Author: Arpi Talalian

Azerbaijani Press: The Armenian Karma of Senator Bob Menendez

Arpi Talalian
News.az, Azerbaijan
  • 14:10
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By Mansur Aslanov

In April, New Jersey’s long-serving and controversial senator Bob Menendez got engaged to a self-described “international businesswoman” Nadine Arslanian. Along with congratulations to the couple, it is worth mentioning that engagements and marriages should, in principle, remain strictly personal affairs. Even if the Senate’s most pro-Armenian advocate is getting engaged to an ethnic Armenian lady, who he met a campaign rally.

However, there is small issue of karma in this case. In 2010, Senator Menendez blocked Matthew Bryza from being appointed as U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan because Bryza’s wife, Zeyno Baran, is ethnically Turkish. Yes, this is not a typo- a sitting U.S. senator denied an appointment to a career official based on the identity of the latter’s spouse, and was duly chastised by the Washington Post editorial board for that. Logically then, by his own, somewhat racist, standard, pushing every piece of Armenian agenda in Congress and now having been engaged to ethnic Armenian, Senator Menendez should resign from Congress. The absurdity of ethnic politics played by Menendez is so convoluted that his only hope is that his critics hold a higher moral ground than him and would not point out the obvious irony here. Like so many overt zealots of intolerance and homophobes, Menendez was fervently attacking a person in public for exactly the same thing he is doing now. Another sad twist in the Bryza story was that he was nominated by, Barack Obama, the first bi-racial president in history from the same party as Menendez.

Whether Senator Menendez is truly ignorant of geography or was intoxicated as a result of his close friendship with Dominican drug traffickers is hard to conclude. What is clear, however, is that the Senator denied the United States a full-fledged diplomatic presence in the world’s only nation bordering Russia and Iran. For all his grand-standing against Iran and Russia, Senator Menendez served their interests at the time they needed it. He also clearly damaged American strategic interests in the areas of energy security, growing threats from Iran and America’s standing in the region. All along, this was done in the name of Armenia, Moscow’s vassal, Iran’s regional proxy and Europe’s most anti-Semitic nation. Perhaps, Menendez is a genuine racist and couldn’t forgive Bryza’s his wife identity, or he did this to impress his future fiancé, or, maybe, his Armenian handlers manipulated him on behalf of their masters in foreign capitals. Hard to tell, except that he pursued foreign interests with much greater vigor than those of the United States.

Given Armenia’s deep-rooted corruption, which is increasingly becoming a turn-off for philanthropists in the Diaspora, and a near-complete domination of Armenian businesses by Iranian and Russian interests, Menendez should be careful about his engagement with “international businesses.” A useful reminder would be that, until recently, Armenia’s Consul General in Los Angeles was a Russian oligarch, another “international businessman.”

Of course, the voters in New Jersey are very understanding and have forgiven Senator Menendez’s corruption trial and his affairs with underage prostitutes in the Dominican Republic. Still, the U.S. Senate, where Menendez was “severely admonished” for ethics violations in 2018, may want to ask the Senator whether he would like to see his own racist standard be applied to him and his passion for Armenia be questioned because of his fiancé’s ethnicity.   

 

https://www.news.az/news/the-armenian-karma-of-senator-bob-menendez

National Library of Armenia issues statement

Arpi Talalian
News.am, Armenia

22:08, 14.05.2020
                  

Armenpress: Budget revenues increased 43.6%: Armenian PM presents performance of government’s action plan

Arpi Talalian

Budget revenues increased 43.6%: Armenian PM presents performance of government’s action plan

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 11:22, 6 May, 2020

YEREVAN, MAY 6, ARMENPRESS. After the 2018 Revolution the Armenian government managed to increase the state budget revenues by 43.6% within 1 year 8 months. Within the frames of these funds nearly 199 billion drams in debt has been returned to the business, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in the Parliament while presenting the report on the implementation process and results of the government’s 2019 action plan.

“2019 was the first complete year of the activity of the post-revolutionary government, and this full year was to give us a complete vision on the potential of the post-revolutionary government and the political majority. Therefore, I find it very important to note that in 2019 we managed to record the highest economic activity rate since 2008 – 7,6%, which is the highest for the EAEU states, all neighboring countries and the countries of the European region”, the PM added.

In 2018-2019 the government managed to increase the state budget tax revenue’s declaration figure by 505 billion drams. This is more than a 1 billion USD. And in this respect the budget figure grew by 43.6%. “I want to remind my statement during the revolution period that the state budget revenues should increase by 30-35% within 1-2 years. In fact, we managed to increase the state budget revenues by 43.6% within 1 year 8 months”, the Armenian PM said.

Pashinyan said the 2019 economic growth was accompanied by the improvement of economy’s sectoral structure, low inflation and stable financial indicators. He highlighted that the growth in the processing industry comprised 12% in 2019. The export of goods and services from Armenia in 2019 increased by 10.3%, major export growth has been registered in the commodity groups of brandy, fruit wines, etc. Nearly 30% growth in turnover has been registered in the field of high technology industry. In January-September 2019 the inflow of foreign investments comprised 2.2 billion USD which is more by 465 million USD or 27.2% compared to the same period of the previous year.

Reporting by Anna Grigoryan; Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Prosperous Armenia party condemns incident in parliament

Arpi Talalian
News.am, Armenia
May 8 2020

18:02, 08.05.2020
                  

Exceptional humanitarian aid to COAF’s beneficiaries of Lori Province

Arpi Talalian
Panorama, Armenia
May 8 2020

With the support of the European Union, The Children of Armenia Charitable Fund (COAF) provides exceptional humanitarian aid to 1,000 families in Lori Province, the fund said in a press release.

European Union supports families in need affected by the coronavirus pandemic crisis. The financial support provided to Lori province is equal to euro 60,000. This EU program will also be implemented in Provinces of Shirak and Tavush in close collaboration with the local and regional officials.

“Every crisis with economic impact, such as the current one, negatively affects already vulnerable groups of population. It is therefore our moral duty to help those in need and provide guidance on limiting the spread of the virus. The European Union is here to give a helping hand to Armenian regions in these challenging times and overcome this difficult situation together,” mentions Andrea Wiktorin, Ambasssador, Head of the European Union Delegation to Armenia.

The socially vulnerable families from 26 rural and 2 urban (Vanadzor and Alaverdi) COAF-beneficiary communities will receive aid two times: in late April and May. The pack provided to each family includes primary food, hygiene items, and stationery. 

The selection of socially vulnerable families is based on COAF’s social workers’ years-long heartfelt work, in-depth research, needs assessment, and results of regular monitoring.

“COAF is a trusted partner for the EU that was able to fulfill the program in a nimble way, which is highly important in this situation, and productively, that is to say, targeted, as our specialists have been working directly with villagers in rural communities for many years,” explains Korioun Khatchadourian, the Managing Director at COAF.

Support will also be provided to 26 COAF-supported rural medical institutions. Each pack will include medical gear of primary need.

Construction of a new solar farm began in the Saravan region

Arpi Talalian
Panorama, Armenia
May 7 2020

On May 6, construction officially began on the “Areg Energia” solar farm in the Saravan region of Vayots Dzor, the Office of the High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs  reported. The High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs Zareh Sinanyan, Vayots Dzor Regional Governor Ararat Grigoryan, Honorary Consul of Cyprus in Armenia Armen Khachatryan, Diaspora Armenian businessman, co-investor Ashot Mkrtchyan and others were present at the groundbreaking ceremony. The idea for the investment arose ten months ago when well-known local Armenian businessmen from Cyprus, David and Alexander Petrosyan and Ashot Mkrtchyan met with High Commissioner  Sinanyan and became inspired by the changes in Armenia. After which they came to the homeland, studied the legislative and investment fields, and began to implement the idea.

As the source said, the $ 9 million solar farm situated on a 36-acre plot of land in Saravan, at an altitude of 1,720 meters above sea level, will be completed in a year’s time.

High Commissioner Sinanyan highlighted the investment policy adopted by the Armenian Government and the fact that investors are able to earn a significant profit in Armenia. The Office of the High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs is always ready to support Diaspora investors and any problems they may encounter. 

Co-investor, Ashot Mkrtchyan noted that they have turned their attention to the homeland and if successful, investments will be made in other spheres as well. In a video message, representative of the Armenian community in the Cypriot House of Representatives, MP Vardges Mahdesyan expressed his confidence that the experience of the Republic of Cyprus in the field of solar energy will greatly contribute to the success of the investment. According to the Cypriot-Armenian MP, this initiative will promote the development of Armenia-Cyprus relations, strengthen homeland-Diaspora ties, and contribute to the development of Armenia's economy.

Cypriot-Armenian businessman and co-investor David Petrosyan praised the activities of the Office of the High Commissioner and the role of Zareh Sinanyan in making the investment possible. According to the businessman, this initiative is especially valuable in terms of ensuring Armenia's energy security.

PM names new Deputy Director of NSS

Arpi Talalian

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 15:20, 5 May, 2020

YEREVAN, MAY 5, ARMENPRESS. Argishti Kyaramyan has been appointed Deputy Director of the National Security Service a day after being appointed Vice Chairman of the Investigative Committee.

Kyaramyan was serving as Deputy Director of the State Supervision Service before being named Vice Chairman of the Investigative Committee on May 4 by PM Nikol Pashinyan.

His appointment as Deputy Director of the NSS was formalized today by President Armen Sarkissian at the recommendation of the PM.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Armenia introduces new coronavirus relief measure involving environmental protection and agro jobs

Arpi Talalian

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 12:30, 30 April, 2020

YEREVAN, APRIL 30, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Government approved its 15th coronavirus relief measure at the Cabinet meeting today.

Minister of Environment Erik Grigoryan said the purpose of this act is to create temporary jobs in agriculture through solving environmental issues.

He said that people who are facing social issues because of the coronavirus outbreak will be paid for carrying out tree-planting.

“We propose to create riparian forest zones in river valleys at high-altitude areas in the country through local willow species, and widely involve local population in the work, thus creating additional jobs and mitigating the dangers related to the population’s reduction in income,” he said.

The initiative is worth 200,000,000 drams.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Armenpress: COVID19 updates: Russia overtakes Iran in most confirmed cases

Arpi Talalian

COVID19 updates: Russia overtakes Iran in most confirmed cases

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 17:16, 1 May, 2020

YEREVAN, MAY 1, ARMENPRESS. The number of people infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) around the world has surpassed 3 million 329 thousand 453, according to the data released by coronavirus research centers.

The death toll is over 234,000.

More than 1 million 053 thousand 040 patients have recovered.

US is leading in the world in terms of the largest number of infected people (1 million 095 thousand 977 confirmed cases). 63,876 deaths were reported.

Then comes Spain which confirmed 239,639 cases so far. The total number of deaths in Spain is 24,543.

Spain is followed by Italy which reported a total of 205,463 cases. 27,967 patients have died.

UK overtook France, confirming 171,253 cases and 26,771 deaths.

The next is France with a total of 167,178 cases and 24,376 deaths.

Germany has confirmed 163,162 cases and 6,632 deaths.

Turkey has recorded 120,204 cases. The deaths comprise 3,174.

Russia overtook China and Iran, confirming 114,431 cases. The deaths reached 1,169.

Iran recorded 95,646 cases. 6,091 people have died in Iran from coronavirus.

Brazil surpassed China with most confirmed cases (87,187). More than 6,000 people have died in Brazil.

China confirmed a total of 82,874 cases. 12 new cases have been confirmed in the country in the past one day. The death toll here is 4,633. No death case has been registered in the past one day.

Canada confirmed 53,236 cases, Belgium – 49,032, the Netherlands – 39,791.

Georgia confirmed 566 cases of coronavirus and 6 deaths.

Among the Arab states Qatar overtook the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with the most confirmed cases – 14,096. The death toll has reached 12 in Qatar. The number of infected people in the UAE is 13,038. 111 death cases have been registered here. Egypt reported 5,537 confirmed cases and 392 deaths. In Kuwait the number of confirmed cases is 4,377 and that of the deaths is 30. Iraq confirmed 2,085 cases and 93 deaths. 729 cases have been reported in Lebanon, the deaths comprise 24. Syria’s confirmed cases reached 43. 3 death cases have been registered.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. WHO declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a global pandemic and named the virus COVID-19. 

According to the data of the World Health Organization, coronavirus cases have been confirmed in more than 210 countries and territories.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Brea Declares 2020 Year of Armenian Genocide Commemoration

Arpi Talalian

Brea Mayor Marty Simonoff

BREA, California – The City of Brea has declared 2020 as the “Year of The Commemoration of the 105th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.”  The proclamation also designated April of every year hereafter as Armenian History Month.

The proclamation was spearheaded by Armenian-American Marty Simonoff, Mayor of the City of Brea. Mayor Simonoff, a steadfast supporter of Armenian-American issues, was first elected into public office for the City of Brea in 1996 and  is currently serving his sixth term on the Brea City Council.

“The Armenian National Committee of America – Orange County chapter would like to extend its gratitude to the City of Brea and Mayor Marty Simonoff for their commitment to the ongoing remembrance and commemoration of the Armenian Genocide,” remarked Armen Garabedian, Chair of the ANCA Orange County chapter. “This powerful proclamation not only codefies the official remembrance of the Armenian Genocide and celebration of the Armenian-American community through the designation fo April as Armenian History Month, but highlights contemporary consequences of genocide denial through Turkey’s enabling of Azerbaijan’s physical and cultural genocide against the Armenians of Artsakh.”

Mayor Simonoff, a member of the Armenian-American community, has been a staunch supporter of genocide recognition, genocide education, and advocacy for the right to self-determinatio for the people of Artsakh. He has been instrumental in facilitating yearly Armenian Genocide Remembrances and Proclamations with the Orange County Board of Supervisor, and continues to work closely with the Armenian-American community – including the ANCA Orange County chapter – to address the interests and needs of the local community.

“We thank Mayor Simonoff for his support throughout the years in advancing our community priorities locally, and at a county level,” added Garabedian. “On this 105th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, we welcome this proclamation and look forward to continuing to work with the City of Brea and Mayor Smirnoff in advancing our community’s cause for justice. ”

The Armenian National Committee of America – Orange County chapter is the largest and most influential nonpartisan Armenian-American grassroots advocacy organization in the Orange County. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the United States, the ANCA – Orange County advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

City of Brea Proclamation

The Proclamation reads as follows:

WHEREAS, Armenian have inhabited the Armenian Highland for over four millennia and have developed a unique, rich civilization in the region with a long and continuous history, including the establishment of many kingdoms and also the establishment of the Armenian Empire during the first century BCE; and

WHEREAS, the Armenian people were subjects of a systematic and premeditates genocidal campaign in their ancestral homeland, which began on April 24, 1915, at the hand of the Ottoman Turkish government from 1915-1919, and which continued at the hands of Kemalist government of the Republic of Turkey from 1920-1923, whereby on and one-half million Armenian men, women, and children were slaughtered or marched to their deaths in an effort to annihilate the Armenian Nation in the first modern genocide, while thousands of surviving Armenians were forcibly converted or Islamized, and hundreds of thousands more were subjected to ethnic cleansing during the period of the modern Republic of Turkey from 1924-1937; and

WHEREAS, during the same period the Ottoman Turkish authorities massacred over one million Greeks, Assyrians, and other Christian minorities as part of the planned complete eradication and genocide of the indigenous communities. These international crimes against humanity resulted in the permanent removal of all traces of the Armenians and other targeted peoples from their ancestral historic homelands, and enriching the perpetrators with the lands of confiscation of other property of the victims, including usurpation of several thousand churches. These international crimes against humanity still require justice; and

WHERAS, in response to the Genocide and at the behest of President Woodrow Wilson and the US State Department, the Near East Relief organization-as first Congressionally-sanctioned American philanthropic effort created to rescue the Armenian genocide survivors-was founded and provided unprecedented relief, delivering more than $117 million in humanitarian assistance between 1915 and 1930, and saving approximately one million refugees, including 130,000 orphans of genocide; and

WHEREAS, prior to the implementation of the Holocaust, in order to garner support from his follower, Adolf Hitler asked “Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” The Republic of Turkey continues its genocidal policy by showing no remorse for the crime and vehemently denying the veracity of the Genocide perpetrated against the Armenian, Greek, and Assyrian nations; and

WHEREAS, the Republic of Turkey has long served as a destabilizing force in the region by illegally blockading the Republic of Armenia, among other gross violations of international law. The republics of Turkey and Azerbaijan proclaim each other as “one nation, two states.” From 1988-1990, the Armenian population in Soviet Azerbaijan was the target of racially motivated pogroms in the cities of Sumgait (February 27-29, 1988), Kirovabad (November 21-27, 1988), and Baku (January 13-19, 1990). 89 medieval churches, 5,840 ornate cross-stones and 22,000 tombstones in the formerly-Armenian region of Nakhichevan were systematically and covertly eradicated by the Azerbaijani government from 1997-2006 in order to erase the region’s indigenous Armenian past in what is now called “the worst cultural genocide of the 21st century.” Having suffered racial and economic discrimination under the Soviet Azerbaijani occupation, the citizens of the Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Region declared their independence from the USSR in 1991 and established the free, independent, and democratic Republic of Artsakh; and

WHEREAS, republic of Armenian and Artsakh are bastions of freedom, liberty, and democracy in the region, serving as staunch US allies and defenders of Western Civilization.  Those citizens of Turkey who speak the truth about the Armenian Genocide continue to be silenced by violent means and/or imprisonment, in part due to a Turkish law which criminalizes any _expression_ which is considered to the insulting to the Turkish identity. The Armenian Genocide has been officially recognized by the US Congress in 2019 with the adoption of H. Res. 296 in the House of Representatives and S. Res. 150 in the Senate, officially reaffirming the US record on the Armenian Genocide; and

WHEREAS, both resolution set, as a matter of US policy to (1) commemorate the Armenian Genocide through official recognition and remembrance, (2) reject efforts to enlist, engage, or otherwise associate the United States Government with denial of the Armenian Genocide or any other genocide; and (3) encourage education and public understanding of the facts of the Armenian Genocide, including the Unites States role in the humanitarian relief effort, and the relevance of the Armenian Genocide to modern-day crimes against humanity. By recognizing and consistently remembering the Armenian Genocide and other genocides we help protect cultural and historic memory and ensure that similar atrocities do not occur again; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Brea hereby designates 2020 as “Year of Commemoration of the 105th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide” and the month of April of every year thereafter as “Armenian History Month” and in doing so will ensure that the Armenian Genocide and history is properly commemorated in the community at large. The City of Brea hereby commends the extraordinary service which was delivered by the Near East Relief to the survivors of the Genocide, including thousands of direct beneficiaries of American philanthropy who are the great-grandparents, grandparents, and parents of many Californian Armenian-Americans, and reaffirms its commitment to working with community groups, nonprofit organizations, personnel, and the student body to host campus-wide educational events dedicated specifically to these efforts and this important part of American history.  The City of Brea calls upon the US President to work toward equitable, constructive, stable, and durable Armenian-Turkish relations based upon the Republic of Turkey’s full acknowledgment of the facts and ongoing consequences of the Armenian Genocide, and a fair, just, and comprehensive international resolution of this crime against humanity, including reparations to the Armenian Nation.