Author: Hambik Zargarian

Ahead of Pope Francis’ visit to Armenia from 24 to 26 June, La Stampa interviewed Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, who knows the country very well and will be accompanying the Pope on his trip.

By Cristina Ugoccioni

Your Eminence, what is the essence of the Pope’s visit to Armenia?

“I think this visit is first and foremost a sort of pilgrimage: the Pope’s gesture is one of affection and admiration for this ancient Church with its century-old Christian tradition; it is an act of devotion towards this country, the first to adopt Christianity in 301 when St. Gregory the Illuminator led the entire nation to conversion and baptism. The Pope will bring his gratitude and esteem for a people who were moulded by the Christian spirit and managed to protect the precious treasure of faith and their own identity for centuries. This is the spiritual power upon which Armenia can build a future of peace and hope. I also believe this trip will very important for the entire Armenian diaspora, all those men and women living in Europe, the US, South America and many other countries, who are shining examples of the values and human and Christian wealth of this people. Francis’ word and blessing will be a great comfort to them and act as a stimulus.

You have been to this country a number of times, the last time being in 2015, when you celebrated the consecration ceremony of the Holy Martyrs Armenian Catholic Church in Gyumri: what is it about the Armenian people that strikes you the most?

“What strikes me about this people, arousing my deep admiration, is their spirit of sacrifice, their ability to face each historical event – both in times of freedom and in times of persecution and suffering – with an authentic Christian spirit, remaining rooted in Christ’s cross. Khatchkars (carved, memorial stele bearing a cross) are effective symbols of this connection with the cross; they are present across the country, almost like a visible bone structure. Perseverance in the faith, humility and a spirit of service are Armenia’s strong points and what has helped this huge Christian community to get through and overcome the terrible hardships of the 20th century which affected over a million and a half Armenian Christians.”

What impact have these great hardships had on the soul of the Armenian people and their spirituality?

“These incredibly painful events have left an indelible mark on them. I am thinking of the Armenian liturgy: what I find most striking about it are the chants: they are heart wrenching, they seem to come from somewhere deep within the soul. They express a spirit of devotion to God, a faith that has never been denied or sold but preserved at a high price, with suffering. This is a people that is very familiar with suffering. The prayer I feel rising up spontaneously in my heart as I think of Pope Francis going to touch the Armenian nation with the oil of consolation and compassion, is that all of this pain will beget greater hope and love.”

How do you view current relations between the Catholic Church and the Armenian Apostolic Church?

“I perceive them to be very fraternal and particularly friendly. The Catholic community is tiny in terms of numbers and we need to be grateful to the Lord for the fact that the Armenian Apostolic Church – thanks to the generosity of Karekin II and his predecessor Karekin I – has allowed the Catholic Church to exist and to live the faith and acts of charity in service of the people fully. I am thinking, for example, of the work carried out by the Missionaries of Charity in Spitak and Yerevan and at Ashotks hospital, which until today has been run by the Camillians and the Little Sisters of Jesus. This hospital was donated by Caritas Italy at the request of John Paul II, after the devastating earthquake of 1988. I am certain that Pope Francis’ visit will forge even closer ties between the two Churches, fostering stronger and more fruitful ties of fraternity, friendship and mutual support that will lead to an industrious cooperation in many fields.”

Do you foresee that Pope Francis and Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians will draft a “Joint Declaration” as St. John Paul II and Karekin II did back in 2001? 

“I presume a Joint Declaration will be drafted on this occasion too, underlining and emphasizing the common faith in Christ our Saviour and expressing the intention and willingness to build ever growing fraternal ties between us with the grace of the Lord.”

Do you think Pope Francis’ visit will sway the OSCE Minsk Group, the group of mediators who have sought a solution – so far unsuccessfully – to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over who has control of the Nagorno-Karabakh region?

“I definitely think this visit will be an opportunity to draw attention to and encourage those values that are the backbone of every human community: the rejection of violence, the use of arms that cause immense suffering and the tenacious pursuit of peace through diplomatic means, dialogue, understanding and negotiations. I think that during his visit to Armenia, the first leg of his journey to the Caucasus region (in September Francis will go to Georgia and Azerbaijan), the Pope will send out a strong appeal for peace and a heartfelt invitation to work towards turning the Caucasus into what it already is in geographical terms: a bridge between East and West.”

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed today the third review of Armenia’s performance under a three-year arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). The completion enables the release of SDR 15.65 million (about US$22.01 million), bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to SDR 50.87 million (about US$71.53 million). The extended arrangement for SDR 82.21 million (about US$115.60 million) was approved on March 7, 2014.

In completing the review, the Executive Board also approved the authorities’ request for waiver of non-observance of the end of December 2015 fiscal deficit performance criterion (PC), modification of the end-June 2016 fiscal deficit and budgetary domestic lending PCs, as well as shift from a net domestic assets (NDA) PC to monetary policy consultation clause (as of end-June 2016).

Following the Executive Board’s discussion on Armenia, Mr. Mitsuhiro Furusawa, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, said:

“Despite difficult external conditions, program performance has been broadly satisfactory, with most targets met. The weak global and regional conditions have, through lower commodity prices and remittances, contributed to declining domestic demand. Moreover, bank credit growth and inflation have been negative. Nevertheless, real GDP growth has held up moderately, primarily due to export-related supply-side factors in mining and agriculture. Monetary conditions have stabilized and pressures in the FX market have diminished.

“The authorities remain committed to fiscal consolidation and debt sustainability, along with a greater focus on revenue gains to protect and increase capital and social spending. The new tax code (recently submitted to the national assembly) provides a major opportunity to broaden the tax base by reducing exemptions and addressing gaps and thereby supporting both consolidation and increases in growth-enhancing spending.

“The central bank’s actions have helped ensure orderly market conditions and financial stability. Going forward, exchange rate policy will continue to limit intervention and sustain buffers. Further normalization of the monetary conditions will help bring inflation closer to the target and support a resumption of bank lending, while the use of macro- and micro-prudential regulations and further strengthening of the crisis preparedness framework will help maintain orderly financial markets conditions.

“Pursuing further structural reforms to enhance competition, competitiveness, and regional and global integration remains critical to reduce vulnerabilities and support medium-term growth. Ensuring that the state budget does not absorb losses or liabilities or make payments on behalf of utilities or other companies will be needed to safeguard the prudent use of the limited budgetary resources.

“The outlook remains challenging, but the risks to the program are manageable. Steadfast implementation of the agreed set of measures going forward will keep the program on track, rebuild buffers and policy space, and accelerate achieving key reform agenda objectives.”

Photo: Alexandr Demyanchuk/TASS

 

Marek Hamsik scored a stunning goal as Slovakia beat Russia to secure a first win at a European Championship, the BBC repots.

The Napoli midfielder’s measured pass set up Vladimir Weiss, who cut inside and side-footed Slovakia ahead.

Hamsik then spectacularly doubled the lead, receiving a short corner out wide before firing a shot in off the post.

Russia face disqualification if their fans misbehave inside stadiums and a flare was seen among their supporters when Denis Glushakov headed in late on.

Russia will now almost certainly need to beat Wales on Monday if they are to stand any chance of progress, while Slovakia know victory over England will see them through.

The Armenian Ministry of Defense has released a new social ad, warning against dissemination of unchecked information.

“Don’t harm the soldier, don’t spread unchecked information about the Army,” the Defense Ministry says.

 

 

 

The anniversary of the Genocide of Pontic Greeks was commemorated in Armenia today. A delegation headed by Vice-Speaker of the National Assembly Edward Sharmaznaov visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial today to pay tribute to the memory of Pontic Greeks and pray for the peace of their souls.

The Armenian National Assembly unanimously condemned the Greek Genocide in 2015.

“Greeks understand the Armenian pain and the Greek MPs were among the first to visit Yerablu Pantheon and Artsakh after the four-day military actions unleashed by Azerbaijan,” Sharmazanov said.

Head of the Chairman of “Patrida” organization of Greeks in Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh Edward Polatov noted that the same genocidal country stood behind the April military actions. He stressed that the international community should condemn the genocides committed at the turn of the 20^th century instead of closing its eyes.

Greek Ambassador to Armenia Ioannis Tayis praised the condemnation of the Pontic Genocide by the Armenian Parliament last year.

The participants stressed the need to combine efforts to fight Turkey’s denialism.

President Reuven Rivlin visited the Apostolic Armenian Church in Jerusalem’s Old City on Monday morning and met with leaders of the Christian community in Israel. He was welcomed by Armenian Patriarch Nourhan Manougian, Israel National News reports.

President Rivlin thanked Patriarch Manougian for his and his community’s hospitality. “A meeting with leaders of your community is always important to me, but during these days, is perhaps even more important.” He stressed, “These are difficult times for our city. Terror and death have returned to our streets. The violent attacks all over the city cause growing fear and with fear comes intolerance and hatred.”

President Rivlin reiterated Israel’s commitment to the values of freedom of worship, and to the well-being of the Christian community which was facing persecution across the Middle East.

Speech of the Foreign Minister of Armenia at the EU Eastern Partnership and Visegrad Four Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

Dear colleagues,

I would like to thank the Visegrad Four Czech Presidency and Lubomir for hosting this ministerial meeting.

Last year we had an opportunity to host in Yerevan the representatives of the ministries of foreign affairs of the V4 countries to discuss the possibilities of deepening of Armenia-V4 ties.

2015 was a special year for the Armenia-EU cooperation including intensive dialogue and high-level visits. The launch of the negotiations on the future Armenia – EU framework agreement last December will enable us to lay a new legal foundation for our relations. Armenia has joined or is in the process of joining a number of the EU programs: COSME, Horizon 2020, Creative Europe. We look forward to start soon visa liberalization dialogue and negotiations on the Aviation agreement.

Riga Summit Joint Declaration reaffirmed our shared vision of the Partnership based on common values, mutual interests and commitments. The Summit also reiterated full support to the efforts by the co-chairs of the Minsk Group on the peaceful negotiated solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, based on the five statements of Presidents of the Minsk group Co-chair countries adopted since 2009. We all remember, how Azerbaijan tried to block the entire Riga Summit declaration because of the reference to the Minsk Group Co-Chair countries Presidents’ statements.

However, the calls of the international community on the exclusively peaceful settlement of the issue were continuously neglected by Baku. In early April, the large-scale military aggressive actions unleashed by Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh, resulted in many killed and wounded, along with the gross violations of the international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

Despite the repeated calls of the Co-Chairs of the Minsk group for the unconditional implementation of the trilateral ceasefire agreement of 1994 and the agreement on the consolidation of the ceasefire of 1995, signed by Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, Baku is attempting to put under the question the validity of those documents, by distributing appropriate letters in the OSCE and the UN. Those attempts were failed due to prompt reaction of the Minsk group co-chair states, calling for full respect of 1994-1995 ceasefire agreements.

Azerbaijan has continued the violations, concentrating heavy weaponry and military forces along the entire Line of Contact with Nagorno-Karabakh, further increasing its warmongering and launching a provocative propaganda campaign on international arena trying to accuse the Armenian side in exactly what it is itself doing, thus preparing ground for new military attacks which can have far-reaching consequences for the whole region.

Today, it is imperative to preclude the future reoccurrence of what happened in the beginning of April, to ensure that the dangerous attempts on seeking military solution to the issue will be effectively curbed. The implementation of the confidence building measures proposed by the Co-chairs will certainly serve that purpose, including the creation of the mechanism of investigation for the violations of the cease-fire and capacity enhancement of the team of the Personal representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office. Such concrete steps could allow to restore the negotiation environment and continue the peace process.

Dear Colleagues,

Armenia will spare no efforts working together with the co-chair countries towards the exclusively peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Thank you.

Spanish media outlet claim the Gunners are looking increasingly likely to sign the Armenian international, according to the

Chelsea and Juventus have also been linked with the attacking ace.

But according to Italian football experts , Arsenal are leading the race for his services.

It’s understood the north Londoners will pay around £23m for the Bundesliga sensation.

They’re also set to offer him an annual salary of £5m, which works at £96,000-a-week.

The midfielder has enjoyed a phenomenal season, scoring 23 goals and creating a further 30 in 49 appearances.

He is about to enter the final 12 months of his current Dortmund deal and appears no closer to a new deal after snubbing a £6.4m-a-year extension.

When asked by German newspaper Bild if he is about to pen fresh terms, Mkhitaryan said: “I do not know yet.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has issued the following statement on the 101st anniversary of the Armenian Genocide;

On this day, we mark the 101^st commemoration of the tragic loss of life of the Armenian population during the waning days of the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

Both the Senate of Canada and the House of Commons have adopted resolutions referring to these events as genocide.

We preserve the memory of those who lost their lives, and those who suffered during this genocide and pay our deepest respects to their descendants, including those who now call Canada home.

In solemnly acknowledging this event, let us use this moment as an opportunity to look forward and strengthen our collective resolve to ensure such acts are never again repeated.

While we must never forget the lessons of history, we must also be reminded that past injustices do not serve our communities if they divide us. Canadians of all backgrounds and faiths stand together in reaffirming our collective commitment to the values of pluralism, human rights, and diversity.

On this anniversary, please join me in my hope for a peaceful future based on tolerance, respect, and reconciliation.