Tuesday, September 1, 2020 Two Killed In Brandy Distillery Blast • Robert Zargarian Armenia -- A firefighter and a worker at a brandy distillery in Armavir hit by a deadly explosion, September 1, 2020 An explosion rocked a brandy distillery in Armenia on Tuesday, killing two people and seriously injuring four others. The Armenian Ministry of Emergency Situations said rescuers sent by it there by needed about an hour to extinguish a fire caused by the explosion, which blew up a large reservoir filled with alcohol. They then recovered the dead bodies of the two victims. One of the victims was the executive director of the distillery located in Armavir province west of Yerevan while the other managed a construction team working at its premises. Four other people suffered severe burns and were rushed to a provincial hospital. They were transferred to Yerevan later in the day. The Armenian Ministry of Health described their condition as critical. The Armavir distillery employing more than 200 people is a local division of the Proshian Cognac Factory, a major Armenian brandy producer. Its owner, Armen Gasparian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service that the blast was likely caused by welding carried out dangerously close to the alcohol reservoir. Armenia’s Investigative Committee echoed that explanation, saying that the welders appear to have violated safety rules. The law-enforcement body said it has launched an inquiry into criminal negligence. Yerevan Rejects Parallels Between Belarus Protests, Armenian Revolution BELARUS – Opposition supporters march through the center of Minsk, August 23, 2020 Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanian has dismissed comparisons between continuing anti-government protests in Belarus and a popular uprising that toppled Armenia’s former government in 2018. The mass protests in the capital Minsk and other parts of Belarus were sparked by a disputed election the official results of which gave a landslide victory to Alexander Lukashenko, the country’s authoritarian president. Lukashenko denies opposition allegations that he rigged the August 9 ballot to prolong his 26-year rule. Some commentators see glaring similarities the Belarusian demonstrations and nationwide protests which were triggered by former Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian’s attempt to hold on to power after completing his second and final presidential term in April 2018. The peaceful protests known as the “Velvet Revolution” paralyzed much of Armenia, forced Sarkisian to resign and brought protest leader Nikol Pashinian to power. Mnatsakanian rejected such parallels in an interview with the Russian Interfax news agency published late on Monday. “Armenia followed its own path and it’s not quite correct to draw parallels based on that,” he said. “True, there might be some common parameters, but on the whole these are different situations.” ARMENIA -- Protesters react listening to their leader Nikol Pashinyan on Republic Square in Yerevan, April 26, 2018 “The most important thing is to accept and acknowledge that a solution to the issue is the prerogative of the people of Belarus. We very much hope that this situation will be resolved peacefully,” he added. Asked whether Armenia recognizes Lukashenko as Belarus’s legitimate leader, Mnatsakanian said: “Prime Minister Pashinian congratulated the president of Belarus … We intend to continue working with Belarus in all directions both within the framework of bilateral relations and in international formats.” Pashinian’s congratulatory message to Lukashenko was denounced by Armenian civil society activists and opposition figures. Some of them accused the prime minister of turning a blind eye to a brutal crackdown on Belarusian protesters launched by security forces right after the disputed election. Pashinian’s political allies defended the congratulation, implicitly citing Armenia’s geopolitical interests. Kazakhstan - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (L) and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian talk at a CSTO summit in Astana, 8 November 2018. Both Armenia and Belarus are members of the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and Eurasian Economic Union. Russia is increasingly showing support for Lukashenko despite President Vladimir Putin’s uneasy relationship with the Belarusian strongman. Faced with the biggest challenge yet to his rule, Lukashenko has accused the West of funding the protests and massing NATO forces on Belarusian frontiers. He has said he might need military assistance from Russia and the CSTO. Mnatsakanian would not be drawn on a possible CSTO intervention in ongoing developments in Belarus. He argued that the Belarusian government has not requested it so far. Former Armenian Security Chief Insists On Regime Change • Gayane Saribekian Armenia -- Former National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsian is interviewed by Armenian newspaper editors, Yerevan, February 5, 2020. Artur Vanetsian, the former National Security Service (NSS) director leading a new opposition party, on Tuesday reaffirmed his plans to try to oust Armenia’s current government and said he may organize street protests for that purpose. Vanetsian said regime change is the principal aim of his Hayrenik (Fatherland) party’s continuing “very active discussions” with two other major opposition groups: the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) and the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK). “[Prime Minister] Nikol Pashinian’s and his government’s every new day in power is ruinous for Armenia,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian service in an interview. “We are ready to cooperate with almost all political forces over this agenda.” Asked about the possibility of anti-government protests, he said: “Rallies and other mass protests are an integral part of a political process. We will definitely use that instrument if need be and at the right moment.” Vanetsian predicted in late July that “very active political processes” possibly involving street protests will unfold in Armenia soon. He sounded more cautious on that score on Tuesday. “A politically heated autumn is definitely expected but I wouldn’t link times of the year with politics,” he said. “For us, for the Hayrenik party, the last few months have already been heated.” Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian (L) and National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsian visit the Football Academy in Yerevan, March 25, 2019. Vanetsian, 40, was appointed as head of the NSS immediately the 2018 “Velvet Revolution” that brought Pashinian to power. He quickly became an influential member of Pashinian’s entourage, overseeing high-profile corruption investigations initiated by Armenia’s new leadership. Vanetsian resigned in September 2019 after falling out with the prime minister for still unclear reasons. He has since repeatedly accused Pashinian of incompetence and misrule, prompting angry responses from the premier and his political allies. Some of them have accused the former NSS chief of cooperating with the country’s former rulers overthrown in 2018. In late June, Hayrenik, the BHK and Dashnaktsutyun pledged to work together in challenging the government. The move followed criminal charges brought against BHK leader Gagik Tsarukian. The latter rejects them as politically motivated. Armenia -- The Hayrenik party led by former National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsian holds a founding congress, Yerevan, May 31, 2020. Addressing supporters on August 28, Tsarukian again criticized the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic and other policies. He also announced plans to hold a “big rally” soon. A Dashnaktsutyun leader, Ishkhan Saghatelian, also remained critical of Pashinian’s administration when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenian service on Tuesday. Saghatelian claimed that the prime minister has failed to deliver on his promises given to Armenians during the 2018 revolution. The current authorities can boast of very few tangible achievements, he said. Pashinian and his political team will strongly disagree. They say, among other things, that they have significantly strengthened the rule of law and successfully addressed widespread corruption in the country. Vanetsian scoffed at such statements, claiming credit for the most important corruption cases opened since 2018. “Let them give a single example of any corrupt former official brought to justice after my resignation,” he said. “I can list several cases where individuals arrested and prosecuted by me have been set free and are now freely moving around Armenia.” Vanetsian had overseen the NSS’s corruption investigations into former President Serzh Sarkisian’s notorious brother Aleksandr and former chief bodyguard Vachagan Ghazarian. The ex-president and his fugitive son-in-law Mikael Minasian were indicted on separate corruption charges after Vanetsian’s resignation. Both men strongly deny the accusations. 11 Die From Alcohol Poisoning In Armenia Armenia -- An ambulance races through streets of Yerevan, June 2, 2020. Eleven people have died and several others have been hospitalized over the past two days after drinking bootleg alcohol in Armenia, the Ministry of Health said on Tuesday. Three of the hospitalized individuals are in a critical condition, the ministry reported in a statement. It suggested that they were poisoned by bootleg vodka. According to the statement, most of the victims are residents of Armavir, a town 46 kilometers west of Yerevan. Another Armavir resident, a 50-year-old man identified as Ashot Hovsepian, was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of illegally producing and selling alcohol. Armenia’s Investigative Committee said it is now trying to identify other people who have bought alcohol from Hovsepian. The law-enforcement agency urged them to avoid drinking it and to cooperate with investigators. The Ministry of Health also reported efforts to “ascertain the circle of consumers of the alcoholic beverage” sold by the suspect. Health authorities have taken samples of the beverage determine its chemical composition through laboratory tests, said the ministry. Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2020 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.