Author: Hovik Karapetian

 10:35,

YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. United States Congresswoman Katie Porter has said that Azerbaijan’s goal in blocking the Lachin Corridor is to force the ethnic Armenians of Artsakh from their homeland by imposing conditions that make life impossible.

She made the remarks at the Congressional Armenian Genocide Observance – 2023.

“Our response must also be clear. We must hold Azerbaijan accountable for its aggression and I will keep calling, and if needed pushing, the Biden administration to be proactive in taking steps to end the blockade. American taxpayers should not be subsidizing Azerbaijan's hostility against the Armenian people, as long as the aggression continues Azerbaijan should not receive any military assistance,” she added.

The Lachin Corridor has been blocked by Azerbaijan since December 2022.

Azerbaijan has been ignoring an order by the ICJ to reopen the road.

The blockade has caused a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh).

 10:04,

YEREVAN, APRIL 19, ARMENPRESS. President of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) Arayik Harutyunyan held a meeting with members of the Anti-Crisis Council led by the agency’s director Tigran Petrosyan.

A readout issued by President Harutyunyan’s office said “issues related to the military-political, socio-economic situation in Artsakh as a result of the war of 2020 and the blockade that has been ongoing since December 12, 2022 were on the discussion agenda.”

“President Harutyunyan underscored the importance of cooperation between the state government and public circles in order to overcome crisis situations, voicing his belief that the newly created council will become one of the important links of that process,” it added.

 10:10,

YEREVAN, APRIL 14, ARMENPRESS. A member of the U.S. Massachusetts Air National Guard was arrested by the FBI on Thursday in connection with the leaking of classified documents that have been posted online, CNN reported citing U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland.

The arrest of Jack Teixeira, 21, comes following a fast-moving search by the U.S. government for the identity of the leaker who posted classified documents to a social media platform popular with video gamers called Discord.

Teixeira was arrested in Massachusetts without incident, Garland said, and will be arraigned in federal court there. “This investigation is ongoing. We will share more information at the appropriate time,” the attorney general said, declining to answer questions.

The leaked documents posted to social media, some of which have been obtained by CNN, included detailed U.S. intelligence assessments of allies and adversaries alike, including on the state of the war in Ukraine and the challenges Kyiv and Moscow face as the war appears stuck in a stalemate.

Multiple US officials told CNN that Teixeira is believed to be the leader of the group where a trove of classified documents had been posted.

The Air Force released service details for Teixeira, an Airman 1st Class.

Teixeira is an enlisted airman at the Massachusetts Air National Guard, according to details from his service record released by the Air Force Thursday. He joined the service in September 2019 and his official job is Cyber Transport Systems journeyman. According to the Air Force, Cyber Transport Systems specialists are tasked with making sure the service’s “vast, global communications network” is “operating properly.”

 12:05,

YEREVAN, APRIL 14, ARMENPRESS. A senior lawmaker on April 14 praised the Armenian military for successfully repelling the Azerbaijani attack on April 11 near Tegh village and added that an internal investigation will be conducted into possible shortcomings in their actions, as noted by PM Pashinyan during the latest Cabinet meeting.

“The Prime Minister’s instructions can’t go unfilled. But shortcomings could happen. And we will be consistent in revealing them and bringing those guilty to account,” MP Andranik Kocharyan, the Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Security Affairs said at a press briefing.

PM Nikol Pashinyan had said that they had predicted a potential Azeri provocation and relevant orders were issued to officials in charge in the event of such scenario. Pashinyan said, however, that the implementation of these orders was a failure.

Kocharyan said that yesterday’s closed meeting in parliament with the top brass sought to rule out such situations in the future.

“The Armenian Armed Forces gave a counterblow, and if our military didn’t act the way it did the Azerbaijani forces would’ve penetrated far deeper,” Kocharyan said, highlighting that the military’s capabilities must be on a level allowing it to fulfill its objectives. “What’s ours is ours, if the adversary is to make a further encroachment it should know that it will get a response. And here, the existence or non-existence of government instructions don’t matter, because the military must fulfill its objectives without instructions as well,” Kocharyan said.

He said an internal investigation will take place in the National Security Service, and if needed also in the military.

“The situation became clearer after yesterday’s discussion, the military fulfilled its objectives, we suffered casualties, but we stopped the adversary’s provocations,” he added.

 14:25, 8 April 2023

YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS. Security cooperation between Armenia and Russia remains one of the key areas of partnership between the two countries, the Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergei Kopyrkin has said.

In an interview with Armeniatoday, the Ambassador said that Russia doesn’t whatsoever abandon its obligations towards Armenia enshrined in treaties.

“The 102nd military base continues to function, the number of our border guards has increased, there are observation posts in parts of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Of course, our peacekeeping contingent in Nagorno Karabakh is an important factor for ensuring regional security.  Regrettably, criticism is being voiced towards the contingent from time to time, however this doesn’t cancel the fact that this is a key factor for ensuring security and the way of life of the Armenian population in Nagorno Karabakh. Even now, when the [Lachin] corridor is closed, the peacekeepers play a highly important role in preventing a humanitarian crisis and supporting the delivery of essential products and food. One can make some demands against Russia or the peacekeeping contingent, but in my opinion the fact that the Russian presence has been a very important factor for security and preventing an escalation doesn’t require proof,” the Russian ambassador said.

 15:25, 7 April 2023

YEREVAN, APRIL 7, ARMENPRESS. On March 29, the Commercial and Economic Department of the Embassy of Spain organized an informational event for Armenian startups. GlovoApp was presented as a successful example of launching a startup in Spain.

The event aimed at showcasing the success of Spanish startup companies and encourage international investment in Spain. The speakers shared their experiences and knowledge in promoting the growth of the startup ecosystem.

The event started with presenting the "Rising Up in Spain" project. Pablo Martinez, Economic and Commercial Officer of the Embassy of Spain, shared the best opportunities for Armenian startups to join the program and implement their ideas. 
GlovoApp is a perfect example of a successful startup rapidly grown into an international company. Now Glovo is present in 25 countries, including Armenia, where the company has significantly impacted the local economy. Glovo creates innovative solutions connecting customers and businesses, while enabling the sustainable development of communities and ecosystems.
Oleh Horoschak, director of GlovoApp in Armenia, presented the company's success story in his speech. He talked about the challenges that GlovoApp faced and shared Glovo's experience of solving them. Oleh Horoschak also emphasized the importance of understanding the local market and adapting to the local culture. "We started working in Armenia with 20 couriers. Today the number of couriers is more than 300. We have more than 800 partners; we are present in 3 cities. But it's not only about that. We are extremely proud of the work we do: we are making people's lives faster, we are creating pretty good work opportunities for our couriers, and we ensure good cooperation with our partners". We plan to continue Glovo's expansion and bring its services to more countries," Oleh Horoshchak summarized his speech.

Among the main speakers were also Ms. Sati Boyajyan, Director of IE for Central and Eastern Europe, and Luz Ruiz, Regional Fellow of IESE for the CIS countries. They spoke about the support programs offered for startups.
The meeting was an excellent opportunity for Glovo to showcase its success and share its experience with other entrepreneurs and investors. Glovo's participation in the event also highlighted the importance of international collaboration and investment in the startup ecosystem.