Author: Babken Chilingarian

Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomes foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Ararat Mirzoyan (left) and Jeyhun Bayramov (right) in Washington on May 1

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday acknowledged and confirmed that the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are negotiating over a specific document during their ongoing talks in Washington.

He said, however, that there are no new provisions in the said document, “because I have already spoken about it publicly.”

In discussing the talks in Washington between Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers, Ararat Mirzoyan and Jeyhun Bayramov, which entered the third day, Luis Bono, the State Department’s Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations and the U.S. Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group told Voice of America on Tuesday that the document being discussed is called “Agreement on the Normalization of Relations.”

He added that the “U.S. is seeking for the parties to normalize their relations, to be able to live together, to strengthen economic ties and even their collective security in the region.”

Speaking at Parliament on Wednesday, Pashinyan said that he had given specific instruction to Armenia’s negotiators, adding that he had emphasized that he—himself—would be signing the eventual peace deal with Azerbaijan.

“I told the negotiating team in Washington to speak freely within the framework of our publicly expressed opinions,” Pashinyan said, adding that during the talks “new ideas may and new components may emerge.”

In the absence of official reports from Yerevan, there has been speculation that a final document may be signed as early as June 1 in Cisinau, the capital of Moldova.

“Our position is as follows: the government of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Armenia must declare that they not only do not have territorial aspirations, but also will not have them. And this is the only principle that will give us the opportunity to have a state, otherwise everything will be done from all sides to prevent us from having a state,” Pashinyan added.

He went on to elaborate that that Armenia must adapt to the changing international landscape, the elements of which, he said, are playing out in Armenia.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna (left) holds a joint press conference with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan in Yerevan on Apr. 28

Azerbaijan’s Military Advance Into Armenia’s Sovereign Territory is Unacceptable, She Said

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, who earlier had urged Baku to end the Artsakh blockade, on Friday said that the checkpoint installed by Azerbaijan on the Lachin Corridor contradicts the November 9, 2020 agreement. She also said Azerbaijani military advance into the sovereign territory of Armenia is unacceptable.

Colonna, who is in Yerevan, met with Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan on Friday and also visited Jermuk, which was hit hard during Azerbaijan’s breach of Armenia’s sovereign borders in September.

“If Azerbaijan is concerned about the transparency of flows, there are several other methods to approach this issue, rather than taking unilateral steps. Fair and sustainable peace means peace that respects and protects human rights,” Colonna said during a joint press conference with Mirzoyan on Friday.

“We will continue to call for the restoration of unimpeded movement along the Lachin Corridor according to the obligations assumed by the sides, as well as the ruling of the International Court of Justice,” said Colonna.

“The [Artsakh] blockade has been going on for already several months. This is not acceptable. This does not comply with commitments to international law and creates risks for a humanitarian crisis for the population of Nagorno Karabakh,” Colonna added.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna visit Jermuk

She said France wants “humanitarian steps to contribute to the formation of an atmosphere conducive to negotiations,” be it the issues of prisoners of war or those missing, or other difficult issues. Colonna called for negotiations around the security and rights of the population of Nagorno Karabakh.

“The population of Nagorno Karabakh must be able to continue to live in peace and security, with respect to its culture and traditions,” said Colonna.

Saying that the main issues discussed with her Armenian counterpart were the peace talks with Azerbaijan, Colonna emphasized that respect for territorial integrity is important.

She reiterated France’s long-running position that the Azerbaijani military advance into the sovereign territory of Armenia is unacceptable.

“Respect for territorial integrity means refraining from any kind of use of force. I’ve said this in Baku as well,” Colonna said. “International law must be respected, therefore we can’t accept the unilateral steps made by Azerbaijan.”

“France expresses its full support to the negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. France is not alone in this, France does this with the EU and the United States, naturally by maintaining contact with the OSCE and the UN, which can have a useful role in this process,” explained the French foreign minister.

“We all know that the path to peace is difficult and often long. I am saying this in Yerevan, like I said in Baku, this is the only path that will allow the achieving of fair and sustainable peace, create new prospects for the future of the two countries. We encourage everyone to join that path,” said Colonna.

“Fair and sustainable peace means peace which is based on respect for international law. In Prague, the President of France and the President of the European Council made efforts in order for Armenia and Azerbaijan to make an important step and reiterate their commitment to the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, by which they mutually recognize each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. We believe that is important to strengthen this achievement, perhaps by carrying out the delimitation works as a priority,” she added.

BY ARA JAMES NAJARIAN

On Saturday, April 15, 2023, Dr. Vartkes Najarian passed away peacefully at his home in Glendale surrounded by his wife, children, their spouses, grandchildren and great grandchild.

Vartkes Najarian was born April 4, 1930 in Kessab, Syria to Hagop, an evangelical minister, and Rebecca. They had five children: Sirvart, Ardashes, Vartkes, Vasken and Vrej. At an early age, the family moved to Beirut, Lebanon.  

After attending the Armenian Evangelical High School, he graduated from the American University of Beirut and received a scholarship to enter the AUB Medical School. In his spare time, he worked as a lifeguard on the Mediterranean beach and was a star athlete and national rowing champion.

He graduated from Medical School in 1957, and came to the United States to continue his medical training. After an internship in New Jersey, he went to Chicago, where he trained under the famous Dr. Hampar Kelikian. In 1958, while in Chicago, he married Mary Kevorkian a registered nurse and AUB graduate.

He completed his orthopedic training at Mt. Sinai Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, where he settled down and raised four children: Ara, Armen, Raffi, and Maro. In the 20 years he spent in Cleveland, he served the community by volunteering as the sports team physician for Hawken School and the West Geauga School District.

In 1980, the family moved to California to be closer to his extended family and the flourishing Armenian community. He started his private orthopedic practice in Glendale where he pioneered the first weekly successful health program on Armenian Television.

His first visit to Soviet Armenia in 1984 sparked a burning passion to help his people.

Armenia’s health care system at the time was that of a third world country’s. He broke down political barriers in order to bring Armenia up to modern medical standards. He was the first doctor in the entire Soviet Union to perform arthroscopic surgery. In addition to bringing the valuable arthroscopic surgical equipment, he brought Armenian orthopedic surgeons to the United States to strengthen their training.

Even beyond orthoepedics, Dr. Najarian helped to develop modern eye care centers in Yerevan. The shortage of medicine in Armenian compelled Dr. Najarian to create the first aspirin tablet manufacturing facility in Yerevan.

When the 1988 earthquake rocked Armenia, Dr. Najarian was asked to be on the first US State Department emergency medical response team to assess the needs. This was the first time since the start of the Cold War that a US military plane was permitted to land in the Soviet Union. He established a humanitarian organization, Medical Outreach for Armenians, to facilitate his charitable projects.

Dr. Najarian with the help of the Armenian Community, arranged for 120 children, who had lost limbs in the earthquake, to obtain necessary surgical treatment and prosthetics in promiment Los Angeles hospitals. That same year, he sent millions of dollars of medical supplies, filling over 50 containers, to Yerevan.

In 1991, during the fierce fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan, then Minister of Defense Serge Sarkissian stated that during the war “our soldiers wanted two things: medical care and a combat communication system. In those two areas, the Najarians played the major role.”

The radio systems the soldiers used were very heavy, obsolete, and unable to be used properly to direct troops. Dr. Najarian and his friends in Los Angeles purchased and delivered Alyenko radio systems to the Army which was crucial in turning the tide to victory for the Armenian and Artsakh forces.

Dr. Najarian had to leave his private medical practice in Los Angeles so he could spend more time in Artsakh attending to the troops. It was there that he would perform surgeries by candlelight in trenches and in bombed out basements,  under the shelling of bombs and bullets.  

After the war, Dr. Najarian, along with Medical Outreach, renovated 11 floors of the Military Hospital in Yerevan. The Najarians spent 8 years making a once run down building into a modern and well equipped military hospital. In Artsakh, Dr. Najarian renovated a 30-bed trauma center in Stepanakert. When not in Armenia and Artsakh he was always sending more medical supplies and assistance. Because of his sacrifice and heroic acts, Defense Minister Vasken Sarkissian honored Dr. Najarian with the rank of Colonel in the Armenian Army.

Among the numerous awards he received include the Vachagan Humanitarian Medal from Artsakh, the Soviet Medal of Honor, the Nelle Reagan Award, the Fridjen Nansen Award from the Russian International Humanitarian Organization, the Ellis Island Medal of Freedom and Presidential Medal of Honors from Artsakh President Arkady Ghuougassyan, Bako Sahakyan and Armenian President Serge Sarkissyan. He received Letters of Commendations from Presidents Reagan, Bush and Clinton.

Vartkes is survived by his wife Mary of 64 years, is sons Ara (Palmira), Armen (Naira), Raffi (Arda), Maro (Stephan Yacoubian) and Grandchildren Vartkes, Mary, Alexander (Anna Tutundjian), Christopher, Shant, Vahe, Daniel, Daron, and Elizabeth, as well as his great-grandson Edward.

Ara James Najarian is a member of the Glendale City council and served as the mayor of the city in the past.