Author: Garnik Zakarian

Operation “Wedding in the Mountains” approved by Serzh Sargsyan

Garnik Zakarian
Panorama, Armenia
May 8 2021
Society 14:36 08/05/2021NKR

The liberation of the Armenian fortress town Shushi, the ancient cultural and political center of Artsakh on May 8-9 in 1992 was a turning point in the Artsakh Liberation War and is considered a brilliant and important event in the history of the Armenian warfare of the Artsakh national liberation struggle in the end of the 20th century,' The Office of third president Serzh Sargsyan said in a Facebook post.

"The operation of Shushi liberation dubbed “Wedding in the Mountains” was approved by Serzh Sargsyan. Glory to all heroes who participated in the liberation of Shushi," the message added. 

The Office of the former president has also shared a documentary about Serzh Sargsyan titled "Comrades about the Supreme Commander-in-Chief" prepared by the Public TV Channel.

Azerbaijani press: US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken calls President Aliyev

Garnik Zakarian
POLITICS29 April 2021 00:23 (UTC+04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, April 29

Trend:

On April 28, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a phone call to President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports.

Touching upon the development of Azerbaijan-US bilateral relations, the US Secretary of State stressed the importance of further strengthening the ties. Noting the cooperation in the fields of energy security and regional security, Antony Blinken emphasized the significance of the successful implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project, and also hailed Azerbaijan`s participation in the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.

Expressing gratitude for the telephone call, the head of state underlined that Azerbaijan-US relations have a rich history, and once again thanked the US government for supporting the implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project. Touching upon the cooperation in the field of regional security, President Ilham Aliyev stressed the importance of Azerbaijan's participation in the peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan from the initial stage.

During the conversation, the sides exchanged views on the situation after the Armenian-Azerbaijani war. President Ilham Aliyev affirmed Azerbaijan's position on this issue, noting that restoration works are being carried out in the country`s territories destroyed by Armenians.

President Ilham Aliyev also noted the significance of opening communications in the region and stressed Azerbaijan's position on ensuring long-term peace.

President Ilham Aliyev and the US Secretary of State also discussed the future activities of the OSCE Minsk Group.

During the phone conversation, the sides stressed the development of democratic processes, the importance of the ensuring of human rights, preservation and ensuring of the political pluralism in Azerbaijan.

Antony Blinken said this year too the waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act was extended.

President Ilham Aliyev extended his gratitude for this.

At the same time, regarding the US President`s recent statement on the so-called Armenian genocide, the Azerbaijani President said Turkey was Azerbaijan`s close friend and ally, which played a critical and positive role in the region in the post-conflict period, adding that the US President`s statement was met with concern by the Azerbaijani leadership and public.

Armenpress: Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 28-04-21

Garnik Zakarian

Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 28-04-21

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 17:26,

YEREVAN, 28 APRIL, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 28 April, USD exchange rate down by 0.48 drams to 519.81 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.58 drams to 627.20 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.01 drams to 6.95 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 0.51 drams to 721.96 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price up by 153.13 drams to 29817.21 drams. Silver price up by 2.52 drams to 439.28 drams. Platinum price up by 198.28 drams to 20773.36 drams.

Virtual event to mark 106th anniversary of Armenian Genocide

Garnik Zakarian
New Haven Register
April 20 2021
By Business Staff
April 20, 2021

The Armenian Genocide Commemoration Committee of Connecticut will hold a virtual ceremony this month to mark the 106th anniversary of the event, according to a release.

The event, set for 10:30 a.m. via Zoom, will remember those who died and also those who survived, the release said.

“For decades Armenians around the world have gathered together in April to honor the victims and survivors of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923,” Southern Connecticut State University professor Armen Marsoobian, a member of the Genocide Commemoration Committee and vice president of the International Association of Genocide Scholars, said in the release. “In 2020 the pandemic interrupted our customary Hartford State Capitol commemoration but this year we are grateful to virtually gather to commemorate the martyrs of the genocide.”

Attorney Harry N. Mazadoorian of Kensington said in the release that this year’s program is the first since the 2019 recognition of the Armenian Genocide by both houses of Congress.

Speakers at the program will include Tatul Hakobyan, an Armenian reporter and author based in Yerevan, Armenia; and Lilly Torosyana, who has been based in Armenia since shortly before the 44-day war with Azerbaijan in 2020 over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

John C. Geragosian, Connecticut state auditor and a member of the committee, will serve as master of ceremonies, the release said, adding that Geragosian stated the committee this year is particularly interested in informing the public about the 44-day war and its aftermath.

The flag of the Republic of Armenia will fly over the state Capitol for a week and the raising of the flag will be presented to event attendees by video, the release said, and the Armenian-American community is hopeful that President Joe Biden will also recognize the 1915 events as genocide.

The April 24 program will begin with a special Martyrs’ Service, the release said, in which clergy from four Armenian churches in Connecticut will participate, the release noted. The commemoration program will follow the service.

Registration is required to obtain the Zoom link; to register,v isit .

https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Virtual-event-to-mark-106th-anniversary-of-16112025.php

Biden calls Erdogan ahead of expected Armenian genocide labeling

Garnik Zakarian
Al-Monitor
Armenians take part in a torchlight procession in Yerevan late on , to mark the 106th anniversary of the World War I-era mass killings of more than a million ethnic Armenians as the Ottoman Empire collapsed. – KAREN MINASYAN/AFP via Getty Images
Ethnic/Religious Minorities
Human rights

President Joe Biden held a highly anticipated phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday, the White House said, a day before the US administration is widely expected to recognize the century-old massacre of Armenians in modern-day Turkey as a “genocide.”

Biden conveyed “his interest in a constructive bilateral relationship with expanded areas of cooperation and effective management of disagreements,” the White House said in a statement, adding that the two leaders agreed to hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in June. 

The US readout of the call — Biden’s first with Erdogan since he took office in January — comes a day before Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, but did not mention the issue. During the campaign, Biden pledged to be the first president to support a resolution labeling the mass killing and mass deportation of up to 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of Ottoman Turkish forces in 1915 as a “genocide.” 

Ankara has long denied that a genocide took place. The Turkish government estimates the number of Armenians who died was closer to 300,000.

A US recognition of the Armenian genocide would deal another blow to already strained relations between the two NATO allies. In a statement ahead of Biden’s expected announcement, Erdogan said Thursday that Turkey “will continue to defend truths against the so-called Armenian genocide lie and those who support this slander with political motivations."

In 2019, Congress voted to label the atrocities as a genocide following Turkey’s incursion into Kurdish-held parts of northeast Syria that displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians. President Donald Trump rejected the resolution, but described the World War I-era killings as “one of the worst mass atrocities.”

As a candidate, Barack Obama pledged to recognize the genocide but never delivered on that promise for fear of inflaming tensions with Ankara.

Read more: #ixzz6stOpcoP3

Biden Speaks to Erdogan as Armenian Genocide Question Looms

Garnik Zakarian
US News

President Joe Biden spoke with Turkey’s president on Friday as he is weighing whether to move forward with a campaign pledge to formally recognize that atrocities committed against the Armenian people by the Ottoman Empire more than a century ago were genocide.

By Associated Press
|

  By AAMER MADHANI and MATTHEW LEE, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden spoke with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday as Biden is weighing whether to move forward with a campaign pledge to formally recognize that atrocities committed against the Armenian people by the Ottoman Empire more than a century ago were genocide.

The White House, in a statement on the call, made no mention of the looming decision on the Armenian genocide recognition. But it said Biden told Erdogan he wants to improve the two countries' relationship and find “effective management of disagreements.” The two also agreed to hold a bilateral meeting at the NATO summit in Brussels in June.

Biden pledged as a candidate to recognize the World War I-era killings and deportations of hundreds of thousands of Armenians in modern day Turkey. He is expected to make the announcement Saturday to coincide with the annual Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day commemoration, according to U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Officials said Biden could still change his mind, but wanted to speak with Erdogan before formally recognizing the events of 1915 to 1923 as genocide —something that past U.S. presidents had avoided out of concern about damaging relations with Turkey.

Friday's call between the two leaders was the first since Biden took office more than three months ago. The delay had become a worrying sign in Ankara; Erdogan had good rapport with former President Donald Trump and had been hoping for a reset despite past friction with Biden.

Biden, during the campaign, drew ire from Turkish officials after an interview with The New York Times in which he spoke about supporting Turkey’s opposition against “autocrat” Erdogan. In 2019, Biden accused Trump of betraying U.S. allies, following Trump's decision to withdraw troops from northern Syria, which paved the way for a Turkish military offensive against the Syrian Kurdish group. In 2014, when he was vice president, Biden apologized to Erdogan after suggesting in a speech that Turkey helped facilitate the rise of the terrorist group Islamic State by allowing foreign fighters to cross Turkey's border with Syria.

Lawmakers and Armenian-American activists have been lobbying Biden to make the genocide announcement on or before the Armenian remembrance day that presidents typically mark with a proclamation.

Salpi Ghazarian, director of the University of Southern California’s Institute of Armenian Studies, said the recognition of genocide would resonate beyond Armenia as Biden insists that respect for human rights will be a central principle in his foreign policy.

“Within the United States and outside the United States, the American commitment to basic human values has been questioned now for decades,” she said. “It is very important for people in the world to continue to have the hope and the faith that America’s aspirational values are still relevant, and that we can in fact to do several things at once. We can in fact carry on trade and other relations with countries while also calling out the fact that a government cannot get away with murdering its own citizens.”

Turkey’s foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu had warned the Biden administration earlier this week that recognition would “harm” U.S.-Turkey ties.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Friday declined to comment on Biden's deliberations on the issue.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Tags: Associated Press

Turkey warns Biden’s genocide recognition could derail reconciliation with Armenia

Garnik Zakarian
Middle East Eye
Senior Turkish official says US recognition of Armenian genocide would sabotage reconciliation efforts with Yerevan after Nagorno-Karabakh war
The head of the Armenian Apostolic Church attends a ceremony commemorating the 105th anniversary of the beginning of the killing of Armenians by Ottoman forces in 1915, at the Tsitsernakaberd memorial in Yerevan (AFP)
By Ragip Soylu
 in Istanbul
Published date:  

Turkey has warned the United States that recognising the mass killing of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide may have ramifications, saying that the move could impede possible reconciliation efforts with Armenia.

Several US newspapers reported earlier on Thursday that US President Joe Biden would reveal the symbolic designation on Saturday, the 106th anniversary of the beginning of the killings, becoming the first American president to do so. Biden has yet to hold any phone call with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The US Congress voted to describe the mass killings as genocide in 2019, a move that came after Nato ally Turkey’s military incursion in Northern Syria, which angered US government officials and elected representatives in Washington.

'If Americans call the 1915 events as genocide in such circumstances, this could sabotage the entire process in the Caucasus'

-Senior Turkish official

Turkish officials believe the US move would be counterproductive and diminish already ties already damaged by a set of disagreements, including Ankara’s purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems.

One senior Turkish official said that after the end of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh last year, there was a real chance of a reconciliation between Turkey and Armenia in the coming months.

Before the war, Azerbaijan had been blocking any Turkish attempts to open the border with Armenia, saying that Yerevan must first withdraw from the occupied territories. However, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said last year that their stance on this issue has changed.

“We would like to normalise ties with Armenia. If we see a positive momentum, we could open the borders,” the senior Turkish official told Middle East Eye. “If Americans call the 1915 events as genocide in such circumstances, this could sabotage the entire process in the Caucasus."

The official said Erdogan's chief foreign policy adviser Ibrahim Kalin transmitted the same message to US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan last month.

“We reminded them that any event could be construed as genocide after a court establishes the facts as it has happened in Rwanda and Srebrenica,” the offıcial said. “So there is no legal basis for this possible US declaration. The terminology was also coined after the Second World War, decades after the 1915 events.”

US and Turkey set to meet at Nato summit in first talks under Biden

Read More »

Even though Erdogan has commemorated the date and sent messages of condolences to the Armenians in the past few years, the Turkish government claims that Turkish citizens were also killed by Armenians during the war. Erdogan for years called for the establishment of a joint historical committee with Armenia to establish the facts on the issue.

Over 30 countries, including Germany, France, Italy, Bulgaria, Russia, Greece, and the Netherlands recognise the Armenian killings as genocide, along with the Catholic Church and European Council.

Historians say an estimated 1.5 million Armenians were killed in Ottoman-controlled territory through systematic deportations, starvation and murder.

While Turkey acknowledges that many Armenians died during the conflicts, the Turkish government denies that the killings were part of mass systemised murder.

Both Turkey and Armenia were close to setting up a history committee in 2009 when they signed a normalisation protocol.

However, the protocol was never enforced due to Azerbaijani pressure and the Armenian Constitutional Court’s decision in 2010, which legally necessitated Turkey’s recognition of the genocide as a primary rule for normalisation. The court also described the East of Turkey as “Western Armenia,” a designation that did not go down well in Ankara. 

US officials maintain that the recognition of Armenian genocide is a "moral duty" that trancends bilateral interests, yet there is also a sizeable Armenian community in the US, which has been lobbying US presidents for some time. 

On the other hand, the sensitivity of referring to the events of 1915 as a genocide has decreased over the years, as bilateral Turkish-American relations have gone through a downward spiral.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said earlier this week that the United States should show respect to the international law, as UN decisions define what is or is not deemed a genocide. 

“We need to liberate ourselves from such fears. I don’t mean that I don’t care what America says. But as a state that knows its history, we have to be sure of ourselves. If the US wants to worsen the relations, that’s their own choice,” he said.

Community holds silent protest to demand release of Armenian POWs

Garnik Zakarian
Fox 11, Los Angeles
April 16 2021

FOX 11

LOS ANGELES – Dozens of people gathered outside the Consulate General of Azerbaijan on Wilshire Blvd. Thursday to protest against the countless Armenian prisoners of war being held by Azerbaijani forces.

For many Armenian-Americans who attended the silent protest, their message was clear… release all Armenian POWs.

Similar protests where held throughout the world including Toronto, Paris, Rome, Houston, Sacramento, Montréal, New York, Warsaw, and many other cities.  

Video posted online by The US Armenians shows several protesters outside the UN office in Geneva and at the UN office in Yerevan, Armenia’s capitol.

RELATED: New pop-up art exhibit in Glendale honors Armenian culture

Several Armenian POWs are currently being held captive by Azerbaijan following a war in the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

The war between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended in early November but over hundred POWs have still not returned to Armenia, and it has left many families in fear.

During a hearing for the House Armed Services Committee, California Rep. Jackie Speier urged the Department of Defense that the US get involved and put pressure on Azerbaijan to release all POWs.

"I think we are sending a terrible message to Armenia and because we did not engage in terms of getting the parties to the Minsk Group table for negations, Russia stepped in and now has another foothold in that region,"  Speier said during the hearing.

"Violence & instability are not in U.S. interests. We cannot reward Azerbaijan for its all-out assault & enable further violence against the Armenian people," she wrote online.

According to Speier, over 5,000 people died during the recent war, over a thousand were displaced from their homes and 200 POWs are still being held captive by Azerbaijan.

Today’s global protest occurred just about a week before the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. On April 24th thousands of Armenians in California and around the world will commemorate the 106th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, in which 1.5 million Armenians were killed at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

Some 1,500 historical and cultural values left in Azeri-occupied territories of Artsakh, says deputy minister

Garnik Zakarian
Panorama, Armenia
April 16 2021

There is huge Armenian cultural heritage in the Artsakh territories occupied by Azerbaijan during the recent war, Armenia’s Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Ara Khzmalyan told a news conference on Friday.

“The matter concerns around 1,500 historical and cultural values,” the deputy minister said.

He noted that they discuss the further steps with their colleagues from the Foreign Ministry on an almost daily basis, responding urgently to all challenges and new realities.

"We have a task to pursue a coordinated policy. An action plan has been developed within the framework of the UNESCO National Commission, and we are implementing it step by step," he said.

In Khzmalyan’s words, new challenges have emerged, which concern not only the Armenian cultural heritage in Artsakh, but also the public attitude towards historical monuments and values inside Armenia.

He noted that all interested parties of the sphere will comprehensively discuss the issue at a conference to be hosted by Matenadaran on April 27.

Armenian PM mentions the number of victims and missing in Artsakh war

Garnik Zakarian
Public Radio of Armenia
   


Speaking at the National Assembly today, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan published the number of the victims and missing as a result of the Artsakh war.

“As of today, 3,621 people have been confirmed dead, 321 are missing. At the same time, we have 201 bodies or relics to be identified, and 100 identified bodies, but relatives refuse to accept that fact for various reasons. Many want to believe that their loved ones are alive, or held captive [in Azerbaijan], there are families who don’t trust the DNA tests,” Pashinyan said.

According to the Prime Minister, the number of victims will be close to 4,000. He asked the lawmakers to pay tribute to observe a minute of silence in memory of the victims.