Weekly Update
26 JANUARY 2020
- President Xi Jinping said China was facing a “grave situation” as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak jumped to 41, overshadowing celebrations of the Lunar New Year that began on Saturday, REUTERS reported. China also announced further transport restrictions. With more than 1,400 people infected worldwide, most of them in China, Hong Kong declared a virus emergency, scrapped celebrations and restricted links to mainland China. Australia confirmed its first four cases on Saturday, Malaysia confirmed four and France reported Europe’s first cases on Friday, as health authorities around the world scrambled to prevent a pandemic.
- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan believes that the President of Azerbaijan, the President of Artsakh and the Prime Minister of Armenia personally bear responsibility for peace and stability in the region, Armenpress said. “We are ready for constructive, normal work, as much as we understand how difficult of a work that is,” the PM said at a news conference on January 25. “But that’s our responsibility in the region. I have told my colleagues, that now we – the President of Azerbaijan, the President of the Republic of Artsakh and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia – are personally bearing the responsibility of the future of peace and stability in the region. This is a personal responsibility, and to some extent also a common responsibility, and bearing this responsibility and [dealing] with it with honor is a very difficult task,” he said. Asked to elaborate on the NK talks, the PM emphasized that there is no secrecy around the negotiations. “It is described and termed in my speech at the 2019 March joint Security Council session of Armenia and Artsakh in Stepanakert”, Pashinyan said. “In that speech I had outlined our circle of discussions in the negotiations process. It is this circle that we are now talking about. Currently there is no paper on the table for us to discuss. And we must work together to approach a more specific, more substantiated discussion phase,” the Armenian PM added.
- A gunman surrendered to the Armenian police after reportedly bursting into an office building in Yerevan and opening fire there on Thursday, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service (Azatutyun.am) said. Police officers rushed to the Erebuni Plaza Business Center and cordoned it off shortly after the gunfire. “The situation is under control,” a police spokesman told reporters outside the building. In an ensuing written statement, the national police service said that its acting chief, Arman Sargsian, personally negotiated with the gunman and that the latter handed his weapon and surrendered as a result. The unidentified man was then taken to a police station in Sargsian’s car, according to the statement, “No citizens were injured,” added the statement. “All circumstances of the incident are being clarified.” The police said nothing about the man’s demands or motives.
- Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said he is ready to meet his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov in the near future, News.am said. When asked about the meeting by MP Arman Abovyan, Mnatsakanyan said they have certain arrangements. The Minister also noted that he attaches great importance to the participation of Karabakh in negotiations. “The issue of Karabakh’s participation in the peaceful settlement of the conflict remains on the agenda, and we have repeatedly explained the reasons. It is very important to have direct participation of an entity that has elected authorities, a political entity,” he added.
- In the framework of the World Economic Forum in Davos, President Armen Sarkissian met with the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Suma Chakrabarti, the Presidential Office informed. Noting that Armenia and EBRD are long-standing partners, President Sarkissian noted with satisfaction the efficient cooperation between the two and successful implementation of different projects in various areas. Suma Chakrabarti in his turn underscored the effective cooperation with the government of Armenia and said that EBRD was resolute to continue assistance to Armenia. President Sarkissian reiterated Armenia’s proposal to hold the 2021 annual meeting of EBRD in Armenia. The parties exchanged views on the prospects of implementation of new projects, development of the financial market, and new opportunities of cooperation in the IT area.
- According to BBC, President Donald Trump's legal team, representing him at his impeachment trial, has demanded that he is immediately acquitted by the Senate. In a brief submitted on Monday, they called the impeachment "a dangerous perversion" of the constitution. Meanwhile House impeachment managers submitted their own brief, saying Mr Trump engaged in "corrupt conduct… to cheat in the next election". Impeachment hearings will begin on Tuesday at 13:00 (18:00 GMT). Mr Trump is charged with abusing his presidential power by asking Ukraine to investigate Democratic political rival Joe Biden – and of obstructing Congress as it looked into his conduct.
Sources: https://www.president.am, https://www.azatutyun.am/en, https://armenpress.am, https://news.am/eng/, https://www.reuters.com/, https://www.bbc.com/.