10:41, 1 December, 2020
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 1, ARMENPRESS. The monitoring cameras of the ministry of environment and the WWF Armenia Office have once again caught on tape a Caucasian leopard in the Arevik National Park in Syunik Province.
The Caucasian leopard is currently listed as “critical” in Armenia's Red Book – the list of the country's endangered, vulnerable or threatened animals.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
[see video]
19:04,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia NIkol Pashinyan met with the families of conscripts and noted that the questions raised by them about the service conditions of the soldiers will be soon answered based on respective analysis, ARMENPRESS reports Mane Gevorgyan, the spokesperson to the PM, wrote on her Facebook page.
‘’A while ago the meeting of PM Pashinyan with the families of the conscripts ended. The parents raised concerns over the service conditions of the soldiers. The PM noted that the answers to the questions will be soon available based on the analysis of the mentioned issues’’, Gevorgyan wrote.
20:24,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. The issue of protection of monuments and sanctuaries in Nagorno Karabakh is very important, the involvement of UNESCO is highly demanded here, ARMENPRESS reports, citing Ria Novosti, Putin said in a consultation on the Russian peacekeeping mission in Nagorno Karabakh.
"I would especially like to speak about the protection of historical monuments and religious shrines, by the way, both Armenian and Azerbaijani monuments. This issue has an important human moral standard. I think that the involvement of UNESCO is highly demanded. We hope that UNICEF will help children and adolescents who are particularly vulnerable to the horrors of military conflict," Putin said.
Vladimir Putin added that the Russian Foreign Ministry has instructions in all these directions.
Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will be touring Russia and Azerbaijan next week to discuss the situation in the recently liberated Nagorno-Karabakh.
In a statement Thursday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Zarif's visit to Moscow and Baku on Monday and Tuesday is aimed at "talking to the regional parties."
He said Nagorno-Karabakh, the latest regional developments and bilateral issues will be on Minister Zarif's agenda.
The visit comes days after a Moscow-brokered peace deal between Azerbaijan and Armenia, ending weeks of fighting over the region.
The truce is being seen as a victory for Baku, which had been fighting to seize back control of its territory from Armenian occupation.
Iran has welcomed the agreement, hoping it would "lead to final arrangements in establishing sustainable peace in the Caucasus region.
Reports about Iran's border with Armenia being closed as part of the deal surfaced on social media a few days ago, creating a stir in Tehran.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbad Aragchi, reacting to the reports, which he termed "untrue," said creating a "geographical line" on the Iran-Armenia border is "baseless."
Aragchi had toured Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkey recently to discuss Iran's "peace proposal" on the Karabakh crisis, which called for cease-fire and end to the occupation.
Official sources in Tehran told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the issue of Iran's border security would figure prominently in Zarif's discussions with officials in both Moscow and Baku.
Iran, which shares a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has traditionally maintained a neutral stance on the conflict. However, calls have been growing in the country in favor of Azerbaijan.
Earlier this month, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei unequivocally backed Azerbaijan's right to liberate the occupied territories, saying international borders should be respected.
Among other issues on Zarif's agenda, sources said, would be the "post-Trump scenario" and "Iran's options" if the new U.S. administration decides to rejoin the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
Editor’s note: CT’s complete coverage of Armenian Christians is here.
Armenian history is marked by the endurance of faith.
As members of the first Christian nation [301 A.D.], we have faced centuries of persecution and the risk of total annihilation at the hands of our hostile neighbors. Through our faith in Jesus Christ, we have seen the resurrection and revival of our people and the continuation of our sacred lineage, always remembering the utmost value of human life and doing our best to protect it.
But unfortunately, along the way, we have lost countless sacred places—churches and monasteries, cemeteries and monuments, sacred vessels and manuscripts—that have been the silent victims of conquest and war. They have disappeared from the map of human history, a lost piece of universal Christian heritage.
Today, one of the last remaining regions of our ancient culture is at risk of destruction. The land of Artsakh, known to the wider world as Nagorno-Karabakh, was at the center of a brutal war, an assault on its indigenous Armenian population. Our people have lived in this land for thousands of years, making it home to sacred sites and precious relics. According to our tradition, the 13th-century monastery of Gandzasar contains the head of St. John the Baptist. The Monastery of Dadivank contains the tomb of St. Dadi, a direct follower of St. Thaddeus, the apostle of Christ who was one of the founders of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
It was with the utmost pain in our hearts that we watched this land come under grave danger over the past six weeks. Thousands of people, soldiers and civilians, elderly and children, were lost as our heritage took a direct hit. On October 8, Azerbaijani missiles struck the Cathedral of the All Holy Savior in Shushi, twice in one day.
In the ceasefire that followed, a large part of the territory of Artsakh was handed over to Azerbaijan. This was the cost of preventing further loss of lives. With great courage and commitment, our soldiers did their best to protect their ancestral homes. But Azerbaijan, with its fierce arsenal of weapons and massive oil wealth, had the greater force. With the open support of Turkey and the involvement of Syrian mercenaries fighting on the frontlines, their assault was designed to overwhelm us.
With our communities and congregations now driven from the land, left behind are thousands of sacred monuments, a testament to our history and faith. What will happen to them next? I hope and pray that it will not be a tragic fate.
When I visited Baku ten years ago, within the framework of the Summit of World Religious Leaders, I went to visit what may be the last remaining Armenian church in the wider territory of Azerbaijan. Practically every trace of our culture had been removed from the building: the cross, bells, altar, baptistery, and frescoes were removed, and relics destroyed. There used to be many more ancient Armenian Christian sites across the country, but they were destroyed in the past several decades.
In the Dashkasan region of Azerbaijan, the Monastery of the Holy Translators, first constructed in the 4th century, lies in ruins.
After the region of Nakhichevan, historically home to a large Armenian community, was granted to Azerbaijan by the Soviet Union, the Armenian inhabitants were driven out and over 6,000 intricate cross stones were destroyed. A campaign of cultural genocide continued until 2002. All of this took place under the eyes of the civilized world, witnessed by researchers and photojournalists.
This cultural cleansing must not happen again.
During this war, we witnessed the hatred and the barbaric behavior of Azeri soldiers towards the civilian population of Artsakh, war crimes that have been documented in detail. We saw the vandalism towards our sacred monuments.
16:09, 13 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Artsakh authorities are actively working to eliminate the consequences of the war, particularly focusing on the restoration of infrastructures, Artsakh Minister of Labor, Social and Housing Affairs Mikayel Virabyan said at a news conference.
Virabyan, who is in charge of coordinating the rapid response center of Artsakh in Armenia, said that all residents who were evacuated from Artsakh to Armenia have been accommodated in different places, such as hotels, guest homes, apartments and elsewhere.
He said the government will cover the utility expenses of hotels that have temporarily accommodated the residents of Artsakh.
The authorities of Artsakh had earlier called on the residents to return home.
“Soon we will all be convinced that the Republic of Artsakh will become a pleasant place to live. We will do everything in this direction. The housing issues will be solved as a priority,” he said.
Virabyan said the issues of infrastructures, such as gas, water and power supply, will be restored in Stepanakert City and nearby areas within 15-20 days.
Stepanakert City and other towns and cities were heavily bombed by the Azerbaijani forces during the 1 months and two weeks of war.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
21:42, 10 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan held a telephone conversation with the Georgian PM Giorgi Gakharia.
As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the PM, the Prime Ministers discussed the situation in the region. Nikol Pashinyan informed his colleague about the recent developments. The Georgian side saluted the establishment of ceasefire in Nagorno Karabakh.
15:39, 6 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. During the session of the CIS Council of Heads of Government, Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia Mher Grigoryan has reaffirmed that the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship is the only format for the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, the Armenian government reports.
“As for the statements of the Azerbaijani side I want to remind that the only format for the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, having the mandate of the international community, is the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship, in the form of Russia, France and the United States”, the deputy PM said.
He informed the session participants that Azerbaijan is shelling and bombarding all civilian settlements of Artsakh, including the capital Stepanakert and second largest city Shushi, the civilian infrastructure, medical facilities, schools, kindergartens, educational-cultural and religious monuments.
“Despite the calls of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, leaders of numerous countries and international leading organizations, Azerbaijan has repeatedly violated and continues violating the agreements on ceasefire”, the Armenian deputy PM added.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Preconditions & Compromises
The topic of preconditions continues to remain an important part of Azerbaijani official discourse. During a November 4 interview with Italian La Republica News Agency, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that Azerbaijan will not accept Armenia’s precondition of accepting self-determination in Karabakh. Azerbaijan's preconditions are the withdrawal of Armenian Armed Forces from the seven regions surrounding Karabakh.
Additionally, Russian President Vladimir Putin's phone conversations with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President Aliyev received a strong response in Azerbaijani media – the topic was widely addressed by a number of experts and politicians. Azerbaijani political scientist Hikmet Hajizade said that Azerbaijan has chosen wisely to refrain from attacking and threatening the borders of the Republic of Armenia and the Russian military base there.
Parliament Deputy Fazail Ibrahimli noted that regardless of Russian pressure, Azerbaijan will not agree to any compromise on the Nagorno Karabakh issue, because it is fighting in its own territories.
The unwillingness of the Azerbaijani side to compromise is also noticeable in its public. Results of a poll conducted in Baku on November 4 show that Azerbaijani citizens generally ruled out living together with Armenians.
Minorities
Azerbaijan’s state propaganda tries to show that the country's national minorities are united and fully support Ilham Aliyev in the current war. On November 4, pro-government Baku TV presented a Russian woman living in Baku, whose children expressed readiness to fight against Armenians for the sake of their homeland. According to the Russian woman, there are many such young Russians in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan’s display of minority unity extends most significantly to the Talysh community in the country who have previously expressed disapproval for Aliyev, claiming that he disproportionately sends minority soldiers to the frontline.
On October 19, TolishMedia reported that Azerbaijani mothers have issued a statement demanding that the authorities in the country answer why their sons were sent to the frontlines and killed.
"Our sons are sacrificing their lives to preserve the corrupt dictatorship of Ilham Aliyev. These days our sons are fighting not to return our sacred lands, but to maintain Aliyev’s power," the statement said.
Turkey
The Turkish side continues to show support to Azerbaijan on various platforms. On November 3, Savj Sayan, the Mayor of Ağrı Province in Turkey, said that Mount Ararat will soon be illuminated in the colors of Azerbaijani-Turkish flags.
16:41, 3 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Several artillery shells fired by Azerbaijan in the direction of Armenian units landed in Iranian territory, Armenian Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan said.
“The Azerbaijani side opened artillery fire in the direction of Armenian units. Some of the shells fell into Iranian territory,” Stepanyan said.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan