Friday, July 8, 2022
Power Plant Run By Pashinian’s Brother Since Dubious Selloff
• Karine Simonian
Armenia - A hydroelectric plant on the Marts river, July 8, 2022
A brother of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian is the executive director of a small
hydroelectric power plant in northern Armenia whose former owners sold it for
just 50,000 drams ($120) last year, official records show.
The plant located on the mountainous Marts river was co-owned by Samvel
Darbinian, a former mayor of the nearby city of Vanadzor, and his brother.
Darbinian has faced a string of corruption charges since the 2018 “velvet
revolution” that brought Pashinian to power.
Last November, a Vanadzor court found him guilty of one of those charges but
dropped the case, citing a statute of limitations. The decision came six months
after the sale of the Marts power plant.
Its official buyer is a 20-year-old nephew of Khachatur Kokobelian, a
businessman leading a small pro-government party. The new owner named
Pashinian’s brother Armen to run the plant immediately after the deal.
Armen Pashinian used to live in Russia. He returned to Armenia after the 2018
regime change. The fact-checking website Fip.am revealed recently that he is
also the chief executive of three other businesses belonging to the Kokobelian
family.
Earlier this week, Darbinian dismissed suggestions that he sold the
hydroelectric facility to avoid imprisonment. Both the ex-mayor, who ran
Vanadzor from 1999-2016, and his brother Seyran refused to give a clear reason
for the sale.
“I sold it because I wanted to sell,” Seyran Darbinian said vaguely.
In a written response to RFE/RL’s Armenian Service sent on Friday, the Armenian
state registry of legal entities revealed that the new owner bought the plant
for as little as 50,000 drams.
The plant had an authorized capital of 250 million drams ($610,000) as of April
2021. According to Armenia’s national power distribution network, it produced
more than $200,000 worth of electricity annually in 2019 and 2020.
Nikol Pashinian has repeatedly claimed to have eliminated “systemic corruption”
in Armenia. Law-enforcement authorities have launched dozens of high-profile
corruption investigations during his rule, mostly targeting former top
government officials and individuals linked to them.
Critics say that Pashinian uses corruption inquiries to crack down on his
political opponents. They also claim that some members of his entourage are busy
enriching themselves or their cronies and question the integrity of procurements
administered by the current government.
Ex-Minister Reticent About Possible Seizure Of U.S. Villa
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia -- Finance Minister Gagik Khachatrian attends a parliament session in
Yerevan, November 16, 2015.
Gagik Khachatrian, a former Armenian finance minister and tax chief standing
trial on corruption charges, refused on Friday to comment on U.S.
law-enforcement authorities’ efforts to confiscate his luxury mansion in
California.
Khachatrian, who was arrested in August 2020 and freed on bail more than a year
later, is facing a string of accusations, including abuse of power, forgery and
bribery.
In particular, he stands accused of receiving more than $20 million to ensure
privileged treatment of companies owned by Gagik Tsarukian, one of Armenia’s
richest men. According to the National Security Service (NSS), the bribe was
paid in 2009 by Sedrak Arustamian, the top manager of those companies, in the
form of two bogus loans transferred to Khachatrian’s overseas bank accounts.
Both Arustamian and Khachatrian maintain that the massive cash transfer was a
commercial transaction.
Khachatrian and his family used the money to buy the 3,126 square-meter (33,652
square-foot) mansion in an exclusive Los Angeles area in 2011. The U.S.
Department of Justice moved to seize the property in early May weeks after it
was put up for sale with an asking price of $63.5 million. In a forfeiture
complaint filed in a California district court, the department alleged that the
“mega-mansion” was purchased with bribes paid by Arustamian.
“Gagik Khachatrian and his sons are charged in Armenia with receiving bribes in
violation of the criminal code of the Republic of Armenia,” it noted in a May 5
statement.
Armenia - Former Finance Minister Gagik Khachatrian and one of his nephews go on
trial, August 26, 2020.
Khachatrian’s legal team rejected the allegations and pledged to fight against
the asset seizure in the U.S. court. One of the defense lawyers, Yerem Sargsian,
insisted on Friday that the U.S. authorities lack “factual evidence” in support
of the allegations.
“Everything was done very transparently,” he said, referring to the purchase of
the Los Angeles mansion.
According to a spokesman for Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General, U.S.
law-enforcement officials have assured their Armenian colleagues that proceeds
from the sale of the property will be given to Yerevan if they succeed in
confiscating it.
Khachatrian himself was reluctant to comment on the proceedings launched by the
U.S. Department of Justice. “Only my lawyers can comment on these issues,” he
told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service during the latest session of his ongoing trial in
Yerevan.
Khachatrian’s two sons and one of his nephews went into hiding in 2020 after
being also indicted in the high-profile case. Their whereabouts remain unknown.
Khachatrian, 66, headed Armenia’s State Revenue Committee (SRC) from 2008-2014
and served as finance minister from 2014-2016. He was dogged by corruption
allegations throughout his tenure, with some media outlets and opposition
figures accusing him of using his position to enrich himself and his extended
family.
They pointed to the family’s extensive business interests, which include a major
telecommunication company, a shopping mall and a car dealership in Yerevan.
Khachatrian repeatedly denied setting up or supporting these businesses, saying
that they belong to his sons and other relatives.
Yerevan Deplores Estonian Speaker’s Trip To Azeri-Held Karabakh Town
BELGIUM -- Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas speaks to the press as he arrives
on the first day of a summit of European Union (EU) leaders at the EU
headquarters in Brussels, March 22, 2018
Parliament speaker Alen Simonian on Friday criticized his Estonian counterpart
Juri Ratas for visiting the Nagorno-Karabakh town of Shushi (Shusha) captured by
the Azerbaijani army during the 2020 war.
Ratas and members of an Estonian parliamentary delegation headed by him
travelled to Shushi on May 24 during an official visit to Azerbaijan.
Simonian described the trip and pro-Azerbaijani comments made there by Ratas as
“extremely concerning” during a meeting with Estonia’s Tbilisi-based ambassador
to Armenia, Riina Kaljurand. He said they run counter to Armenia’s “friendly”
relations with Estonia and the Baltic state’s stated support for a Karabakh
settlement sought by the OSCE Minsk Group.
“The president of the National Assembly of Armenia expressed hope that his
Estonian counterpart will visit Armenia soon, familiarize himself with the
situation on the ground and also meet with officials representing
Nagorno-Karabakh,” read a statement released by the Armenian parliament’s press
office.
Armenia - Parliament speaker Alen Simonian meets Estonian Ambassador Riina
Kaljurand, July 8, 2022
Earlier this year, the Armenian Foreign Ministry sent a note of protest to the
United Nations after a senior UN official participated in an event organized by
the Azerbaijani government in Shushi. Reacting to the event, Karabakh’s ethnic
Armenian leadership accused Baku of trying to use international bodies for
“legitimizing the results of its aggression” against Karabakh.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev praised Ratas’s visit to the Azerbaijani-held
town when he received the latter in Baku on May 25. Aliyev said the Estonian
speaker had a chance to see evidence of “large-scale destruction committed by
the Armenians” there.
NAGORNO-KARABAKH -- A view shows Ghazanchetsots Cathedral in Shushi (Shusha)
damaged by recent shelling, October 8, 2020.
Baku itself has been accused of trying to wipe out Shushi’s Armenian heritage.
It emerged last year that the town’s Holy Savior Cathedral has been stripped of
its conical dome and cross attached to it.
Yerevan said this was done for “depriving the Shushi Cathedral of its Armenian
identity.” The Azerbaijani authorities claimed that they are simply renovating
the 19th century church damaged during the war.
The imposing cathedral, also known as Ghazanchetsots, was twice struck by
long-range Azerbaijani missiles during the 2020 war.
The authorities in Stepanakert have also accused Azerbaijan of systematically
destroying another, smaller Armenian church located in Shushi. They say that
Baku plans to transform it into a Russian Orthodox church under the guise of
major renovation.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
Author: Ani Tigranian
Artsakh’s FM had a phone conversation with his Pridnestrovian counterpart
16:13, 5 July 2022
YEREVAN, JULY 5, ARMENPRESS. Today, on July 5, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh David Babayan had a telephone conversation with Foreign Minister of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic Vitaly Ignatev, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of Artsakh’s Foreign Ministry.
David Babayan congratulated his counterpart on his birthday, wishing him productive work and success.
The parties discussed the regional situation and possible developments. They stressed the need to maintain and expand the cooperation between Artsakh and Pridnestrovie, as well as the Foreign Ministries of the two countries.
Sports: Armenian wrestler beats Azeri rival to advance to European Championships final
Panorama
Armenia – July 2 2022
SPORT 11:03 02/07/2022 ARMENIA
Armenian freestyle wrestler Mushegh Mkrtchyan has defeated his Azerbaijani opponent to make it to the final of the 2022 European Junior Wrestling Championships being held in Rome, Italy.
Mkrtchyan took a 3-1 win over Sabuhi Amiraslanov of Azerbaijan in the semi-final on Friday, Armsport reported.
The athlete had beaten his Italian rival in the quarter-final.
Armenian Greco-Romans wrestlers have completed their performances at the championship, capturing a total of four medals.
Discussions on the issue of depriving opposition MPs of their parliamentary mandate continue in the Armenian parliament- Speaker
ARMINFO
Armenia –
Alexandr Avanesov
ArmInfo. The discussions on the issue of depriving the opposition MPs of their parliamentary mandate continue in the Armenian parliament. On June 30, NA President Alen Simonyan told journalists.
He welcomed the decision of head of the "I have honor" parliamentary faction Artur Vanetsyan to step down as a MP. "He said that he would not return to parliament and resigned," Simonyan noted, pointing to MP from the opposition "Armenia" faction Ishkhan Saghatelyan. "He should not give interviews with statements that they will come to the National Assembly with their agenda, he just has to admit defeat and resign," the Speaker said, adding that by doing so, Saghatelyan would confirm that the political process , started by him, is not a struggle for positions.
In fact, according to Alen Simonyan, this is a struggle for positions, since it is about maintaining the immunity status and receiving a salary.
It should be noted that the parliamentary opposition has been boycotting the work of the parliament for several months, holding rallies, demonstrations and marches. Over the past few weeks, the opposition has not carried out active actions, announcing a regrouping of forces, and, at the same time, refusing to return to parliament.
Armenia to go cash-free
Jun 27, 2022
Most major transactions in Armenia – buying a car or even a house – typically are conducted in cash, with buyers handing over a thick stack of bills, usually dollars.
But no more: Under a new law all big purchases will have to be made electronically, either through a mobile payment app or via a wire transfer at a bank.
And for now, at least, that will come with a steep fee: Banks charge between 1.5 and 3 percent for the transactions.
The new law, passed by parliament on June 9, affects business transactions of more than 300,000 drams (about $720) and transactions between individuals of more than 500,000 drams ($1,200). That limit for individuals will be reduced to 300,000 drams in July 2023.
The law also prohibits local and central government bodies from making or taking any payments in cash. Some institutions like hospitals, universities, and notaries will go completely cashless. Pensions and salaries will have to be paid via banks – even pawnshop loans, as well. And transactions made illicitly in cash can be annulled.
“Let no one think that we want to complicate people's lives, on the contrary, we want to simplify people's lives,” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in a June 2 cabinet meeting where the bill was discussed. "There are also fiscal and anti-corruption effects here.”
Under Pashinyan, the government began a campaign to reduce the off-the-books shadow economy starting in 2019. It now requires small businesses to issue receipts and to officially register all employees, and starting in 2024 all Armenians will have to declare their income to the government.
“The restrictions on cash transactions can help reduce the level of the shadow economy, since transfers can’t be made in foreign currencies, which is a common practice,” Vilen Khachatryan, head of the Department of Management at the Armenian Academy of Public Administration told local news website Panorama.am.
But many anticipate logistical challenges, as there are questions about whether the banking system can handle what will be a large increase in electronic transactions, whether trust can be maintained without cash, or how people will try to circumvent the rules.
One man who buys and sells used cars for a living, Tigran Hovannisyan, told RFE/RL: “We are going to have disputes with buyers. A buyer is going to say, ‘I won’t transfer the money until you register the car in my name,’ and I’m going to answer: ‘I won’t register it in your name until you transfer the money.’”
People may come up with creative ways to evade the regulation, the director of the real estate agency Kentron, Vahe Danielyan, told RFE/RL. “Buyers and sellers may formalize their deals as ‘donations’ and do them in cash to avoid taxes,” he said.
“The banking system, because of the increased number of transactions, needs to be able to provide fast service and improve in quality,” Khachatryan said.
Bank fees on these transactions currently amount to between 1.5 and 3 percent, representing a significant cost for consumers and a windfall for banks. But the Central Bank of Armenia was “negotiating” with banks to reduce the fees, Hovhannes Khachatryan, the bank’s deputy chair, told reporters on June 16.
Khachatryan also promised to make sure that businesses that don’t currently have payment terminals can get them, saying the central bank is working with private banks to ensure access.
Moscow badly miscalculated Turkish president`s potential – David Hovhannisyan
ARMINFO
Armenia –
David Stepanyan
ArmInfo. In the autumn 2020, Moscow badly miscalculated the potential of Turkey and its President Recep Erdogan, Professor David Hovhannisyan said in an interview with ArmInfo.
"The scenario of the 44-day war was initially well thought out. And it was the condition for Moscow's consent to Azerbaijan's aggression against Artsakh. Under that scenario, the Azerbaijani army was capturing the territories it actually captured – halting its advance from time to time," Mr Hovhannisyan said.
And the Russian scenario was developing until Erdogan intervened in the Russian game, which brought about a change in the situation, especially toward the end of the war. And Moscow had to resort to rather radical ways of persuasion to prevent the theater of war 'going beyond the set bounds,' which resulted in Azerbaijan downing a Russian helicopter gunship in Armenia's territory.
And Moscow has now realized its miscalculations and is seeking to remedy the resultant situation, which is a rather difficult task to accomplish. And Moscow major miscalculation was thinking that the Turkish president had nothing to do in that "from the first." However, toward the end of the end of the war it was clear that, to put it mildly, it was far from being the truth.
"Russia's current problems in Artsakh are being exacerbated by the fact that Erdogan is to be reckoned with as Russia's ally, albeit one of convenience, on the other platforms. And the obviously conflicting strategic interests are not at all an obstacle to tactical cooperation between Ankara and Moscow for common advantage, with each of them interpreting this advantage in their own way. This necessitates tactical agreements on various problems in different places of the Greater Middle East," Mr Hovhannisyan said.
Artsakh NSS accuses Azerbaijani special services of trying to create a climate of fear in Artsakh
ARMINFO
Armenia –
Marianna Mkrtchyan
ArmInfo. Azerbaijani special services continue to spread misinformation from Armenian accounts on the Facebook social network, thus trying to create a climate of fear in Artsakh. This is stated in the statement of the NSS of Artsakh.
"The National Security Service of the Republic of Artsakh, fulfilling the functions and powers assigned to it by law in the field of information security, reports that the Azerbaijani special services continue to spread disinformation through Armenian accounts in the Artsakh sector of the Facebook social network, trying to create a climate of fear. The National Security Service of Artsakh is taking appropriate steps to prevent possible developments.
We urge not to give in to misinformation and refrain from spreading suspicious news, d to discuss it on social networks, and follow only the official news," the NKR NSS said in a statement.
Asbarez: Over 90 European Organizations Voice Disappointment in Michel’s Handling of Yerevan-Baku Talks
President of the European Council Charles Michel
At the initiative of the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy, 91 organizations operating within EU member-states sent a letter to the President of the European Council Charles Michel, expressing profound discontent with his statement of May 23, following the trilateral meeting with the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
The organizations welcomed Michel’s efforts for peace negotiations. Nevertheless, they emphasized the importance of ensuring that peace is negotiated based on justice and not by sacrificing the fundamental rights and needs of the Armenian side which was a victim of vicious aggression of the Turkish-Azerbaijani axis in 2020.
The organizations voiced their regret that Michel’s press statement on May 23 disregards key principles of EU’s documented approach toward the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and, overall, endorses the Azerbaijani stance on the conflict resolution in some crucial aspects. This includes using the word “Karabakh” while referring to the conflict, instead of “Nagorno Karabakh” which is a political entity with a defined territory. The letter further elaborated that using the term Karabakh by the Azerbaijani authorities is a part of Baku’s ongoing state policy of ethnic cleansing against the indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh.
Referring to the statement by Charles’ spokesperson May 31, the organizations expressed their appreciation that it introduced important clarifications and emphasized key principles. The organizations expressed hope that EU’s future mediation on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict does justice to negotiating an equitable and lasting peace.
For this purpose the signatories to the letter called on Michel to base the mediation on the following six concrete aspects:
- The Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement between the EU and Armenia (CEPA), which entered into force in March 2021, “recognizes the need to achieve that settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict on the basis of the purposes and principles enshrined in the UN Charter and the OSCE Helsinki Final Act, including the equal rights and self-determination of peoples, as one of the three Basic principles.”
- Any direct control of Baku over the Nagorno Karabakh inevitably means ethnic cleansing of its millennia-old native Armenian population. Hence the question of the status of Nagorno Karabakh which must reflects the democratic _expression_ of will of the Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh is primordial in ensuring the long-term, sustainable security of the population and guarantee their right to live in their homeland.
- Unblocking transportation/communication links must be carried out in full respect of sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia. Any potential risk of creating a new ground for conflict must be excluded.
- Border delimitation and demarcation between Armenia and Azerbaijan cannot be a consequence of the use of force and must not be carried out hastily without taking into consideration all the details of its consequences.
- Azerbaijan must immediately stop its state policy of Armenophobia in all its manifestations
- Following inter alia by the European Parliament as well as that of a number of parliaments of the EU Member states, Azerbaijan must immediately and unconditionally release all the Armenian prisoners of war and captives.
Mirzoyan raises Azerbaijan’s "anti-Armenian, warmongering rhetoric"
PanArmenian
Armenia –
– 18:34 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has expressed concern over the continuous anti-Armenian and warmongering rhetoric of the Azerbaijani authorities.
Mirzoyan raised the matter during a meeting with his Bulgarian counterpart Teodora Genchovska in Sofia on Tuesday, June 14.
He also raised Azerbaijan's provocative actions against Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh and drew his colleague's attention to the fact that in gross violation of the norms of international humanitarian law, Azerbaijan continues to hold Armenian prisoners of war and civilian hostages.
According to a statement from Yerevan, special emphasis was given to the prevention of Azerbaijan’s policy of distortion and destruction of the identity of Armenian monuments that are part of the universal cultural heritage in the territories fallen under Azerbaijani control due to the 44-day war. In this context, Mirzoyan stressed the urgency of a clear and targeted response of the international community, as well as the imperative of the involvement of relevant international organizations in Nagorno-Karabakh, especially the unimpeded implementation of UNESCO fact-finding mission.
Concerns about the preservation of cultural sites in Nagorno-Karabakh are made all the more urgent by the Azerbaijani government’s history of systemically destroying indigenous Armenian heritage—acts of both warfare and historical revisionism. The Azerbaijani government has secretly destroyed a striking number of cultural and religious artifacts in the late 20th century. Within Nakhichevan alone, a historically Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani forces destroyed at least 89 medieval churches, 5,840 khachkars (Armenian cross stones) and 22,000 historical tombstones between 1997 and 2006.
Parliament session kicks off – LIVE – 06/14/2022
Parliament session kicks off – LIVE
10:00,
YEREVAN, JUNE 14, ARMENPRESS. The Parliament of Armenia convened a session today.
22 items are on agenda.
The lawmakers will debate at second hearing the bills on making amendments to the Law on Prosecution, as well as a number of other laws.
The Parliament will also debate the 2021 state budget performance annual report.