetyan’s plan. We are talking about the use of sensor networks working with artificial intelligence, as well as the deployment of autonomous strike systems along the entire border.

It is also proposed to establish a military intelligence and forecasting system to identify threats at an early stage. Another proposed point is the introduction of a unified management system that will include air and information components.

Among the priority directions, he mentioned the creation of the military-industrial complex, which will make it possible to reduce Armenia’s dependence on other countries in crisis situations.

The program pays special attention to anti-aircraft defense. it is not only the acquisition of air defense systems, but also the mass use of interceptor drones, REP systems and many other solutions.

The well-known Greek military figure Eftimis Turtidis also took part in the development of the security plan. A veteran of special forces in Iraq, Lebanon, Kuwait and other conflicts, Turtidis proposes to create highly mobile and well-armed border guard units that can solve problems in the most difficult conditions, a unique border special-purpose unit.

If Samvel Karapetyan wins the elections, Turtidis will deal with the training of the Armenian military. According to him, Armenia is located in a region that has never been distinguished by its security. In such harsh geopolitical conditions, his army is required to be thoroughly and continuously prepared.

The presentation ended with Samvel Karapetyan’s video message generated by artificial intelligence. He is convinced that a weak army provokes the enemy, while a strong one maintains peace. They do not ask for peace, but force it.

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EU High Representative Kaya Kalas the other day announced, that “the European Union will send a ‘hybrid rapid response team’ to Armenia to help counter threats ahead of the country’s elections.”

During a meeting with journalists after the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Kalas stated that “support for the stability of democracy in the region remains the most important”.

“We will not leave Armenia alone in the fight against foreign interference. Democracies under pressure can count on Europe.” said the diplomat, reminding that Yerevan asked for help.

Head of YSU Political Institutes and Processes Chair, Doctor of Political Sciences, Professor Garik Keryan according to him, what is happening is mostly understandable, because the EU today has a problem to protect those regimes in the post-Soviet area, which have a western orientation.

“Of course, we know what a tough conflict the West, and now especially the EU, is in with Russia, we also know that Russia’s foreign political supremacy is regaining its influence in the post-Soviet space. In this context, everything is understandable. The EU can achieve its strategic goals if it preserves and increases the anti-Russian, Western regimes in the post-Soviet space. At the same time, Russia can regain its influence in the post-Soviet area if it strengthens the pro-Russian regimes and, conversely, achieves the defeat of the elections and the departure of pro-Western or, more precisely, pro-European regimes.

We saw what fierce struggle unfolded in Moldova and how much effort the European Union put in to save the regime of Maya Sandu. We have seen what huge military expenses are spent to save Ukraine, and in the South Caucasus today the EU’s primary attention is directed to Armenia. He is very worried that the pro-Russian forces will win in the upcoming elections.” 168.am–Garik Keryan said in a conversation with

Why, especially now, is the EU so earnestly trying to activate its position and influence in Armenia with the slogan of “fighting hybrid war”? According to the observation of our interlocutor, the problem is that in order to have a geostrategic influence in the South Caucasus, it is necessary to have strong positions in 3 republics. Having strong positions in one or two countries leaves the goal incomplete. In turn, history also shows that you have to dominate the South Caucasus completely or not at all.

“Now the situation in the South Caucasus is as follows: Azerbaijan is completely integrated with Turkey, which is definitely not under the influence of the EU today, because the EU “grabbed Turkey by the nose” for about 35 years and did not accept the EU, there is a rather hardened anti-European mentality there. Until 2012, Georgia was under the influence of the EU, separated from Russia and pursued an anti-Russian foreign policy, and had a clear roadmap for integration into NATO and the EU. After 2012, Georgian society seems to have taken a very sharp turn, because it was the pro-Western Saakashvili regime that suffered an embarrassing defeat in the elections.

Today, Georgia is not only under the influence of the EU, but on the contrary, the Brussels cabinets are not only talking about canceling Georgia’s membership in the EU, but even imposing sanctions on the Ivanishvili-Kobakhidze tandem. It turns out that the EU has no influence on Azerbaijan and Georgia, and the only state in the Caucasus that still inspires hope in the EU is Armenia,” the political scientist added.

According to Garik Keryan, this is the reason why Armenia has acquired a very important importance for the EU and the United States. Of course, according to him, the United States prefers Azerbaijan economically, politically and geostrategically, taking into account the border with Iran, gas and oil resources, being integrated with NATO Turkey, so Armenia is not of such great importance for the United States.

“However, Armenia is very important for the orientation of the political regime or the dominance of the foreign political vector for the EU. Taking these circumstances into account, the EU will do everything to keep Armenia in its vector,” Garik Keryan emphasized.

Let’s remind that back in February, Azatutyun radio station published the RA Foreign Minister’s letter to Brussels, in which he asked to send a rapid response team to Armenia on the eve of the elections. In addition, at the end of the year, the EU announced that it was going to allocate 12 million euros to Armenia “to fight against Russian disinformation” on the eve of the elections.

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Ruben Vardanyan, the former minister of state of Artsakh, who was illegally convicted in Azerbaijan, sounded another alarm the other day, announcing that he tried to contact the human rights defender of Azerbaijan, but did not succeed because the contact was interrupted. He even tried to contact the Ministry of Human Rights of Azerbaijan through a lawyer, again in vain. Regarding all this, the other day through the Ruben Vardanyan family statement had spread.

Siranush Sahakyan, representative and lawyer of Armenian prisoners of war at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). According to Ruben Vardanyan’s message, it clearly shows the problem that has been raised many times: the absolute isolation of Armenian prisoners, the lack of contact with the outside world, and the lack of effective legal measures.

“All this means that the rights of these persons cannot be protected. Even the local mechanisms, which are meant to protect the rights of persons in closed institutions, become ineffective in the case of ethnic Armenians. This record is not only our approach, but also a judicial record of the ECHR that the Azerbaijani authorities cannot provide protection measures for ethnic Armenians.” 168.amSiranush Sahakyan said in a conversation with

According to him, in the case of Armenian hostages and prisoners, the only mechanism in Baku that could act relatively, and that is, in order to solve humanitarian issues, was the office of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The operation of the office in Baku is currently suspended and discretionary during this time one entry visit took place, within which some humanitarian assistance was provided for the transfer of hygiene items and other items.

Siranush Sahakyan noted that the government of Azerbaijan, having organized the illegal trials, also refuses to give the verdicts to the recipients and their family members.

“All this shows that these trials were fake, they were political processes carried out for other purposes, and by not issuing these verdicts, Azerbaijan is also trying to hinder international legal protection. And here we find ourselves in the domain of violation of new rights,” added the human rights defender.

Our interlocutor emphasized that the only way in these conditions is international involvement, for example, as a result of negotiations, making Red Cross visits regular, which, unfortunately, depends on the will and desire of the Azerbaijani authorities. There may also be the right of consular visit, which is exercised directly by the Republic of Armenia or mediated through a third neutral state.

“I record with great pain that there is inaction here, and the Republic of Armenia does not exercise its sovereign rights towards its own citizens and contributes to the formation of this gap, a vacuum. The great burden falls on the shoulders of human rights defenders, who should be able to present the situation to the international community and make it an agenda in the background of these injustices happening in the world. Of course, this is very difficult, especially when there is no proactive state policy and diplomacy, it is also difficult because human rights problems have become widespread in various sectors. We should also raise the issues of Armenian prisoners, achieve the internationalization of these issues and in that way also reach the solution.

Of course, taking legal protection measures with the involvement of families is also in the discussion stage. At the moment, I cannot say for sure, but I should mention in general terms that families can, under certain circumstances, entrust the protection of the interests of those in Baku and file interstate claims against Azerbaijan through their lawyers,” emphasized Siranush Sahakyan.

Let’s remind that on February 5, it became known that the military and political leadership of Artsakh, except former presidents Arkady Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan, were all sentenced to life imprisonment by the Baku military court. Arkadi Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan were sentenced to 20 years in prison, taking into account their age.

Let’s also remind that on September 19, 2023, after the war started against Artsakh, Azerbaijan captured the former high-ranking military and political leadership of Artsakh from September 27 under the threat of killing civilians.

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168TVof “Trigger” the guest of the program Larisa Alaverdyan is the former human rights defender of Armenia, executive director of “Against Legal Arbitrariness” NGO.:

During the interview, issues related to the politics of memory and approaches to coverage of historical events were discussed. In particular, reference was made to the contrast between the attitude towards the anniversary of the Sumgait pogroms in Armenia and the state-level events dedicated to the so-called Khojaly events in Azerbaijan.

Special attention was paid to the international legal agenda, including the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Ramil Safarov, within which violations of the right to life and the ban on ethnic discrimination were recorded, as well as the further calls of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe to Azerbaijan to introduce changes in the national legislation.

During the conversation, the situation related to the Armenian prisoners held in Baku was also considered, including the issues of access to legal protection, communication with the outside world and the involvement of international mechanisms.

In addition, the discussion touched on the current statements of the Armenian authorities, including the reaction to the book about Artsakh and the situation around the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute, in the context of state policy and public discussions.

Hayk Derzyan

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