Author: Garnik Tadevosian

Azerbaijan swaps 15 Armenian prisoners for map showing landmines

Garnik Tadevosian
EuroNews
By Reuters  •  Updated: 12/06/2021 - 20:15

MOSCOW -Azerbaijan said on Saturday it had handed over 15 Armenian prisoners in exchange for a map detailing the location of landmines in Agdam, a region relinquished by ethnic Armenian forces as a part of a deal to end a six-week war last year.

A Russian-brokered ceasefire halted fighting that saw the Azeri army drive ethnic Armenian forces out of swathes of territory they had controlled since the 1990s in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Irregular skirmishes continue, highlighting the fragility of the ceasefire.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the news and said he hoped it would lay the groundwork for more cooperation.

“We continue to call for the return of all detainees and stand ready to assist the countries of the region in their efforts to continue cooperation and resolve outstanding issues between them,” Blinken said in a statement.

The prisoner exchange deal, the first agreement of its kind between the two countries, was announced by the Azeri Foreign Ministry.

Prisoners of war are a key issue for Armenia, while landmines continue to inflict casualties in Azerbaijan.

Two journalists and a local official were killed on June 4 when a landmine exploded in Azerbaijan’s Kalbajar district on territory that was vacated by ethnic Armenian forces in November.

Switzerland announces closing part of its airspace due to Putin-Biden summit

Garnik Tadevosian

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 14:25,

YEREVAN, JUNE 11, ARMENPRESS. Swiss authorities will close a part of the country’s airspace for flights due to the June 16 Geneva summit of Russian President Vladimir Putin and US leader Joe Biden, TASS reports citing the Swiss government.

“At its meeting on , the Federal Council approved a temporary restriction on the use of airspace during the summit between President Biden and President Putin from 15 to 17 June 2021 in Geneva”, the statement said.

The Swiss Air Force will provide air policing and tightened airspace surveillance, the government noted. The restrictions are introduced from 8 am on June 15 through 8 am on June 17 local time. They include the airspace of the Geneva region with the center over the Place des Nations near the UN Office at Geneva. At the same time, commercial flights to and from Geneva International Airport “will not be affected by the restriction”.

Czech MPs call for unconditional and immediate release of Armenian POWs

Garnik Tadevosian
Public Radio of Armenia
 

The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament has adopted a resolution calling for unconditional and immediate release of Armenian prisoners of war, the Armenian Embassy in the Czech Republic informs.

The resolution reads:

Whereas on 19 March 2021 Human Rights Watch reported that Azerbaijani security and armed forces were abusing Armenian prisoners of war, and subjecting them to cruel and degrading treatment and torture, either at the time of their capture, during their transfer or in custody in various prisons

I. Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all Armenian military and civilian prisoners captured during and after the conflict, and calls on Azerbaijan to refrain from arbitrary detention in the future. Further urges the parties to the conflict to comply fully with the tripartite ceasefire of 9 November 2020, which provides for the exchange of prisoners of war, hostages and other detainees, as well as the remains of persons killed in the armed conflict;

II. Deplores the violence that took place during the last war between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh; Expresses its solidarity with the victims and their families; Deplores the breach of the ceasefire, which has led to further human suffering, loss of life and destruction; Condemns all attacks on the civilian population and recalls that states have an obligation under international humanitarian law to protect the lives of civilians;

III. Considers it essential for the Government of Azerbaijan to provide exhaustive lists of all persons held in captivity in the context of the armed conflict and to provide information on their whereabouts and their health, including information on those who have died in captivity;

IV. Considers it necessary for the Government of Azerbaijan to cooperate fully with the European Court of Human Rights on the issue of Armenian prisoners and to comply with the preliminary rulings of the court which ordered Azerbaijan to provide detailed information on the conditions of detention of prisoners, their state of health and measures taken for their return;

V. We ask the Government of the Czech Republic to act in the spirit of the above on the territory of the European Union, the United Nations and other international organizations.

Turkish press: After half-century, Turkey’s Manuçehr Mosque to call for prayer

Garnik Tadevosian
 KARS ARTS 
JUN 02, 2021 11:22 AM GMT+3
The 11th-century Ebul Manuçehr Mosque stands above a canyon, in Kars, Turkey, June 24, 2020. (AA Photo)

The adhan, the call to prayer for Muslims, carries significant importance in Islam and it is the most distinguishing feature of mosques. The Ebul Manuçehr Mosque, located in the ancient city of Ani in northeastern Turkey's Kars province, had to stand without adhan for 64 years, but now with the historical mosque's restoration planned, the call for prayer has started to echoe from its minaret once again.

Part of the ancient Ani Ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage site near the Arpaçay district of Kars, the 11th-century Ebul Manuçehr Mosque took nearly 15 years to complete, following the order of the Seljuk Empire's sultan Malik-Shah I.

The mosque, which was used as a depot under Russian occupation in the 19th century, is planned to be restored and opened to worship by August under the coordination of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and several other ministries, agencies and organizations including the Serhat Development Agency (SERKA).

The 11th-century Ebul Manuçehr Mosque stands above a canyon, in Kars, Turkey, May 31, 2021. (AA Photo)

Ibrahim Taşdemir, secretary general of SERKA, said that work on the mosque is already underway. "Allah willing, we will have the opening for worship at this mosque, the first mosque constructed by Turks in Anatolia, in August, on the 957th anniversary of Ani's conquest," he told Anadolu Agency (AA).

Taşdemir said that in the first stage, the mosque will open for worship after its 64-year hiatus. Installations include doors and windows, a minbar, a pulpit where the imam stands to deliver sermons and a mihrab, a semicircular niche in the wall that indicates the direction that Muslims should face when praying.

A comprehensive restoration of the mosque will then be carried out with support from 26 development agencies. The non-original walls built during the Russian occupation will be removed as part of the restoration.

"Just as it was the first mosque of Anatolia, labor from every inch of Anatolia will be here," Taşdemir said when he noted how many agencies from different corners of Turkey would be supporting the project.

Taşdemir also emphasized that archaeological excavations at the Ani Ruins, which they also support, are ongoing.

He noted that the Ani Ruins carry significant importance in world history with the region hosting 23 civilizations throughout its 5,000-year lifespan.

The ruins, located on the Turkey-Armenia border, flourished in the 10th and 11th centuries when it was the capital of the medieval Armenian kingdom of the Bagratides.

The ancient city also contains Islamic architecture from the 11th and 12th centuries and it was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List on July 15, 2016.

In the 85-hectare area of the Ani Ruins, there are many important architectural works such as the Amenaprgic and Abugamir Pahlavuni churches, as well as the Ebul Manuçehr Mosque.

Azerbaijan instrumentalizes captured people as political hostages and tools to pursue other goals – Armenia MFA

Garnik Tadevosian

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 11:48, 4 June, 2021

YEREVAN, JUNE 4, ARMENPRESS. Armenia’s foreign ministry has issued a statement regarding the criminal prosecution against the Armenian prisoners of war by Azerbaijan, the MFA told Armenpress.

The statement reads:

“On May 25, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia strongly condemned official Baku's criminal prosecution against Lyudvik Mkrtchyan and Alyosha Khosrovyan, captured during the recent aggression of Azerbaijan against Artsakh. Continuing to violate the norms of humanitarian law, particularly the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War, which explicitly states that prisoners of war are released and repatriated immediately after the cessation of hostilities, Azerbaijan has brought trumped-up criminal charges against 14 captured Armenian servicemen, which also violates the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020.

The criminal cases against 16 Armenian servicemen, as well as the torture and psychological pressure of other Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians set a precedent for a malicious violation of international law. It is clear that Azerbaijan instrumentalizes the captured people as political hostages and tools to pursue other goals.

Official Baku also blatantly defies the relevant decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on providing information on Armenian servicemen and civilians held in Azerbaijani captivity.

Despite numerous calls from the international community, Azerbaijan continues to conceal the true number of the prisoners, denying the captivity of dozens of Armenian servicemen and civilians. Moreover, Azerbaijan denies the detention of those whose captivity in Azerbaijan has been documented both through video coverage and testimonies of repatriated prisoners, which raises suspicions of a number of serious crimes.

All Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives held in Azerbaijan must be immediately released and repatriated without any preconditions”.

Exclusive – Is U.S. taxpayer money aiding a modern day genocide against Armenia?

Garnik Tadevosian
Your Central Valley

by: Alexan Balekian

Posted: / 07:00 AM PDT / Updated: May 28, 2021 / 05:42 PM PDT

A week after President Biden became the first U.S. sitting president to formally recognize the Armenian genocide, his administration waived a restriction to extend military aid to Azerbaijan. In an exclusive interview with Valley congressman David Valadao on Sunday Morning Matters, the Armenian caucus co-chair says his bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Blinken has not received a response. Meantime, nearly 200 Armenian POWs have been reportedly tortured or killed by Azerbaijani forces. Valadao says $100 million in U.S. taxpayer money was sent to Azerbaijan by the Biden administration by issuing a waiver not to uphold section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. The Biden administration has failed to answer multiple bipartisan requests for $100 million in aid to help rebuild Artsakh after most of it was destroyed in a bloody war back in September of 2020.

Armenian expert Vardan Voskanyan publishes map of border areas for Pashinyan

Garnik Tadevosian
Panorama, Armenia

Expert on Iran Vardan Voskanyan published a map of Armenia’s border areas on Facebook in response to Friday’s statements of Armenia’s caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, explaining the link between the Black Lake (Sev Lich) area in Syunik Province bordering Azerbaijan and the Artsakh issue.

“Since, judging by the voiced “questions”, the leader of the regime, which still considers himself to be in power in Armenia, does not seem to understand how the border of the Republic of Armenia in the areas of Black Lake, the town of Sandruk (Sadarak is the Azerbaijani distorted version) or Vardenis has to do with Artsakh, obviously, he, to put it mildly, has no idea what the map of Armenia and the communication lines look like,” the expert wrote.

“If our border is unfavorable in the Sandruk and Black Lake areas (Ishkhanasar), the only land connection with Artsakh along M2 highway leading to the Kashatagh corridor (Yerevan-Yeraskh-Goris-Meghri) is strategically endangered at two points.

“And if the border turns out to be unfavorable in the Vardenis region, M11 highway (Martuni-Vardenis-occupied Artsakh border), which, although not functioning now, but being the second route of strategic importance which connects Armenia and Artsakh, will be under threat,” he said.

 

EU says forces on Armenian-Azerbaijani border should be pulled back to positions held before 12 May

Garnik Tadevosian
Panorama, Armenia

The European Union considers the recent developments on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border as dangerous and worrying," Peter Stano, the Spokesperson of the EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy said in a statement on Friday, calling for immediate de-escalation. 

"The European Union urges both sides to refrain from any further military deployment and actions. All forces should pull back to positions held before 12 May and both sides should engage in negotiations on border delimitation and demarcation. We continue to call on Azerbaijan to release all prisoners of war and detainees without delay. We welcome all efforts aimed at decreasing tensions, including proposals for a possible international observation mission," the statement said.

It also expressed readiness to provide expertise and help on border delimitation and demarcation, as well as to support much needed confidence building measures, in order to move towards sustainable peace and prosperity for the South Caucasus.

Defense Ministry reports “altercation” between Armenian and Azeri troops near Lake Sev

Garnik Tadevosian

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 14:45,

YEREVAN, MAY 21, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Ministry of Defense reports no “significant changes” in the situation at the border with Azerbaijan, where the Azeri troops have breached the state border of Armenia. It said that an incident has taken place in the evening of May 20.

In the evening of May 20 an “altercation” took place between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops near Lake Sev. The altercation was reportedly caused by the videos which were earlier published on Armenian and Azerbaijan news outlets and social media. The command of the troops was able to resolve the altercation.

“The Ministry of Defense urges to refrain from spreading such videos. They don’t anyhow help in resolving the issue peacefully, and contribute to unnecessary increase of tension. Generally the situation is stable. The Armenian military units are fully controlling the situation and continue to keep the Azerbaijani troops blocked.”

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Azerbaijani forces remain on Armenian soil, Yerevan says

Garnik Tadevosian
TASS, Russia
The situation in the Syunik and Gegharkunik Provinces on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border is unsolved, the Armenian Defense Ministry stated

YEREVAN, May 16. /TASS/. The situation in the Syunik and Gegharkunik Provinces on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border is unsolved and Azerbaijan’s forces still remain there, the Armenian Defense Ministry stated on Sunday.

"The situation after provocations by Azerbaijan’s armed forces in certain border areas of Armenia’s Syunik and Gegharkunik Provinces as of May 16 remained unchanged. At night the Azerbaijani side tried to carry out works on the home front, which were curbed by the Armenian units. The situation is stable, the representatives of Azerbaijan’s armed forces are not carrying out any fortification works and are not trying to whip up tension," the statement said.