10:25,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. The Office of the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs has developed the 2023-2033 Armenia-Diaspora Partnership Strategy, High Commissioner Zareh Sinanyan told Armenpress.

He said the strategy is based on a vision of a “state-centered, pro-state” Diaspora. The document has been put into circulation.

“We expect to work with the Diaspora based on principles of respect, based on the objective of further deepening the ideology of statehood-building and state-centeredness. Today, this is very weak in the Diaspora. Understandably, the Diaspora was formed in conditions of absence of statehood,” Sinanyan explained, adding that while Armenians living in Armenia have the sense of nationhood and statehood-building, Diaspora Armenians don’t necessarily have that notion. “The work we want to do with the Diaspora must be exclusively centered on the state. Not because we are egoists or focused on ourselves, but because we see the state as the guarantee of perpetuity of not only the Armenians of Armenia, but of the Armenian nation and the Diaspora. Without a strong state there can be nothing. If the Diaspora was able to exist in the Middle East for many years, then the Diaspora that was formed in the past fifty years cannot exist for long without an anchor, and that anchor is the state,” Sinanyan said.

The High Commissioner said they have already received numerous recommendations and offers regarding the strategy and they are amending the document. Sinanyan’s office is working with the Diaspora regarding the strategy. He said that the strategy’s inception was in 2022 during the First Global Diaspora Summit in Armenia. “We are trying to realistically involve many representatives from the Diaspora,” Sinanyan said.

The 2nd Global Diaspora Summit is planned for mid-September 2024 in Armenia.

The 2023-2033 Armenia-Diaspora Partnership Strategy will be forwarded to the Cabinet for discussions in the coming months.

The agenda of the 2^nd summit is currently under development, but it will feature security, economic and cultural issues.

 11:24,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikyan has said that the government’s goal is to transform the conscription-based army into a ‘professional’ one.

He made the remarks during the January 28 Army Day celebration.

In his speech, Papikyan attached importance to the need for professional, developed, skilled and educated military personnel in the armed forces in line with the technological achievements. In this context, he highlighted the launch of the certification process in the military.

“With the launch of the certification system, which we will further improve, we made one step further towards a professional army, which is one of the priority goals of our government,” Papikyan said.

 12:07,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan has praised the 25-day training model for military reservists.

Speaking at the January 28 Army Day event, Papikyan said the government decided to initiate training musters for military reservists given the security situation around the country, and with the purpose of increasing the level of combat readiness of the reserve. “Despite the existing problems, we can say that the 25-day training model is a success,” he said.

 12:47,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan has praised the “tangible results” in arms acquisitions last year.

“Experience showed that without modern armaments it’s impossible to have a strong and combat-ready army, no matter how high the spirit of troops to serve their country selflessly,” Papikyan said at the January 28 Army Day celebration.

He said that the efforts to re-equip the Armenian Armed Forces on a proper level befitting leading militaries of the 21st century have “given tangible results.”

“We’ve been able to enhance military-technical cooperation by finding new partners and making tangible steps in the direction of armament diversification. This is one more step strengthening the diversification of our security architecture, which will help us develop a stronger and more reliable security environment around Armenia,” Papikyan said.

The defense minister also spoke about the defense industry. “In simple words, we shouldn’t import what we can produce ourselves here in our country, with a lower cost and good quality. This is a goal that we are working on.”

 13:09,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. The preservation of Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenian cultural heritage is always on the Foreign Ministry’s agenda, Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Vahan Kostanyan has said.

“The preservation of the cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh is on our agenda. This issue is raised both at the UNESCO executive body and in other relevant organizations. If you recall, in December 2020 the UNESCO executive council made a decision on sending a fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh to observe the situation on the ground regarding the state of cultural heritage monuments,” Kostanyan said, adding that the foreign ministry has been continuously working in order for that mission’s visit to eventually take place.

 16:32,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has held a meeting with the leadership and officers of the Foreign Intelligence Service.

During the meeting the Prime Minister was briefed on the course of the establishment of the agency and the 2024 action plan.

“Views were exchanged on addressing modern challenges, as well as the objectives of the Foreign Intelligence Service in the development of the state. The Prime Minister issued concrete objectives and directives to the service,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a readout.

 17:03,

 18:35,

 19:11,

YEREVAN, JANUARY 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Monday met with Kamal Kharrazi, Foreign Policy Advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader and Head of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations of Iran.

According to the PM’s Office readout, Pashinyan emphasized the importance of Kamal Kharazi's visit to Armenia and expressed confidence that it would give a new impetus to the further development and strengthening of Armenia-Iran relations.

Nikol Pashinyan noted that they had agreed with the President of the Republic of Iran to take consistent steps in the direction of the continuous increase in the volume of trade turnover. At the same time, the Prime Minister mentioned that he fondly remembered the meeting with the Supreme Leader of Iran and asked to convey his warm greetings.

According to the source, the interlocutors discussed various issues related to the Armenia-Iran cooperation agenda. They related to political, economic relations, cooperation in energy, infrastructures and other fields and implementation of joint projects.

It is noted that ideas were exchanged on issues related to security and stability in the South Caucasus. The Prime Minister emphasized Armenia's key approaches on this issue.

In the context of unblocking infrastructures in the region, the PM Pashinyan lauded Iran's positive position regarding the Crossroads of Peace project developed by the Armenian government.