Author: Garnik Zakarian

Yerevan police provoke clash with protesters

Garnik Zakarian
NEWS.am
Armenia – June 3 2022
20:42, 03.06.2022

The police actually provoked a clash with protesters in Yerevan.

The march of the Resistance Movement approached the residence of the Prime Minister. From there, the protesters decided to go down Demirchyan Street to the parliament building. However, the street was blocked off by a powerful police cordon.

The protesters were not going to break into any building, they were just going to walk down the street. However, the police not only did not let the citizens through, but actually provoked a skirmish. Once again, using brute force, the police pushed the protesters back and began to bring them to the front.

The footage shows how groups of police officers beat protesters and drag them along the ground. The scene of the skirmish is littered with women's shoes and men's boots.

Apparently, the police also used special equipment.

Yerevan Calls for Investigation of Azerbaijan’s Attack that Killed Armenian Soldier

Garnik Zakarian
by Asbarez Staff

 

 

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories

The Armenia-Azerbaijan border


Mirzoyan Slams Aliyev’s Provocative Remarks

Armenia’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the latests military provocation by Azerbaijani forces, which resulted in the death of Armenian soldier, private Vahani Vardanyan on Saturday. The foreign ministry also said that President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, through his “destructive, belligerent and superfluous” remarks, was making territorial claims against the sovereignty of Armenia.

In an interview with Armenpress, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan responded to the remarks made by Aliyev, who on Friday said that there is no Nagorno Karabakh, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is resolved, there is no OSCE Minsk Group.

In its statement issued on Sunday, the foreign ministry said that since May 2021, units of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have illegally invaded the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia in the Sotk-Khoznavar section, occupying an area of more than 45 square kilometers.

“The incident of May 28 and similar provocations, regular ceasefire violations once again justify the need for a mirror withdrawal of troops from the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and the deployment of an observation mission on the border, which has been repeatedly raised by the Armenian side,” the Ministry said in a statement.

“Taking into consideration that the Commission on Border Delimitation and Security between Armenia and Azerbaijan has already started its work, this incident should be investigated and assessed by the commission,” the statement reads.

At the same time, the Foreign Ministry said, that the consequences of the previous gross violation of the ceasefire established by the November 9, 2020 statement, as a result of which the Azerbaijani Armed Forces invaded the village of Parukh in Nagorno Karabakh, which is under the responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping troops, are yet to be dealt with.

“We consider it important that the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, the CSTO, the European Union and the entire international community give a proper and targeted assessment of Azerbaijan’s provocative actions and statements, aggressive rhetoric aimed at undermining peace efforts in the South Caucasus,” the foreign ministry added.

In his interview with Armenpress that was published on Saturday, Mirzoyan said that there is a document bearing Aliyev’s signature that acknowledges the existence of Nagorno-Karabakh. He was referring to the November 9, 2020 agreement signed by Aliyev, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mirzoyan explained that by signing the document, Aliyev acknowledged the very existence of Nagorno-Karabakh, adding that “this is an irrevocable fact.”

“We can show the official statements made by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries, where they reaffirm their commitment as Co-Chairs. The United States and France made such statements only in the last week. The Prime Minister of Armenia and President of the Russian Federation also emphasized the role of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs in their joint statement on April 19,” said Mirzoyan.

“At the December 2021 summit of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Stockholm, the foreign ministers of dozens of countries stressed the exclusive role of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The OSCE Minsk Group was not created by Azerbaijan, but by the international community, so Azerbaijan cannot dissolve it or consider its mission over,” explained Mirzoyan in his Armenpress interview.

“The same international community states today that the OSCE MG exists. As I mentioned, it also states that there is a Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that needs to be resolved. This is stated in the above-mentioned statement of the Prime Minister of Armenia and the President of the Russian Federation. The US Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Armenia stated this quite recently, expressing the official position of the U.S.,” added the foreign minister.

“Moreover, in the same statement, it was emphasized that the issue of the Nagorno-Karabakh status is on the agenda, the right of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh to self-determination is also on the agenda. By the way, Armenia has never had territorial claims from Azerbaijan. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is a matter of right and is perceived by the international community as so. And that is evidenced from the meeting in Brussels. We have stated that the page of the war is closed for us, there is a problem that must be solved through political and diplomatic means,” said Mirzoyan.

In his Armenpress interview, Mirzoyan touched on another claim made by Aliyev, who said on Friday that during his meeting with Pashinyan in Brussels, an agreement was reached to create the so-called “Zangezur Corridor,” adding the envisioned road that is to connect mainland Azerbaijan with Nakhichevan will run through Meghri.

Mirzoyan categorically rejected that statement.

“We have continuously recorded Armenia’s position. But let us repeat again. The existence of any corridor in the territory of Armenia is ruled out. This is not even a matter of debate. Our discussions are exclusively about opening roads, transport and economic communications and unblocking them,” said Mirzoyan.

“As for the routes, we said that before clarifying the routes, we must first agree on the legal regulations for the passage of Azerbaijani citizens and cargo through our territory and the passage of Armenian citizens and cargo through Azerbaijan (including Nakhichevan). However, it is obvious that one branch of the railway will pass through Meghri, Ordubad, Julfa, Yeraskh. There is no agreement on the route of the highways at the moment,” added Mirzoyan.

Second meeting of delimitation commissions to take place in Moscow

Garnik Zakarian

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 12:55, 25 May 2022

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. The second meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani commissions for delimitation will take place in Moscow, the Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan’s office confirmed.

However the timeframes aren’t yet specified.

“The date of the second meeting of the delimitation commissions isn’t decided yet, but the location, yes, it will take place in Moscow,” Grigoryan’s office said.

Meanwhile, the Russian Deputy FM Andrey Rudenko had said that he hopes the next meeting will take place next week.

Paris Mayor visits Tsitsernakaberd memorial and "Yerablur" military pantheon

Garnik Zakarian

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 14:30,

YEREVAN, MAY 28 ARMENPRESS. The Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo paid tribute to the memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide and the 44th day war.

ARMENPRESS reports Anne Hidalgo accompanied by the First Deputy Mayor of Yerevan Levon Hovhannisyan, the leader of the "My Step" faction of the Yerevan Council of Elders Armen Galjyan, the leader of the "Prosperous Armenia" faction Michael Manrikyan and the leader of the "Luys" faction David Khazhakyan visited the Tsitsernakaberd monument, laid a wreath at the monument to the victims of the Medz Yeghern and put flowers at the eternal fire.

Afterwards, the mayor of Paris visited "Yerablur" military pantheon. Anne Hidalgo laid flowers at the graves of students of the French University in Armenia killed in the 44-day war and talked with their parents.

Asbarez: Glendale Police Chief Announces Retirement

Garnik Zakarian
 by Contributor

 

 

 

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Police Chief Carl Povilaitis

After 32 years in law enforcement serving the City of Glendale, Police Chief Carl Povilaitis announced his plans to retire in September of this year. Chief Povilaitis has served as the Glendale Police Department’s Chief since 2018.

“It has been my distinct honor and privilege to end my career as the Chief of the Glendale Police Department,” said Chief Povilaitis. 

Chief Povilaitis served in a number of capacities within the Police Department since being sworn in as an officer in 1991.  His dedication and professionalism to the entire workforce is readily recognizable in the department.

Throughout his tenure, Chief Povilaitis has participated in and crafted innovative programs, initiatives, and strategies that have made the Glendale Police Department a true 21st-century police department. These include programs that have allowed for real-time crime analysis; a regional DNA and firearms laboratory in collaboration with other city, county, and federal partners; and an area-based service model to improve the quality of life for residents and businesses through accountability, professional responsibility, and strategic utilization of both sworn and professional police resources, to name a few.

During his law enforcement career, Povilaitis served as a patrol officer and sergeant that included oversight of the joint Glendale – Burbank air operations. He was appointed by the City Council to serve on the Bob Hope Airport Commission from 1999 through 2009, where he held the office of President, Vice President, and Secretary.  Within the police department, he served as a lieutenant, captain, and deputy chief, becoming the police chief in 2018. 

“I am proud of the dedication and professionalism of the entire department. Over the last few years, policing faced significant and historic challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The Glendale Police Department weathered these challenges while providing top-notch services to the community,” said Chief Povilaitis. 

“I’ve been deeply committed to the police department, our community, and public safety throughout my entire career.  There never seems to be the right time to announce a retirement when you are so committed, but, with the recent published reports ranking Glendale as one of the safest cities in the United States, it couldn’t have been at a better time. I love our community and our city, and I’m confident this great organization will continue to thrive,” he added.

Chief Povilaitis will continue to serve as Police Chief through September 2022, committing to the City a smooth transition while a search is conducted for his successor. 

“Chief Povilaitis has done an incredible job leading our police department,” said Glendale Mayor Ardy Kassakhian. “He has supported many programs that have better connected law enforcement with our community, and we are a stronger and safer city thanks to his leadership. It’s important to note that Chief Povilaitis has stepped up and led us through difficult times, both for our nation and for our community. Whether it was the COVID-19 pandemic or the many demonstrations in our city, Chief Povilaitis prioritized bringing our community closer together.”

“It has been an honor working alongside Chief Povilaitis and I want to thank him for his strong commitment to duty and service,” said City Manager Roubik Golanian.  “The City of Glendale is proud of its high levels of public safety and strong community bonds that have been built during some trying times. He will be missed, and we wish him the best of luck in all of his future endeavors.”

Glendale, known as the “Jewel City,” is one of the largest cities in Los Angeles County. With a population of about 200,000, Glendale is a thriving cosmopolitan city that is rich in history, culturally diverse, and offers limitless opportunities. It is the home to a vibrant business community, with major companies in healthcare, entertainment, manufacturing, retail, and banking.

Sign up to their monthly newsletter Glendale City Connection to stay informed on news and events in Glendale. Follow MyGlendale on Twitter for all Glendale updates.

286 anti-government demonstrators detained by Yerevan police for "failure to obey lawful order"

Garnik Zakarian

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 12:10, 17 May, 2022

YEREVAN, MAY 17, ARMENPRESS. 286 demonstrators were detained by Yerevan police during the latest civil disobedience actions demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Police said the demonstrators were detained for "failure to obey a lawful police order."

The opposition demonstrators were blocking streets in Yerevan in the morning of May 17.

ARF member Ishkhan Saghatelyan, the Vice Speaker of Parliament from the parliamentary opposition and one of the leaders of the demonstrations, said in a live broadcast social media address that they are suspending their demonstrations from 11:30 and will hold another rally at Yerevan’s France Square at 19:00 tonight.

Armenpress: NATO brings 42,000 troops to a high level of combat readiness

Garnik Zakarian

NATO brings 42,000 troops to a high level of combat readiness

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 21:50,

YEREVAN, MAY 19, ARMENPRESS. NATO has brought to a high level of combat readiness 42 thousand servicemen, 120 aircrafts, ARMENPRESS reports, citing "RIA Novosti", this was stated by the Commander-in-Chief of the NATO Joint Forces in Europe, US General Tod Wolters at a press conference in Brussels.

"Under my leadership, as Commander-in-Chief in Europe, we now have more than 42,000 servicemen and 120 aircraft in high combat readiness, and more than 20 ships are in combat readiness," he said.

Walters stated that NATO intends to implement a comprehensive containment concept, including in the Baltics and the Black Sea region.

AW: Karnig Alajajian named Honorary Booklet chairperson of the HMADS 2022 Gala

Garnik Zakarian
 Guest Contributor Announcements 0

Karnig and Alice Alalajian

By Jennifer Chelebi

NEW YORK, NY—In celebration of the 55th anniversary of our beloved Holy Martyrs Armenian Day School (HMADS), we invite you to join the Friends of HMADS committee and this year’s Honorary Booklet chairperson Karnig Alajajian on June 4, 2022 at the North Hills Country Club in Manhasset, New York. 

We have all struggled over the last few years to maintain a sense of connectivity both physically and emotionally to our Armenian heritage, family and community, making this year’s gala perhaps the most important one yet. As the son of Armenian Genocide survivors Vahan and Agnes Alajajian, Karnig has devoted his life to celebrating and preserving the Armenian spirit, making him the ideal Honorary Booklet chairperson for this very special occasion. 

A commitment to education and a bold entrepreneurial energy has led Alalajian’s life of hard work in which he has taken pride in successful business endeavors and remained dedicated in his service to Armenian organizations. Since his arrival in the United States from Egypt, where he was raised alongside his sisters in a proud Armenian family, Alajajian has not only immersed himself in the Armenian community but taken on the even more difficult task of spreading the message about the thriving Armenian culture to others. 

Alalajian pursued his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at Fairleigh Dickinson University in 1955. Upon graduation, he began working at Bell Systems while pursuing a master’s degree. Alalajian ventured out on his own and began working in real estate, opening firms in Queens, New York. He also served on the Board of Directors of ALMA Bank from 2015 to 2019. 

For seven years, Alalajian was president of the Armenian Students’ Association at New York University. He has represented St. Sarkis Church in Douglaston, N.Y. as a delegate to the National Representatives Assembly and has also been a member of the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society for 50 years, where he engages in the theater group. Alalajian, along with his loving and supportive wife Alice, has established the Alajajian Family Scholarship Fund with the Armenian Relief Society (ARS), a scholarship that will support students of Armenian descent who are pursuing their higher education in the US.

Please join the Friends of HMADS, the HMADS Board of Directors and Karnig Alajajian and family as we reconnect with friends for an exceptional evening of dining and entertainment. Dance the night away to joyous Armenian music from the multitalented songwriter, singer and producer Harout Bedrossian. This year, the raffle committee has put together an exceptional selection of prizes, so please come and support their efforts with your generosity. The festivities will begin at 7:30 p.m. with a bountiful cocktail hour. 

Your Gala Dinner Dance contribution of $175 will greatly support the efforts of the Friends committee and HMADS, benefiting future generations of Armenians. For further information about this highly anticipated event or to find out how to become a part of the Friends of HMADS, please contact the school office at (718) 225-4826, Negdar Arukian at (718) 423-4813, or Nayda Voskerijian at (516) 603-2809.




Vadim Kozyrkov: We want make Armenia home for Grid Dynamics

Garnik Zakarian
Armenia – May 12 2022
Grid Dynamics opens a new engineering office in Yerevan – over a hundred engineers are being onboarded.

Itel.am spoke with Senior Vice President of Engineering in Grid Dynamics Vadim Kozyrkov about the company's plans and vision in Armenia.

Vadim Kozyrkov joined Grid Dynamics in 2014. He has over 20 years of technology and program management expertise. His experience spans a wide range of projects – from custom-built applications to large ERP implementations for automotive and aerospace customers in the USA and South Africa.

Grid Dynamics (Nasdaq: GDYN) is a digital-native technology services provider that accelerates growth and bolsters competitive advantage for Fortune 1000 companies. It provides digital transformation consulting and implementation services in omnichannel customer experience, big data analytics, search, artificial intelligence, cloud migration, and application modernization. Founded in 2006, the company is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices across the US, Mexico, UK, Netherlands, Switzerland, and Central and Eastern Europe.

When and how did you first become acquainted with the tech ecosystem in Armenia? Why Armenia?  

At the end of the year 2021 we started penetration into Armenia. We are constantly expanding and working in new markets to acquire the best talents.

We don’t go to countries that have cheap labor, we go to countries that have good labor. In Armenia even though it is a small country you have dozens of good universities. I think even the number of universities like 25-27 is very large for a country that has a population of 2,5 million. if you have that many good universities you have to have good specialists.

You have a very alife and extensive sort of technology life: meetups, conferences, webinars happening. You are very active in this area and I believe your government pays right attention to the technology industry to develop.

Image by: Grid Dynamics

It is not just coming here because of war. We noticed Armenia before it started. We decided to come and invest in Armenia before that. Tragedy happens, but we came here already in January, met people, made plans, found office space, and registered in Armenia.

What trends do you see here?

As a rather small country, I don’t think you will bet on heavy industry, you will bet on intellectuals, something that will rely less on physical capital, more on a human capital. The combination of a good history and strong Armenian diaspora in all over the world, universities, conferences, and a lot of IT. Also what is interesting for us is that you are equally fine with both Russian and English. In our company we have quite a lot of East European engineers and that means Russian is a language that a lot of guys use, but we are an American company, so English is our first language of communication. You have friendly people, you have a good climate, easy communication, you can fly to Russia, to Europe, to everywhere.

What plans does Grid Dynamics have in Armenia? Tell us about your vision in this country.

Armenia is an interesting place, we really want to come and invest and make it home for us. We have presentations in many countries from the United States to India, Ukraine, Poland, Serbia, all over the world. We want to show the market what advantages Grid Dynamics has, we are not just staffing agency.

Image by: Grid Dynamics

Our business model is actually to find a team to work with clients, deliver the projects. I’m in charge of delivery, so I want to talk about deliveries. We have excellent sales, CTO office, and we have strong R&D. It means we actually want to bring here our processes, to hire not only engineers, but also management. We'll train tech managers the way we operate, so they can run projects for our top clients, such as Apple, Google, Nike and all these clients will be presented here. So there will be teams working for them.    

Representatives of IT companies admit that the most important problem of the industry is the lack of qualified personnel. Can Grid Dynamics participate in solving this problem?

Yes it is hard. We will have internship programs, we will work with the universities and bring their students here and train them, give them specialization training. We have a six months program where we select young, ambitious people and work with them. We will send them to the production team so they can start to work with our real clients. By graduating they will have theoretical and practical experience. And they basically will be ready to become part of a team. We are very successful doing this globally and we will succeed here also by investing in the future.

Image by: Grid Dynamics

Also will accept just a person, an engineer that has an engineering background and wants to join us. In Poland we have a person, who worked for NASA, he did something that still flies in International Station, but he decided to go to IT and came to us, went through a program and now he is our engineer and he is actually a very good engineer.

How many people from your team came here?

I can’t tell the exact number, but more than a hundred and I will be very surprised if we will not have a few hundred people in the next few months.

What qualifications and values are mandatory for the specialists who want to work for Grid Dynamics?

First they have to be good at what they do, but the second part is culture. We are looking for the people that want to come and make a career. There are two types of people. Some can go from one employee to another getting 200 dollars more.

Image by: Grid Dynamics

And there are people that want to make a career, they want to really become a part of the team. We want those people that will stay for years. Also very important are bright eyes, that the person wants to change something.

Your advice to beginners, young guys to succeed?

I am an old person. My advice will be as a grandfather. They should not think overnight, they should build their plans 5 years ahead. A lot of them jump from one place to another, because somebody will give them 200 dollars more. It is a mistake, they need to become a professional before they can afford to jump. They need to get experience and understanding what really is to be in the profession. Select a company where they can do a career.

Nune Grogoryan talked to Vadim Kozyrkov


CivilNet: Metagait uses virtual reality and other devices to rehabilitate Armenian soldiers

Garnik Zakarian
CIVILNET.AM

08:05

Seyran Soghoyan participated in the Second Karabakh War. On October 5, a bullet damaged his spine, rendering him paralyzed in his legs. Seyran has been using a Metagait device so that he can feel his feet again and walk. The device was created by the Qayltech team. CivilNet’s team visited Seyran to gain insight into Metagait and how it helps soldiers going through rehabilitation.