13:58, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenia expects to receive €17,9 million in grant funds from the EU in 2024, Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan has said.

Three main directions are envisaged.

“The first is the implementation of reforms in the judiciary, which is a budgetary support grant. We had this project in 2023 as well in the amount of 2,7 million euros, while for 2024 it is envisaged to provide 5,4 million euros, the next is the second phase of the support program for Armenia’s judiciary reforms with an additional 2,5 million euros,” the finance minister told lawmakers during a parliamentary committee discussion on the 2024 budget.

In 2024, a 10-million-euro EU support project for the education sector is also planned. The total worth of the project is 32 million euros, 29,3 of which is direct budgetary support, while the rest is technical.

 Speaking about loans, the finance minister said that in 2024 the loans amount to 21 billion drams, from which 153 million are current spending and 21 billion 62 million are capital spending.

 15:33, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany Annalena Baerbock has arrived in Armenia.

She was welcomed by Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan in Zvartnots airport.

Baerbock will meet with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during the trip. She will also visit the European Union Mission in Armenia (EUMA) and a reception center of refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh.

 15:45, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. HSBC Bank Armenia CJSC (hereinafter HSBC Armenia/Bank) announces that, effective from 6 November 2023, the Bank’s Head Office will be relocated to a new, comfortable and modern facility at the following address: 42 Paronyan street, Yerevan.

HSBC Armenia’s customers are welcome to visit the new location, which offers an environment that prioritises their comfort and convenience. The Bank will also maintain its services for its customers at the 66 Teryans street, Yerevan address, which will continue operating as “Teryan” branch.

Moreover, to ensure an enhanced customer experience, STATUS customers of HSBC Armenia will be served at the dedicated area of the Bank’s new head office, instead of the previous location at 4/1 Baghramyan Street, Yerevan.

“We are very excited to open the doors to our new Head Office, which has been designed to meet the high standards and expectations of our customers, providing a modern and comfortable environment for all,” comments Irina Seylanyan, CEO of HSBC Armenia.

“It also reflects our commitment to adopting HSBC Group’s latest workplace standards that support our employees' well-being, by providing more flexibility, better work-life balance and offering modern interior solutions to accommodate various work styles and preferences of our people.”

HSBC Holdings plc

HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 62 countries and territories. With assets of US$3,021 billion at 30 September 2023, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.

HSBC in Armenia

HSBC Bank Armenia CJSC was established in 1996. The bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Group. HSBC Armenia serves around 30 000 customers through six offices located in Yerevan and around 310 employees. As of 30 September 2023, the Bank has assets of AMD334 billion including the ones, allocated with the mediation of the HSBC Bank plc, London. The bank is regulated by the Central Bank of Armenia.

 16:13, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan is holding a meeting with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock in Yerevan, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan said in a statement.

“Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany Annalena Baerbock arrived at the Foreign Ministry of Armenia. The tête-à-tête meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Germany commenced and will be continued in an enlarged format with the participation of both delegations,” Badalyan said.

 16:42, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany Annalena Baerbock visited Tsitsernakaberd Memorial to commemorate the victims of the Armenian Genocide shortly after arriving in Yerevan on Friday.

The German FM placed a wreath at the Memorial and laid flowers at the Eternal Flame honoring the victims of the Armenian Genocide.

 16:53, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. A video posted online shows an Azeri soldier plundering an abandoned house of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Azeri soldier, visibly ecstatic, was filmed presumably by one of his comrades, who is heard reveling behind the camera.

The Azerbaijani soldier is seen ransacking the children’s room and grabbing stuffed toys.

In a post on X, Armenian Ambassador-at-Large Edmon Marukyan called out the international community for not responding to the ‘savagery.’

“After keeping the people of Nagorno-Karabakh under a blockade for 10 months, Azerbaijan launched a military offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh on September 19, carrying out an ethnic cleansing of Armenians from the entire territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Now, this is what Azeris are doing with the abandoned homes of Armenians. Meanwhile, the international community kept insisting that Azerbaijan is obliged to guarantee the rights and security of Armenians, and Azerbaijan kept responding that they will surely ensure all of that. It turns out, however, that Azerbaijan does not even ensure the safety of empty houses of Armenians, their property in those houses, including children’s toys. Nevertheless, this savagery does not receive any sanctions or condemnation from the same international community," Marukyan said.

 17:07, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, 3 NOVEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 3 November, USD exchange rate down by 0.15 drams to 402.22 drams. EUR exchange rate up by 0.20 drams to 428.08 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.01 drams to 4.33 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 0.98 drams to 491.59 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 45.15 drams to 25651.26 drams. Silver price up by 4.61 drams to 297.88 drams.

 17:10, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan and German Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock are discussing the bilateral agenda and regional issues during their ongoing meeting in Yerevan, foreign ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan has said.

“Both Armenian-German bilateral agenda and regional issues are being discussed during meeting between Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Germany at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia,” Badalyan said in a statement on Facebook.

 17:16, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government is preparing a new support program for the forcibly displaced persons of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Under the new program, all forcibly displaced persons of Nagorno-Karabakh, regardless of age or employment status, will each receive 50,000 drams in November and December to meet their essential needs.

The new support program was announced by Davit Khachatryan, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs.

The new support program will be confirmed during the Cabinet meeting next week.

The government has already implemented two support programs -  a lump sum of 100,000 drams to every NK forcibly displaced person, and, in addition, the government will be providing 50,000 drams to all NK forcibly displaced persons for 6 months for accommodation expenses and utility bills.

 18:11, 3 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Germany will provide 9.3 million euros of humanitarian aid to Armenia to help forcibly displaced people from Nagorno-Karabakh. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany Annalena Baerbock announced this during the press conference held in Yerevan after the meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.

“We are currently in Armenia during such a period when the people of the country are facing numerous challenges. The images of the situation we saw are still fresh in our minds-the flow of people through the Lachin corridor into Armenia, families leaving their homeland for security reasons. It was a great challenge for the Armenian Government to accept so many people from Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Armenian Government remained calm and took all possible steps. The Government has invested capital to support these people. So their action  deserve our respect. You opened your heart and offered your help to many people, including women, children, and elderly people from Nagorno-Karabakh. We will not leave you alone in this matter.

After 2022, we have provided great support to the Government of Armenia and will provide an additional 9.3 million euros in humanitarian aid to overcome these challenges,” said Baerbock.