10:10,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. The United States believes that 'continued dialogue' is the best way to reach sustainable settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller has said.

“We do obviously support continued dialogue around that issue. We believe it’s the best way to reach a sustainable end to the conflict, and we will continue to pursue it,” Miller said at a press briefing when asked on the Armenia-Azerbaijan negotiations process.

Miller declined to comment when asked on the U.S. position on the sides trying to negotiate without mediators.

Despite the ongoing peace efforts, Azerbaijan perpetrated yet another unprovoked attack against Armenia: Azeri forces on February 13 opened cross-border gunfire at an Armenian military position in Syunik province, killing 2 soldiers and wounding others.

 12:19,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. Ambassador-at-large Edmon Marukyan has released a statement on Azerbaijan’s latest deadly border shooting targeting an Armenian military position in Syunik province.

The Azeri gunfire killed 2 Armenian soldiers and wounded others.

“According to the statement of the State border guard service of Azerbaijan, tonight, they carried out the "Revenge" operation by attacking the border guard position located in the sovereign territory of Armenia, as a result of which two Armenian servicemen were killed and several others were injured.

“First, Azerbaijan declares that there was fire from the Armenian side, as if there was a wounded person, then the Armenian side declares that it will investigate the incident, and the Azerbaijani side attacks and kills and injures people without waiting for any investigation, thus showing that they were prepared for an attack and were just looking for a cause.

Thus, it is obvious that Azerbaijan does not give up its "traditional" criminal, aggressive behavior and first spreads unchecked, one sided, fake news as if there was a shooting from the Armenian side, and then carries out a ready-made operation in the sovereign territory of Armenia, killing and distorting new lives. This chain of criminal acts carried out by Azerbaijan must be stopped. The international community must condemn this chain of vile unprovoked actions carried out by Azerbaijan and call Azerbaijan to withdraw its occupying forces from more than 215 square kilometers of sovereign territory of Armenia, which is an aggression by virtue and provocation against Armenia,” Marukyan said on X.

 15:53,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. The fifth meeting of the EU-Armenia Partnership Council is underway in Brussels.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and Josep Borrell, the Vice President of the European Commission, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy are participating in the meeting.

The agenda of the meeting includes a wide range of issues: the implementation process of the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement, including the reforms implemented in Armenia and their results. The prospects of deepening the Armenia-EU partnership in various fields will also be touched upon, taking into account the current priorities and existing challenges. The security situation in the South Caucasus and regional issues will also be discussed.

 16:58,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. Today, the European Commission is allocating an additional €5.5 million in humanitarian aid to support the Armenians displaced from the Nagorno-Karabakh region, the EU Delegation to Armenia said in a press release.  

“Many of the people who fled to Armenia during the last year's mass exodus took little to no belongings with them, leaving them dependent on emergency aid.

“€1.5 million of this funding is assigned for disaster preparedness to enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities to potential crises. The remaining €4 million of humanitarian funding is mainly focusing on providing the displaced Karabakh Armenians with regular cash transfers and vouchers to help them cover their basic needs.

“Through its humanitarian partners, the EU aims to support people in need with access to food, shelter healthcare, mental health services, and protection.

“Underlining EU's humanitarian support to Karabakh Armenians, Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said: “This is the first winter for thousands of Karabakh Armenians who fled to Armenia last Autumn. In these challenging times, it is our humanitarian duty to provide protection and assistance to the people most in need. With this new €5.5 million funding, we will aim to further strengthen the existing EU humanitarian response to the displaced people in Armenia, by providing them with access to basic services.”

“This funding comes in addition to the €12.2 million already announced by the European Commission in response to the mass exodus of Karabakh Armenians in September 2023,” reads the press release.

 17:06,

YEREVAN, 13 FEBUARY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 13 February, USD exchange rate down by 0.30 drams to 404.23 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.48 drams to 435.48 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate down by 0.01 drams to 4.43 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 1.44 drams to 512.04 drams.

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

Gold price down by 127.39 drams to 26190.13 drams. Silver price up by 3.16 drams to 297.81 drams.

 17:32,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. The Prosecutor-General’s Office of the Republic of Armenia has been included in the European Network of Prosecutors for the Environment (ENPE) as an observer.

Armenia is now the only country in the region to have an observer status in ENPE.

ENPE seeks to: • support the operative work of environmental prosecutors; • promote the exchange of information and experience of the enforcement and prosecution of environmental crime between members; • foster knowledge of environmental law among prosecutors and promote the development of environmental criminal law as an integral part of criminal law enforcement generally; • share experience of investigations, prosecutions and sanctions in the field of environmental criminal law; • contribute to better understanding, implementation and enforcement of environmental criminal law; • encourage and support co-operation between Members and facilitate capacity building in relation to the prevention and prosecution of environmental crime; • facilitate collection of data about environmental crime across Europe and enforcement action taken in relation to environmental crime; • identify and develop good, and whenever possible, best practice, for successful prosecutions and produce guidance, tools, common standards and approaches to the prosecution of environmental offences; • share training programmes in relation to environmental criminal law.

The network has over 60 members and observers (UK, France, Ireland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Denmark, Austria, Switzerland and others).

 17:58,

 19:12,

 19:49,

 19:54,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS.  In the process of delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan no new border has to be created, but the borders confirmed by the Alma-Ata declaration and later reaffirmed by the parties should be reproduced on the ground, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said at the end of  the fifth meeting of the EU-Armenia Partnership Council during the  joint press conference with the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.

"I reiterated Armenia’s commitment to agreements reflected in statements adopted in quadrilateral meetings in Prague in October 2022 and in Granada last autumn as well as the agreements, announced by the President of the European Council Charles Michel following the trilateral meetings with leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Brussels on May 14 and July 15, 2023.

We remain convinced that Armenia and Azerbaijan should reaffirm that they recognize each other's territorial integrity based on the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration and the most recent maps elaborated by competent and authorized bodies of the Soviet Union should become the basis for the delimitation of the borders between the two countries. This means that in the process of delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan no new border has to be created, but the borders confirmed by the Alma-Ata declaration and later reaffirmed by the parties should be reproduced on the ground," said the Foreign Minister.