Thursday, July 20, 2017
Azerbaijan Sentences Russian-Israeli Blogger Over Trips To Karabakh
July 20, 2017
Azerbaijan -- Russian-Israeli blogger Alexander Lapshin is escorted by
security officers at Baku airport after being extradited from Belarus,
7Feb2017.
A court in Azerbaijan on Thursday sentenced Alexander Lapshin, a
Russian-Israeli blogger controversially arrested last December, to
three years in prison on a charge stemming from his visits to
Nagorno-Karabakh.
The court ruled that Lapshin illegally crossed Azerbaijan's
internationally recognized borders when he travelled to Karabakh via
Armenia in 2011 and 2012.But it also cleared him of making "public
appeals against the state," a crime punishable by up to eight years in
prison in Azerbaijan.
Lapshin, who has Israeli, Russian and Ukrainian citizenships, gave
detailed accounts of those trips on his Russian-language travel
blog. The 40-year-old was detained in Belarus's capital Minsk on an
Azerbaijani arrest warrant. The Belarusian authorities extradited him
to Azerbaijan in February, prompting strong criticism from Armenia and
Russia.
The extradition was also condemned by international watchdogs such as
Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect
Journalists. Amnesty demanded the blogger's immediate release, saying
that he is "at risk of torture and other ill-treatment as well as an
unfair trial." The Azerbaijani government rejected the criticism.
Lapshin pleaded not guilty to the accusations levelled against him and
denied forging "criminal links with Armenian authorities" in his final
statement at his trial on Wednesday.At the same time, he said he now
understands that his trips to Karabakh offended many Azerbaijanis.
According to the TASS news agency, Lapshin's lawyer said he is
satisfied with the verdict and hopes that his client will soon be
handed over to Russia, Israel or Ukraine.
Years before his arrest, Lapshin was placed on an official Azerbaijani
blacklist of several hundred non-Armenian foreigners who have visited
Karabakh without Baku's permission. Nevertheless, he was able to
travel to Azerbaijan in June 2016 and post a series of detailed blog
entries on his mixed impressions about the oil-rich country.
In particular, Lapshin suggested that the Azerbaijani authorities have
squandered their massive oil revenues. "Despite 25 years of oil
bonanza, the country is hardly different from neighboring Armenia and
Georgia in terms of socioeconomic development," he wrote.
In a June 2016 post, Lapshin also claimed that he is receiving angry
comments and even death threats from Azerbaijanis accusing him of
working for Armenian intelligence. He laughed off those accusations.
Ally Defends Karabakh Leader's Reelection
July 20, 2017
. Hovannes Movsisian
Nagorno-Karabakh - Ashot Ghulyan, speaker of the Nagorno Karabakh
parliament, speaks to RFE/RL in Stepanakert, 20Jul2017
The controversial reelection of Bako Sahakian, Nagorno-Karabakh's
president, was democratic and legitimate, a senior official in
Stepanakert insisted on Thursday.
Sahakian was due to serve out his second and final term in office this
summer. The Karabakh parliament decided on Wednesday, however, that he
will remain in power as an interim president until the unrecognized
republic completes its transition to a fully presidential system of
government in 2020.
The transition is mandated by Karabakh's new constitution enacted
earlier this year amid strong opposition criticism.
Ashot Ghulian, the Karabakh parliament speaker, said the fact that
Sahakian was reelected by local lawmakers, rather than voters, must
not call into question his legitimacy.
"We can give many examples of how presidents and parliaments are
elected in various countries," Ghulian told RFE/RL's Armenian service
(Azatutyun.am). "The modes of election are different. I believe that
in our case it was done under a much more transparent, free and
democratic procedure."
Ghulian also insisted that the prolongation of Sahakian's decade-long
rule will not undermine democracy in Karabakh. "Democracy is not just
about elections," he said. "Democracy is also about the transparency
of a country's political system. The processes that took place before
yesterday's reelection of the president by the parliament were very
transparent, open and understandable to everyone."
Sahakian was backed on Wednesday by 28 members of the 33-seat
legislature representing three political parties loyal to him. One of
those parties is led by Ghulian.
Some opposition figures in Stepanakert claim that the Karabakh leader
plans to participate in the next presidential elections due in 2020
and further extend his rule. Ghulian did not confirm or deny that,
saying that the issue is "not on any party's agenda" yet.
"I don't think that any of the parties is now thinking about 2020 and
has already made that decision," added the Karabakh official.
Armenia To Ratify New Defense Accord With Russia
July 20, 2017
. Sargis Harutyunyan
Armenia - Russian soldiers march during official ceremonies in Yerevan
to mark the 72nd anniversary of Soviet victory over Nazi Germany,
9May2017.
The Armenian government paved the way on Thursday for the
parliamentary ratification of an agreement with Russia to boost a
joint Russian-Armenian military force that was created more than a
decade ago.
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu and his Armenian counterpart
Vigen Sargsian signed the agreement on "the united group of troops of
the two countries" after talks held in Moscow last November.
The agreement clarifies and upgrades the mission of the joint force
comprising troops from the Russian military base in Armenia and the
Armenian army's Fifth Corps. In particular, it stipulates that the
commander of the Russian-Armenian contingent will be appointed by the
Armenian army's commander-in-chief.
Also, the commander will be subordinate to the chief of the Armenian
army staff in times of peace. He may report to the head of Russia's
Southern Military District in case of a war or imminent military
aggression against Armenia or Russia.
"The main task of the United Group of Troops is to identify
preparation of military aggression against Armenia and Russia in a
timely manner and to repel it jointly with the armed forces of Armenia
and Russia," Defense Minister Sargsian said in November.
The deal was ratified by Russia's lower and upper houses of parliament
on July 14 and July 19 respectively. Prime Minister Karen Karapetian's
government formally recommended its ratification by the Armenian
parliament, which now seems a forgone conclusion.
Alexander Iskandarian, director of the Yerevan-based Caucasus
Institute, said that the signing of the Russian-Armenian accord was
largely a formality that underscored close military ties between the
two states.
"This agreement is one of the formats for comprehensive interaction
between the Russian and Armenian armed forces which helps to ensure
Armenia's protection against Turkey," Iskandarian told RFE/RL's
Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). The Armenian military will thus be
able to continue to concentrate on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, he
said.
Another analyst, Armen Grigorian, suggested that the deal was
initiated by the Russians. He said they plan to use to increase
"Russian influence in Armenia."
Press Review
July 20, 2017
Armenia -- Newspapers for press review illustration, Yerevan,
12Jul2016
"Hraparak" expresses concern at the start of a planned demolition of
an old neighborhood in the center of Yerevan that has also been home
to an open-air market. The paper notes that many residents of other
neighborhoods were evicted from their homes and insufficiently
compensated in the 2000s. "No new avenue, no matter how beautiful it
is, is worth the pain and suffering of a single citizen," it
says. "There will be more such [redevelopment] projects # but it's
wrong to hurt people."
"Aravot" is also concerned about the plight of people living and
selling cheap goods along Firdousi Street in downtown Yerevan. "The
Firdousi market was certainly not an architectural masterpiece,"
writes the paper. "Nor did it have a cultural value. It was an ugly,
narrow and unclean corridor which must not exist in the capital,
especially in its center. Traders were warned beforehand that the
market will be inevitably dismantled. But they were offered to move to
other markets where they would be charged more for commercial space."
The paper believes that municipal authorities should have somehow
compensated the traders before starting to bulldoze their market
stalls on Wednesday. "But most importantly, they should have decided
before the demolitions what should be built there, found an
appropriate developer and informed Yerevan residents about that," it
says.
"Haykakan Zhamanak" sees "mainly political reasons" for Russia's
decision to stop recognizing Armenian driving licenses of migrants
working as drivers in Russia. "These actions taken by the Russian
authorities result from Armenia's strong economic dependence on that
country," writes the paper. "It is because of that dependence that
Armenia has become a member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU)
serving Russia's interests. It is now evident that the EEU can offer
no positive prospects to Armenia's economy." The paper says at the
same time that Armenia cannot afford to try to quickly leave the
Russian-led trade bloc. In that case, it says, Russia would retaliate
by closing its market for Armenian goods.
"The coming years will be decisive for both the Nagorno-Karabakh
settlement process and the choice of the course of further development
of the second Armenian state," writes "Hayots Ashkhar." The paper says
they will also be important for reducing the Azerbaijani military
threat. "In terms of solving these issues, the short but intense and
bloody war of April 2016 was an important lesson," it says. "It
exposed the Armenian people's level of organization and will to
confront the enemy as well as the need for greater coordination of the
work of various state bodies."
(Tigran Avetisian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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