The Azerbaijani military has opened gunfire in the northeastern section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani state border.
Armenian foreign ministry spokesperson Artsrun Hovhannisyan told ARMENPRESS the Azerbaijani military has also fired at villages.
“Those were insignificant gunshots, which didn’t result in any losses”, Hovhannisyan said.
The ribbon being cut for the new school in Kashatagh’s Hak village
STEPANALERT—Haik Village, one of the northernmost communities of liberated Kashatagh (formerly Lachin), on Tuesday, celebrated the opening of its village school after complete reconstruction. The school has been rebuilt through the joint efforts of the Tufenkian Foundation and the Hayrenaser organization. Tufenkian Foundation Executive Director Raffi Doudaklian, Stepan Sargsyan of the Hayrenaser organization, Deputy Head of Kashatagh regional administration Artush Mkhitaryan and other guests attended the opening.
Prior to the reconstruction, the school was in an extremely poor state and was unsafe for children to attend. Moreover, part of the building was in complete ruins. As a result of 4-month long reconstruction works, a new roof has been built, new windows and doors have been installed, bathrooms have been added and general improvements have been made.
Students at the entrance of the newly-opened school in Hak
The historically Armenian Hak village, which was subjected to ethnic cleansing by Azeri armed forces in the beginning of the 20th century, was liberated by Armenians during the early 1990s. However, like most villages in Kashatagh, the village found itself in dire need of resettlement, reconstruction and development after the war.
Today, Hak is one of the fastest growing village communities in the liberated borderlands of Artsakh. Out of 110 persons living in the village, 50 are children. Due to the poor state of the school prior to reconstruction, some of the village’s school-age children had to go to the secondary school of a nearby village. With the number of children soaring, rebuilding the local school had long become a top priority for this community.
As a result of the reconstruction and improvement works, the school has been transformed from war-torn ruins into a well-built, safe and bright learning space for the children of Hak. 15 children currently attend the school. However, due to the reconstruction, up to 50 children can study at the school from now on, including from neighboring villages.
Congratulating the people of Hak with this new victory, Tufenkian Foundation Executive Director Raffi Doudaklian said: “Very soon, the school will have almost 50 children, and it is these children that will bring the school and the whole village alive by filling these halls with their laughter and smiles, with a joyful and life-asserting noise… and it is these children that, by growing up in this historic village, will breathe life into our liberated lands and reaffirm them as an inseparable part of our homeland.”
In addition to being the sole educational institution in the village, the school is also an important community center, where various cultural and social events can take place. The school is also a key employer for the community: 9 full-time teachers and 5 administrative employees currently work here.
Stepan Sargsyan, co-founder of the Hayrenaser Organization, said: “We are very happy that this school is now a reality, and that, together with the Tufenkian Foundation, we were able to bring this project to life in such a short time. We are looking forward to the day when these classrooms are too small for all the children studying here, so we can come back and happily expand the school”.
Artush Mkhitaryan, Deputy Head of Kashatagh regional administration, expressed his gratitude to the Tufenkian Foundation and the Hayrenaser Organization and said “We feel stronger when we see the support of Diaspora Armenians, of all Armenians, in joining our efforts to rebuild this country”.
The reconstruction of the Hak school is a part of the Tufenkian Foundation’s efforts to resettle and develop the liberated borderlands of Artsakh. In the framework of this initiative, the Foundation has completed more than 40 construction works in the strategic Kashatagh region: a number of homes, schools and clinics have been built or renovated.
Supporting the schools of Kashatagh has been a priority for the Foundation throughout the recent years. In addition to the school in Hak, the Foundation has built and later expanded the school of Arajamugh village, renovated the school of Hochants village, established an elementary school in Getap and renovated the school of Aghavnatun village. Additionally, the Foundation has provided musical instruments to the music school of Berdzor and built/expanded school libraries in all villages of Kashatagh.
The Tufenkian Foundation has partnered with and received support from a number of individuals and organizations for the realization of these efforts, including the Armenian Educational Foundation (Arajamugh school), Virginia Davies (Hochants school), Armenian Community Council of Great Britain (Getap school), OneArmenia and the Armenian Centre Trust UK (Aghavnatun school).
The Tufenkian Foundation was launched in 1999 by entrepreneur James Tufenkian with the mission to empower the initiatives of local citizens, support the most vulnerable strata of the society, promote environmental protection and awareness, and advance social justice in Armenia. Since 2003, the Foundation has broadened its scope to embattled Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabagh), where it promotes resettlement and development projects in the vulnerable border zones of the region.
Today, opposition activist Andrias Ghukasyan petitioned for being released on of 1.5 million drams bail. Andrias Ghukasyan mentioned that he would not violate the conditions of the pledge; he had a juvenile girl, a mother with a health problem. He stated that he is a politician, and a graduate of two universities, and his detention was connected only with his activities.
Prosecutor Petros Petrosyan noted that the risks are high in improper conduct. Karen Mezhlumyan, an advocate of Andrias Ghukasyan, informed the court that there was no actual fact that he would commit a crime, would have an effect on the interrogated people and would avoid the case study.
At this point, Vardan Grigoryan, the judge of the Court of General Jurisdiction of the Erebuni and Nubarashen administrative districts, has left the conference room to make a decision. He also noted that he had to make a justified decision because if the mediation was satisfied, the prosecutor would appeal, and if he declined, the defense party would.
Serzh Sargsyan had a telephone conversation with RF President Vladimir Putin, congratulating and sending him good wishes on birthday jubilee. The President of Armenia has also sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Russian Federation.
“Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich,
Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on your jubilee!
I sincerely wish you good health and every success in achieving the proposed objectives for the sake of Russia’s development, its citizens’ welfare and the strengthening of your country’s role in global politics. I wish to thank you for your personal contribution to the strengthening of strategic and allied relations between Armenia and Russia based on centuries-old traditions of friendship, brotherhood and mutual assistance of our peoples.
Through consistent efforts, we have managed to complement the Armenian-Russian cooperation agenda with new joint initiatives and projects, which undoubtedly meet the fundamental interests of our peoples and promote stability and security in the South Caucasus.
I am always sincerely happy to meet with you in an atmosphere of openness, mutual trust and partnership, which is due to the friendly relations established between us. I am confident that the active political dialogue will continue to bring about constructive cooperation between our countries both in the bilateral format and on the margins of the EAEU, CSTO, CIS and other international organizations.
I cordially wish you, Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, robust health, happiness, well-being and all the best,” the President of the Republic of Armenia said in his congratulatory message.
Two Armenian Greco-Roman wresters took part in Bolat Turlykhanov Memorial tournament held in Kazakhstan over the past weekend.
World and European champion, silver medallist of the Olympics, Arsen Julfalakyan grabbed the bronze medal in the 75kg weight class. The next Armenian representative, Sargis Kocharyan (85kg) was left out of the struggle for medals, the National Olympic Committee reported.
The Armenian Greco-Roman wrestling team is due to hold a training camp in the near future.
Zaruhi Postanjyan, leader of the “Yerkir Tsirani” party, is in Dilijan. She walks around and calls people for protesting.
She asked Dilijan taxi drivers, whether the rate of migration is high. The drivers replied: “Just sit here for a couple of hours, and you will see how many buses are departing. In fact, only gravediggers and dead are left here”.
Postanjyan said that they had a special mission, they were walking around towns and villages, urging the residents to start rebelling on the same day at the same time to deny these illegalities and to establish new regime: “If we do not rebel, we will lose our homeland”.
Postanjyan said that when communicating with people she understood that there were two poles: one totally has no belief, says that nothing can be done, the other waits for a spark: “Now let’s see how we can convey this spark, so that everyone can stand up and reject these illegal authorities”. One of the Dilijan residents asked, “what are you rejecting? we have no weapons, we have nothing, what can we do?”.
Postanjyan answered, “We do not need weapons, we exceed in number. Their armed 22 thousand policemen will be enough only for Baghramyan 26, if all the towns and villages join us. The “president” and the forces serving and securing him will not be able to exert pressure on everyone”. The resident responded, “I don’t believe anymore. I have two daughters, they have left with my grandchildren, only me and my wife remained here. We have too little money, it’s not enough to pay for the utilities”.
Postanjyan said, “Well, follow the political processes. You don’t need to come to Yerevan. We are all going to block the main streets on the same day at the same time. They are waiting for us to go to Yerevan, so they can put us into a trap, that is why we urge everyone to rebel at the same time. After that we should invite a large pan-Armenian global assembly, where delegates should nominate an interim government from our nation’s cream. After that elections should be held under equal conditions”.
One of the Dilijan residents told in an offended voice that they were giving out barbecues during the adoption of independence, and he heard how someone said, “put Vano Siradeghyan’s share away”, that is initially, there have been chosen ones and everything was unfair. Postanjyan promised to restore justice.
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
The Armenia-Poland qualifying match of the 2018 World Cup is held at the Republican Stadium on October 5.
The match will be served by Slovenia Referee team headed by Matey Yug, UEFA official website reports.
He will be assisted by Matey Zhunich and Manuel Vidal. The duties of the 4th official will be performed by Damir Skomina.
37-year-old Matey Yug was FIFA referee since 2007. At this stage of the 2018 World Cup, he has already directed two matches: Czech Republic – Azerbaijan and Belarus – Bulgaria. The Slovenian the referee once has pointed at 11m stroke and has warned eight times.
ARMENIAN
ASSEMBLY OF AMERICA
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date:
Contact: Danielle
Saroyan
Telephone:
(202) 393-3434
Web: www.aaainc.org
ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY CO-CHAIR
ACCOMPANIES REPRESENTATIVES FRANK PALLONE, JR. AND TULSI GABBARD TO ARTSAKH
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly)
Board of Trustees Co-Chairman Anthony Barsamian joined Armenian Caucus Co-Chair
Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) on a
working visit to Artsakh today. The delegation included Artsakh Foreign
Minister Karen Mirzoyan, Artsakh Representative to the U.S. Robert Avetisyan,
and All-Armenia Fund President Maria Mehranian. Reps. Pallone and Gabbard are
in Armenia as part of a Congressional Delegation with Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs
Reps. David Valadao (R-CA) and Jackie Speier (D-CA), Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner
(R-WI), and Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA).
"This
trip to Artsakh is instrumental in helping U.S. Members of Congress better
understand the current political and economic situation in Artsakh. By seeing
the destruction caused by Azerbaijan and meeting with high-level officials to
discuss U.S.-Armenia and U.S.-Artsakh relations in depth, Reps. Pallone and
Gabbard can better convey the pressing need for U.S. humanitarian aid and
better understand the security threats to the people of Artsakh caused by the
Azeris. They also saw the need for a peaceful resolution, which includes
Artsakh in the negotiations," Assembly Co-Chair Barsamian said.
The previous day, Armenian Assembly Co-Chair Barsamian, Executive Director
Bryan Ardouny, and Regional Director Arpi Vartanian met with Artsakh President
Bako Sahakyan and Foreign Minister Karen Mirzoyan. During the meeting, they
discussed the importance of U.S. assistance, especially for de-mining in
Artsakh which is carried out by The HALO Trust, as well as the peace process.
President Sahakyan emphasized the Assembly's important role in U.S.-Artsakh
relations, and acknowledged the organization's "patriotic and highly
professional activity."
Rep. Valadao
also traveled to Artsakh earlier this week, where he met with The HALO Trust to
learn more about mine clearance along the borders. Following the visit, he
stated, "Families in Nagorno Karabakh live under the constant threat of
landmine accidents and I am grateful for the efforts of The HALO Trust to make
Nagorno Karabakh a more safe and secure region." Rep. Valadao continued,
"While their work is renown worldwide, I appreciated witnessing their work
and learning more about their efforts and dedication firsthand."
Earlier this
month, Rep. Valadao spearheaded a bipartisan amendment along with House Foreign
Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), House Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence and Armenian Caucus Vice-Chair Adam Schiff (D-CA),
Rep. Pallone, and Rep. Speier to ensure continued funding for de-mining
projects in Artsakh.
U.S. Members
of Congress have continued to travel to Artsakh throughout the years. Rep.
Pallone visited Artsakh for the first time twenty years ago as part of an
Armenian Assembly of America-sponsored delegation. During an historic address
before the Parliament of Nagorno Karabakh on January 28, 1997, Rep. Pallone
stated, "I hope that my visit to Karabagh, and especially my presence in
your legislative body today, will contribute in some small way to a growing
international recognition that the Republic of Nagorno Karabagh is a
reality." Rep. Pallone has returned to Artsakh a few times since his
initial visit, where he observed local elections and learned more about mine
clearance.
Established
in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based
nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of
Armenian issues. The Assembly is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
membership organization.
###
NR#: 2017-065
Photo
Caption 1: Armenian Assembly Co-Chair Anthony Barsamian, Rep. Frank Pallone,
Jr. (D-NJ), Artsakh National Assembly Chairman Ashot Ghoulian, and Rep. Tulsi
Gabbard (D-HI) in front of "We Are Our Mountains" monument north of
Stepanakert, Artsakh
Photo
Caption 2: (left) Rep.
Frank Pallone, Jr. and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard heading to Stepanakert with Artsakh
Foreign Minister Karen Mirzoyan, Armenian Assembly Co-Chair Anthony Barsamian,
and All-Armenia Fund President Maria Mehranian; (right) Rep. Pallone,
Barsamian, and Rep. Gabbard with servicemen
Photo
Caption 3: Armenian Assembly Regional Director Arpi Vartanian, Co-Chair Anthony
Barsamian, and Executive Director Bryan Ardouny, with Artsakh Foreign Minister
Karen Mirzoyan, President Bako Sahakyan, Presidential Spokesman David Babayan,
and Representative to Armenia Karlen Avetisyan
Photo
Caption 4: Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) observing mine clearance with The Halo
Trust in Artsakh
Photo
Caption 5: Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. addressing a special session of the Nagorno
Karabakh Parliament in 1997
Available
online at: http://bit.ly/2yqeorG
Pallone Artsakh NKR.jpg
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Sahakyan Artsakh Armenian Assembly.jpg
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The historically reflective documentary, ‘Architects of Denial’, is set to premiere in select theaters and on demand across America on October 6, Shock Ya reports. The movie, which features interviews with, and footage of, such notable public figures as Oscar-winning filmmaker George Clooney, former American president Barack Obama, and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, traces the turbulent modern history of the Armenian people.
‘Architects of Denial’ focuses on the Armenian people’s decimation by Ottoman Turks at the onset of World War I until the present, a period during which they’re threatened by Turkey, as well as its ally, Azerbaijan. It also chronicles the Armenian Genocide of 1915, and includes interviews with its survivors, who detail the horrors they or their family members had experienced. The movie also features discussions with experts, who graphically illustrate the real connection between the historical denial of the genocide with present-day mass exterminations in conflict zones around the world.
“Since the end of World War II, every civilized nation on earth has adhered to the principle of never again, and that’s why we made this film,” said one the documentary’s executive producers, Montel Williams. “We know if we allow this genocide to be forgotten, we run the risk of repeating the evils of humanity’s collective past.”
“Genocide is a horrible thing to see. It’s a horrible thing to have happen,” added Williams’ fellow executive producer, Dean Cain. “What’s even worse about that, especially for the Armenians who are still survivors of that and descendants of that, is to not call it what it is.”
Friday, Tycoon Expanding Presence In Armenian Energy Sector . Emil Danielyan Armenia - President Serzh Sarkisian (L) and Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetian (R) inaugurate an energy lab at the National Polytechnic University in Yerevan, 5Jun2017. The government plans to authorize a company belonging to Samvel Karapetian, a Russian-Armenian billionaire, to manage Armenia's state-owned electricity transmission network for at least five years. The deal tentatively approved by the government on Thursday will further expand Karapetian's presence in the Armenian energy sector. The Armenian-born tycoon already owns the country's national electric utility and largest thermal power plant. Also, business entities controlled by him intend to build two major hydroelectric plants. Speaking at a weekly cabinet meeting in Yerevan, Deputy Minister for Energy Infrastructures Vartan Gevorgian said the planned deal will make the energy sector more efficient by "synchronizing" Armenia's power transmission and distribution networks. He said Karapetian's Tashir Kapital company based in Russia will also attract significant capital investments in the High-Voltage Electric Networks (BETs) and "optimize" its operational expenditures. A separate government statement clarified that Tashir Kapital will obtain large-scale loans that will be spent on refurbishing electricity transmission lines and substations and building new BETs facilities. In particular, it said, the new operator will complete the ongoing construction of a new high-voltage line that will connect Armenia to Georgia. Armenia - An electricity distribution facility. Gevorgian made clear that the signing of the management contract is conditional on Tashir Kapital submitting a plan of concrete actions and investment commitments by the end of this year. "The agreement will come into effect only after the trust management program is approved by the government," he said, according to the Arka news agency. The development comes nearly two years after Karapetian's Tashir purchased the debt-ridden Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) utility and a large power plant in the Armenian town of Hrazdan from Inter RAO, a state-run Russian energy company.The new owner claims to have already cut ENA's massive losses. Another company owned Karapetian as well as an investment fund which he and other wealthy Russian businessmen of Armenian descent set up recently are due to start building soon a 76-megawatt hydroelectric in Armenia's northern Lori province. The government gave the green light to the $150 million project on August 10. The fund, called the Investors Club of Armenia (ICA), also plans to at least partly finance the planned construction of a 100-megawatt hydroelectric plant on the Arax river marking Armenia's border with Iran. The Armenian and Iranian governments have long been trying to implement the project. Karapetian is increasingly involved in Armenia's energy sector amid the declining presence there of state-owned Russian energy giants. With the 2015 sale of ENA and the Hrazdan plant, Inter RAO essentially pulled out of the country. Another Russian company, RusHydro, reaffirmed in June its intention to sell off Armenia's second most important hydroelectric complex belonging to it. RusHydro's withdrawal would leave only one Kremlin-controlled company, Gazprom, owning a power-generating facility in Armenia. Gazprom is also the country's principal supplier of natural gas. Armenia - Prime Minister Karen Karapetian (R) and Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetian announce the creation of a Russian-Armenian investment fund in Yerevan, 25Mar2017. Karapetian, 52, was born and raised in Armenia. He moved to Russia in the early 1990s, making a huge fortune there in the next two decades. His Tashir Group conglomerate comprises over a hundred firms engaged in construction, manufacturing, retail trade and other services. With total assets estimated by the "Forbes" magazine at $3.5billion, he is most probably the richest ethnic Armenian in the world. The Russian-Armenian tycoon is widely regarded as a figure close to Prime Minister Karen Karapetian (no relation). The latter lived in Russia and held senior positions in Gazprom subsidiaries before President Serzh Sarkisian appointed him to his current post last September. Samvel Karapetian and three dozen Russian-Armenian entrepreneurs issued a joint statement when Karen Karapetian paid an official visit to Moscow in January. They voiced "full support" for "profound reforms" promised by the premier and expressed readiness to "participate in business projects with the Armenian government." U.S. Hails Armenian Participation In NATO Drills . Sargis Harutyunyan Georgia -- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence addresses servicemen participating in the joint multinational military exercise 'Noble Partner 2017' at an airbase outside Tbilisi on August 1, 2017. A senior U.S. diplomat praised the Armenian military on Friday for participating in the latest NATO-led military exercises held in neighboring Georgia, calling that a "great example of Armenia's ability to balance its interests." "Armenia should be very proud," Richard Mills, the U.S. ambassador in Yerevan, told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "It was the only [Collective Security Treaty Organization] member in this exercise." "And it contributed a very important component to this military exercise with the medical units that supported all the other nations that participated," he said. "That helped the Armenian military, that helped this exercise and, I think, it helped security in Europe overall." The two-week drills, which began in late July, involved about 2,800 soldiers from the United States, Georgia, Britain, Germany, Turkey, Ukraine, Slovenia and Armenia. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visited the participating troops during an August 1 trip to Georgia. The participation of around 30 Armenian soldiers in the drills codenamed "Noble Partner" underscored Armenia's policy of complementing a military alliance with Russia with closer security ties to the West. Armenia -- U.S Ambassador Richard Mills speaks to RFE/RL, 25Aug2017 "Armenia does a good job of balancing its relationships with all its neighbors," said Mills. "That includes Russia, that includes Iran, and that includes the United States and the European Union." "The goal for our Armenian friends, for the Armenian government is to make sure that Armenia can make its own sovereign decisions about what path it should choose, what economic and political models it follows," Mills went on. "And we want to help give Armenia the tools to continue making sovereign choices and to make sure that it's not overly influenced or forced by others to follow certain paths that perhaps Armenia doesn't want to follow." Armenia has deepened defense cooperation with the U.S. and other NATO member states since the early 2000s. It currently contributes more than 100 troops to NATO-led missions in Kosovo and Afghanistan and regularly participates in multinational exercises organized by the U.S. military. Those troops are part of the Armenian army's Peacekeeping Brigade that has received considerable U.S. assistance. A U.S.-funded renovation of the brigade's main training center began as recently as in March. Mills stressed that U.S.-Armenian military has had a "much broader" scope. In his words, the United States has provided almost $50 million worth of military equipment and trained over 200 Armenian military personnel since 2002. Armenia - Armenian Defense Minister Vigen Sargsian (second from right), U.S. Ambassador Richard Mills (right) inaugurate the start of the revonation of the Zar Military Training Facility, 3Mar2017. The envoy also revealed that the U.S. offered to help Armenia last year to "learn lessons" from the April 2016 fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh. The four-day hostilities left at least 190 Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers dead and nearly escalated into an all-out war. They were halted by a Russian-mediated agreement. "After the tragic fighting in April [2016] we approached our friends in the [Armenian] Ministry of Defense to talk to them about the lessons learned from that in terms of the military structure, mission command, communication # whether we could provide some assistance and how the U.S. military does its after-action reports. "The answer was that the ministry would be very interested in that. That was a program we had in place. But I think that it became a little bit of higher priority after the April events." Mills added that the commander of U.S. Army Europe, Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, personally discussed the issue with Armenia's top military officials when he visited Yerevan in May 2016. The diplomat further made clear that while Washington is committed to Armenia's security it will continue to avoid selling offensive weapons to any of the parties to the Karabakh conflict. "I think that is one area where we differ from Russia," he said. The U.S., Russia and France have long been jointly spearheading international efforts to end the Karabakh conflict. Mass Shooting Suspect Tracked Down By Armenian Police Armenia - Forensic experts inspect a dining hall in the village of Shamiram where four men were killed and seven others wounded, 1Aug2017. Police tracked down and arrested on Friday a man accused of killing four people and wounding seven others in an Armenian village almost a month ago. The 50-year-old suspect, Telman Kalashian, allegedly went on a shooting spree on August 1 as several hundred men gathered in Shamiram, a village about 50 kilometers west of Yerevan, to mark a Yazidi religious feast. Law-enforcement authorities say he fled the scene with the help of his uncle. The latter was arrested on August 2. Kalashian, who lived in another village also mostly populated by ethnic Yazidis, remained on the run for more than three weeks. An Armenian police spokesman said he was caught in his home province, Armavir, but gave no details of his arrest. Another law-enforcement body, the Investigative Committee, formally charged Kalashian with several counts of murder later in the day. It was not immediately clear whether he confessed to the killings. In a statement, the Investigative Committee said the root cause of shooting was $75,000 which Kalashian lent in 2013 to five other Armenian-born men, all of them brothers, who lived and worked in Russia. It said the Khudoyan brothers subsequently paid back only $45,000, leading Kalashian's to press their relatives and friends in Armenia to help him get back the rest of the sum. According to the statement, the suspect traded insults with one of those friends, German Kyaramian, by phone hours before heading to Shamiram and opening fire inside a village dining hall. Aziz Tamoyan, a leader of Armenia's Yazidi community, also attributed the mass shooting to money owed to Kalashian when he spoke to journalists in Yerevan on August 2. Press Review "Zhoghovurd" comments on Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov's visit to Armenia and talks held with President Serzh Sarkisian. The paper scoffs at Sarkisian's remark that he is "very buoyed" by Berdimuhamedov's desire to implement large-scale economic projects with Armenia. It says that trade between the two countries is minuscule and there have been no Turkmen investments in the Armenian economy in recent years. "Hraparak" is unconvinced by government assurances that the outgoing U.S. co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, Richard, Hoagland, did not reveal anything new when it published the six main elements of a framework peace accord on Karabakh put forward by the American, Russian and French mediators. The paper alleges that Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian's reaction to the document means that the authorities are "alarmed" by possible public reactions to Armenian concessions sought by the mediators. Arman Melikian, a former Karabakh foreign minister, tells "Aravot" that Hoagland's statement corresponds to "the letter and the spirit" of the so-called Madrid Principles of the conflict's resolution which were first proposed to the parties in 2007. He speculates that the U.S. diplomat is "protecting" the Armenian side against a much less favorable peace deal. "Haykakan Zhamanak" reports that Armenian exports of tomatoes to Russia fell by about 40 percent in the first half of this year. The paper claims that Armenia simply stopped re-exporting Turkish tomatoes to Russia in that period. (Tigran Avetisian) Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2017 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org