13:29,
YEREVAN, JULY 30, ARMENPRESS. Paul Gavan (Ireland, UEL), PACE rapporteur for the 'Humanitarian consequences of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan', today called on the leadership of both countries to de-escalate and respect a ceasefire after border incidents which recently caused the death of three Armenian servicemen and one Azerbaijani serviceman, PACE reports.
“There has unfortunately been a steady increase in incidents between May and July of this year, and these have reached a new level with regrettable injuries and loss of life, which is of great concern to me”, Mr Gavan said. “I have been contacted by both parties, which shows they wish to avoid the situation worsening. The long-standing humanitarian concerns which affect the lives of individuals, each side of the border, cannot be addressed unless violence stops. I urge all those concerned to show responsibility in order to build peace and reconciliation”, he added.
“I therefore hope that both countries will pull back from any further steps which might worsen the situation. We need to avoid this continuing cycle of conflict”, the rapporteur concluded.
Mr Gavan aims to present his report on the “Humanitarian consequences of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan” to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) at its next plenary session (27 September – 1 October).
The Artsakh Human Rights Ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan states that although the international community, in general, has not properly condemned Azerbaijan's ongoing acts of vandalism and destruction of Armenian cultural heritage some international institutions have highlighted cultural values over political considerations and stressed the urgent need to preserve them.
In a statement released on Friday the Ombudsman welcomes the recent joint statement issued by two reputable international NGOs – the Europa Nostra and the European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) on the holistic preservation of the integrity and diversity of the rich cultural heritage which is located in the Caucasus region which is the _expression_ of a multicultural and multireligious past and present of this region and Europe as a whole.
In Stepanyan's words, the two NGOs offered their contribution to the due protection of the integrity, authenticity, and diversity of the rich cultural heritage in and around the area of Nagorno Karabakh. At the same time, they urge the UNESCO, the Council of Europe, and the OSCE Minsk-group to join efforts towards the holistic safeguard of the endangered multicultural and multireligious heritage in the affected area, including by sending an impartial team of European (international) experts to the region to conduct comprehensive, objective and scientific research․
The Ombudsman states that such calls and active steps towards the preservation of cultural heritage are to be included in the agenda of the relevant international organizations and be protected on an equal basis, regardless of any political considerations.
Armenia presented the Azerbaijani side with maps of about 92,000 anti-tank and anti-personnel mines in the Fizuli and Zangilan regions, the press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.
In turn, the Azerbaijani side handed over 15 prisoners of war to Armenia.
The exchange has taken place on July 3, 2021, at the initiative of Russia.
19:34, 24 June, 2021
YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. The Defense Ministry of Armenia denies the information spread by the Azerbaijani media that the Armenian side allegedly fired at the Azerbaijani positions, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Ministry of Defense.
11:46,
YEREVAN, JUNE 24, ARMENPRESS. Armenia has registered a new figure in the number of workplaces, Caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the Cabinet meeting today.
Chairman of the State Revenue Committee Edvard Hovhannisyan informed that the number of jobs with high income above zero comprised 635,000. “This is an unprecedented figure and passed the highest number registered in September 2020 which was 632,000. This is more from the figures of 2018-2020. In particular, it is more by 34,000 from the figure of May 2020, and by 37,000 from May 2019, and by 87,000 from 2018”, he said.
Pashinyan stated that the number of jobs increased by 15% or 86,962 in May compared to May 2018. “The wage fund increased by 38 billion drams or 39% compared to May 2018. Average wage per capita increased by 35,714 drams or 20.2%”, he said.
Pashinyan noted that there is an economic growth in construction sector, which led to the increase in the number of jobs. “We also have a slow, but a steady increase in tourism sector. The next biggest segment is in the catering sector where we have a growth in workplaces”, Nikol Pashinyan said.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
MP Naira Zohrabyan from the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party on Friday urged people not to support Nikol Pashinyan in Sunday's snap parliamentary elections
“We have no right to lose to the Turk for the second time,” she wrote on Facebook, stating Armenia’s sovereignty, security, dignity and economic situation depend heavily on the outcome of the early elections.
“Armenia will never be a Turkish vilayet. There is only one way – not to vote for Nikol. Don't kill Armenia!” the MP said.
Zohrabyan also announced her intention to take part in a rally of the Armenia bloc to be held at the Republic Square in Yerevan on Friday evening.
“I will be at the Republic Square at 7pm today,” she said.
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The opportunity to create the Zangezur corridor to connect Turkey and Azerbaijan is one of the most important results of the Nagorno-Karabakh victory, which saw Baku retake several of its Armenian-occupied territories, Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Sahiba Gafarova stated on Wednesday.
"One of the important results of this great victory is the historical opportunity for the construction of the Zangezur corridor, which will establish a direct connection between our countries," Gafarova told a symposium titled "Past, Present and Future of the Turkic World" in the capital Baku.
The symposium was held by the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic Speaking Countries (TURKPA) and Ataturk Center in Azerbaijan to mark the 30th year of independence of Turkic republics, Azerbaijan's victory in the Patriotic War and the centennial of the opening of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.
Gafarova, also the term president of TURKPA, and Turkey's Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop sent video messages to the hybrid event.
"History is rich with examples of achievements gained through Turkish states' support to each other," she said, highlighting Ankara's support to Baku during the Patriotic War last year.
After the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory, was liberated through a deal following a 44-day war with Armenia, it entered a period of an economic revival thanks to new transportation lines.
According to the deal, all transportation lines that were closed due to the Karabakh issue will reopen. In this period, the Zangezur corridor, which was mentioned by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev several times, came to the forefront.
Zangezur was part of Azerbaijan, but in the 1920s, the Soviets gave the region to Armenia. After this move, Azerbaijan lost its link with Nakhchivan and some parts of the railway between the two countries were destroyed.
Azerbaijan has focused on projects in the Zangezur corridor, which will include highways and rail lines stretching across territories in Armenia's Syunik region.
Once those parts are repaired, Azerbaijan will be able to reach Iran, Armenia and Nakhchivan uninterruptedly by train.
The railway will also link Turkey with Russia through Azerbaijan.