Author: Jhanna Virabian

 15:47, 2 December, 2020

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 2, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan held a meeting on December 2 with the Ambassador of Russia to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin.

Avinyan thanked the ambassador for the key role Russia played in ending the war in Artsakh and establishing ceasefire.

Issues related to the exchange of prisoners of war, search operations for the missing persons and the retrieval of the bodies of the victims were discussed. Avinyan said that these issues are top priority tasks for the Armenian government and everything is being done to accelerate the process, his office said in a news release. 

Avinyan told the ambassador that Armenia is proposing the “all for all” principle in the exchange of prisoners. In addition, a mechanism is proposed envisaging that in the event of new prisoners appearing in either of the sides in the future, they should immediately be returned without any preconditions.

The Russian ambassador said that the issues of the POWs, the missing persons and the search for the bodies of the dead are under the spotlight of the top leadership of Russia.

Avinyan also highlighted Russia’s help in solving humanitarian problems of the Artsakh population.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 15:47,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, ARMENPRESS. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov considers unacceptable the attempts both in Armenia and abroad on questioning the trilateral statement signed over the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, adding that this has been stated also during the meetings held in Armenia today.

Lavrov briefed the reporters on the Russian delegation’s visit to Yerevan, the meeting with Armenia’s leadership, stating that comprehensive discussions were held, they in particular talked about the issues relating to completely implementing the statement signed by the leaders of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan, ensuring the operation of the Russian peacekeeping mission, and conducting humanitarian actions for assisting the civilian population.

“All accepted that this statement is the only mean for the settlement of the situation which was very tough several weeks ago. It was stated that all attempts both within the country and abroad on questioning that statement are unacceptable. And we affirmed our determination to do everything for the statement to continue being in force. Armenia’s leadership – the President, the Prime Minister, with whom we met, stated that this statement has helped to solve serious problems, to save lives, and they are committed to the further implementation of the agreement”, the Russian FM said, adding that they also discussed the bilateral issues.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

 14:19,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian signed a decree on awarding three crewmembers of a Mi-24 Russian helicopter which was shot down by the Azerbaijani armed forces in the airspace of Armenia, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

Major Yuri Ishchuk (posthumously), Senior Lieutenant Roman Fedina (posthumously) and wounded Senior Lieutenant Vladislav Gryazin have been awarded with the Medals of Combat Service for the courage and dedication while conducting service duties.

The Armenian President signed the respective decree based on the prime minister’s petition.

A Russian Mi-24 military helicopter was shot down over Armenia near the border with Azerbaijan on November 9. Two crewmembers died and the third pilot was wounded. Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry admitted that the helicopter had been shot down by the Azeri armed forces by mistake and stated Baku was ready to pay compensation to Moscow over the incident.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

 15:18, 13 November, 2020

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. The role of Russian President Vladimir Putin in resolving the Nagorno Karabakh conflict was key, intense work that spanned many days preceded the settlement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview to RT, reports TASS.

“This role was key”, he noted. “Many, many days of hard work preceded the signing, sometimes even round-the-clock work, it was President Putin’s work”.

The Kremlin spokesperson also stated that on the background of the Karabakh situation, it’s possible to avoid conflicts between Armenians and Azerbaijanis living in Russia. Asked how the Russian authorities are going to normalize the relations between these two Diasporas, Peskov said most of the Armenians and Azerbaijanis are “respectful and responsible members of the Russian society”.

As for the contradictions between Russia and Turkey over the NK conflict, Dmitry Peskov said this factor doesn’t hinder the close partnership between the two countries. He said Turkey has adopted a consistent position on “approving the scenario of solving the conflict by force”. The Russian presidential spokesperson reminded that President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan are in constant dialogue.

Editing by Aneta Harutyunyan

 16:56, 13 November, 2020

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Protesters demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan over the terms of the Karabakh armistice have again gathered at the Freedom Square in Yerevan.

The anti-government rally was originally organized by 17 political parties, but one of them – Alliance Party, has withdrawn from the initiative today. 

The parties who called for the rally include the Republican Party of Armenia, Prosperous Armenia Party, the ARF, Fatherland, National Security, Freedom, National Agenda, National Democratic Union, National Consent, Democratic Alternative, Yerkir Tsirani, Solidarity, Democratic Liberal Union of Armenia, Christian-Democratic Union, One Armenia, and Constitutional Rights Union.

One of the organizers of the rally said the leaders of the political parties were summoned by the Special Investigations Service at 16:00. “However, our struggle won’t stop,” he said.

Police are calling on the protesters to stop the rally because the martial law prohibits gatherings.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 16:55,

STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 14, ARMENPRESS. The Human Rights Defender of Artsakh Artak Beglaryan held a meeting on November 13 with the delegation led by Member of the UK’s House of Lords Baroness Caroline Cox, who arrived in Artsakh together with Arman Tatoyan, the Human Rights Defender of Armenia.

Beglaryan presented to Baroness Caroline Cox the war crimes committed by the Azeri forces during the war between September 27 and November 9 and the results of the fact finding mission conducted during the Azeri aggression.

Beglaryan said that during the course of the war he published 2 interim reports on Azeri atrocities, 3 reports on Azeri inhumane treatment of Armenian POWs and bodies of killed servicemen, 1 report on the Azeri shelling of the Shushi Cathedral, 1 report on the violation of children’s rights and one joint report with Tatoyan on the Azeri use of incendiary munitions containing chemical elements.

The recorded facts were more than sufficient for international human rights organizations and generally the international community to take action to properly condemn and prevent the Azeri crimes, Beglaryan’s Office said in a news release.

In turn, Baroness Caroline Cox said that for many years she has been voicing about the rights of the people of Artsakh in international arenas, and during the war she had called on international organizations to ensure the protection of the rights of the people of Artsakh with practical steps.

Baroness Caroline Cox said that she supports the just struggle of the people of Artsakh for their rights and freedoms, and that the international community is obliged to pay duly attention to the existing needs and problems.

Answering the questions of the delegation, Beglaryan touched upon the humanitarian disaster in Artsakh and outlined the directions of international assistance which are important for overcoming the crisis.

After the meeting the delegation visited several civilian buildings that were destroyed during the Azerbaijani bombardments of residential areas.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan