Author: Jhanna Virabian

 13:16,

YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan said on May 15 that it is unclear for him what the EU Ambassador meant by saying that “there are one or two spots where Armenian forces are in border region”.

During the May 15 press conference on Europe Day and the EU-Armenia relations, when asked on the Pashinyan-Aliyev-Michel talks in Brussels, the Head of the EU Delegation to Armenia Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin said: “…naturally it is our hope that both sides withdraw their troops and that everybody is then really going into the work of delimitation and demarcation.”

When asked to clarify what she means by saying “both sides withdraw their troops”, the EU Ambassador said: “It is stated that there are one or two spots where also Armenian forces are, let’s say, in the border region. And you need to have clear delimitation and demarcation. This was the general wording used in Brussels.”

Asked to elaborate, the Deputy FM also addressed the issue.

“It is unclear for me also what the remarks are about. But perhaps it’s about the first war in Nagorno Karabakh. Perhaps it should be viewed from that perspective. But I also find it difficult to say what it was about,” he said.

Hovhannisyan said that perhaps it is an accepted format to always address both sides. “But it is obvious here for everyone that in this period it is about the withdrawal of troops from the territory of Armenia, this has been addressed by the EU, the US and other partners,” Hovhannisyan said, referring to multiple calls made by the international community to Azerbaijan to pull back its troops from sovereign territory of Armenia.

During the press conference the EU ambassador had also mentioned that the issue of the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh was also discussed at the EU summit.

She said that this implies additional steps as well.

Wiktorin noted that there is an understanding that some kind of an international mechanism is needed for this, and work must be done to develop it and agree it will all parties.

After the April 11 deadly Azeri attack on Armenian troops near the village of Tegh, the EU called for the 1991 line to be respected the forces of either side withdrawn to safe distances.

 17:34,

YEREVAN, MAY 15, ARMENPRESS. The President of Turkey's Supreme Election Council, Ahmed Yener, presented the results of the presidential and parliamentary elections held on May 14 and noted that none of the presidential candidates received 50+1 percent of the vote, therefore, the second round of the presidential elections will take place on May 28, ARMENPRESS reports, the Turkish Hurriyet.com.tr informs.

The two candidates who received the most votes passed to the second round of the presidential elections: incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who received 49.62 percent of the vote, and opposition candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who received 44.89 percent of the vote.

 20:25, 3 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 3, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, together with his wife Anna Hakobyan, will leave for the Czech Republic on May 4-5, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister.

During the visit, the Prime Minister of Armenia will have a meeting with the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala. First, a private conversation between the Prime Ministers of the two countries will take place, and then the negotiations will continue in an expanded format. At the end of the meeting, Nikol Pashinyan and Peter Fiala will make statements for the media.

Next, the Prime Minister of Armenia will have meetings with the President of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament, Markéta Pekarová Adamová, and the President of the Senate, Miloš Vystrčil.

Nikol Pashinyan will visit the Center for Transatlantic Relations in Prague.

 10:05, 5 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 5, ARMENPRESS. Hundreds of Serbian special forces operatives are hunting down a gunman who killed at least eight people and wounded 13 others in the country’s second mass shooting in as many days.

The massacre took place 11 p.m. Thursday night, CNN reported citing the country’s Interior Ministry.

The attacker was in a vehicle with two other people, and got out before opening fire with an automatic firearm in the village of Dubona, about 60 kilometers southeast of the Serbian capital Belgrade, CNN reported citing its affiliate N1 and public broadcaster RTS.

The suspect then fled the scene, before later shooting in the villages of Mali Orašje and Šepšin.

The shooter remains at large and a warrant has been issued for the suspect, a 21-year-old male identified as Uros B. by Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic.

More than 600 members of Serbian Special Forces are involved in the manhunt.

This comes a day after the Serbia was rocked by news of a 13-year-old boy opening fire on classmates at a school in the capital Belgrade. That shooting left at least eight children dead, along with a security guard.

Until this week, mass shootings were rare in Serbia, despite the country’s high rate of gun ownership, according to CNN.

Updates:

12:16 - Serbian law enforcement agencies announce arrest of suspected gunman

 10:32, 2 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 2, ARMENPRESS. Peace is possible between Armenia and Azerbaijan, U.S. State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said at a press briefing when asked on the trilateral foreign ministerial in Washington D.C.

Patel said that “the U.S. is pleased to be hosting Foreign Minister Mirzoyan of Armenia and Foreign Minister Bayramov of Azerbaijan to facilitate negotiations this week as they work together to pursue a peaceful future for the South Caucasus region.”

“Secretary Blinken was honored to welcome the foreign ministers at a dinner yesterday and attend the opening plenary session this morning at the George P. Shultz National Affairs Foreign Affairs Training Center,” he added.

The spokesperson reiterated that the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken “believes that direct dialogue is key to resolving issues and reaching a lasting peace.” “This is something that he’s been deeply engaged on. It’s something that Senior Coordinator [Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations] Bono has been deeply engaged on as well. And it’s something that we will continue to pay close attention to.”

Patel said that the U.S. believes that peace is possible between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and that Washington is glad to be welcoming the two countries.

Asked on the possible success of the talks, the State Department spokesperson said: “Ultimately, the way for it to be prescriptive is up for these two countries to decide. Ultimately, what we believe is that peace is possible in the South Caucasus. That’s what we’re looking for, peace and stability between these two countries in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.”

“We think that direct dialogue through diplomacy is key here,” Patel added, noting that the U.S. will continue to be engaged on this issue.

Patel added that the U.S. still insists that free flow of traffic and people and commerce through the Lachin corridor must be ensured.

 13:11,

YEREVAN, APRIL 30, ARMENPRESS. FlyONE Armenia company has already ensured the return of the passengers of the Paris-Yerevan flight that landed in Chișinău to Yerevan, ARMENPRESS reports, Aram Ananyan, the chairman of the Board of Directors of FlyONE Armenia airline, informed in a post on his Facebook page, adding that the airline will do everything possible to ensure that the travel plans of its passengers do not change.

"In response to numerous requests from our media partners, we inform that

FlyONE Armenia company has already ensured the return of the passengers of the Paris-Yerevan flight that landed in Chișinău to Yerevan.

The airline will do everything possible to ensure that the travel plans of our passengers do not change.

The airline will additionally inform passengers and the public about the change in the situation," said Aram Ananyan.

Yesterday, the aviation authorities of Turkey, without prior notification, canceled the permission previously granted to the Flyone Armenia airline to operate flights to Europe through the Turkish airspace, Aram Ananyan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Flyone Armenia airline, told ARMENPRESS.

"For reasons incomprehensible to us and without any visible grounds, the Turkish aviation authorities canceled the permission previously granted to the Flyone Armenia airline to operate flights to Europe through the Turkish airspace. Turkish aviation authorities implemented the cancellation without prior notification, putting our airline and our passengers in an uncomfortable situation.

Flyone Armenia company is working with the passengers of the canceled flights and will inform about the upcoming developments. We kindly ask for the understanding of our passengers for the inconvenience caused by reasons beyond our control," Ananyan said.

 15:28,

YEREVAN, APRIL 27, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian foreign ministry has confirmed that there’s an agreement to hold a meeting between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

ARMENPRESS asked Armenian foreign ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan to comment on Moscow’s recent announcement.

“As we’ve reported earlier, there are proposals on meetings, and now also agreements. We will update on the exact timeframe,” Badalyan said.

Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova earlier said that an agreement has been reached to hold a meeting between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Russia.

 11:29,

YEREVAN, APRIL 27, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has again called for an urgent deployment of an international fact-finding mission to the Lachin Corridor and Nagorno Karabakh amid the Azerbaijani blockade of the Lachin Corridor.

Speaking at the Cabinet meeting, PM Pashinyan said that the need for a broader international presence in Nagorno Karabakh and Lachin Corridor is becoming more pressing every day.

“Azerbaijan’s efforts for turning Nagorno Karabakh into a new [execution site] of Armenians must be stopped. And the only reliable way for doing so is the presence of representatives with broad international mandate in Nagorno Karabakh. As a first step, it is necessary to deploy an urgent international fact-finding mission to Lachin Corridor and Nagorno Karabakh,” Pashinyan said.