Author: Kanayan Tamar

 13:27,

YEREVAN, MARCH 11, ARMENPRESS. Russia has lifted the COVID-19-related restrictions on non-scheduled and regular flights to Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Iran on a reciprocal basis, TASS reports citing the statement of the press service of the Russian Federal Agency for Air Transport (Rosaviatsiya).

“On March 9, 2022, restrictions on non-scheduled and regular flights to Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Iran imposed earlier as part of efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 were lifted in accordance with the decision of the government of the Russian Federation”, the statement said.

Earlier, the COVID-19-related restrictions on flights to Belarus, the Dominican Republic, Egypt (excluding Cairo), the UAE, Turkey, Finland, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, South Korea and Cuba were also fully removed.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan attends a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov following their meeting in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 31, 2021. (Reuters Photo)

 10:12, 2 March, 2022

YEREVAN, MARCH 2, ARMENPRESS. The US authorities are closing the country’s airspace for Russian aircrafts, US President Joe Biden said in his State of the Union address to the US Congress, reports TASS.

“Today I’m announcing that we are joining our allies and closing off the American airspace to all Russian flights”, he said as quoted by TASS.

 18:17, 1 March, 2022

YEREVAN, MARCH 1, ARMENPRESS. Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan met with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on March 1 within the framework of the 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the MFA Armenia, the parties praised Armenia's close cooperation with the UN, in particular with the UN Human Rights Office. Ararat Mirzoyan noted that the year is symbolic, it marks the 30th anniversary of Armenia's membership in the UN. In this regard, the Foreign Minister stressed that Armenia has established itself as a responsible, reliable partner of the international community and has consistently contributed to the promotion of multilateralism, as well as the protection and promotion of fundamental human rights and fundamental freedoms in the world.

Presenting the situation created by the 44-day war unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh, Ararat Mirzoyan stressed the importance of unhindered involvement of international organizations in the full settlement of humanitarian issues in Nagorno Karabakh, including the implementation of humanitarian missions by the UN High Commissioner.

Minister Mirzoyan noted that the Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh, its people, was accompanied by gross violations of human rights, international humanitarian law, including war crimes, crimes against humanity, which were documented in detail and presented to international human rights organizations.

Ararat Mirzoyan stressed that Armenian prisoners of war are still illegally detained in Azerbaijan, civilians, whom official Baku refuses to release and return, which is a gross violation of international law. Attention was also drawn to the planned actions of vandalism and destruction of the Armenian cultural heritage in the territories under the control of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces as a result of the war against Nagorno Karabakh.

The parties also exchanged views on the ongoing reforms in Armenia and the achievements made within their framework, in particular, in the areas of strengthening democracy, promoting human rights, the rule of law, the judiciary, and the fight against corruption. The interlocutors highly assessed the coordinated cooperation with international structures in this process.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reaffirmed Armenia's commitment to advancing the agenda for the prevention of genocide and crimes against humanity.

 13:28, 1 March, 2022

YEREVAN, MARCH 1, ARMENPRESS. Armenia is importing petrol only from Russia, Iran, Romania and Bulgaria, the Competition Protection Commission Chairman Gegham Gevorgyan said in parliament in response to MP Artsvik Minasyan’s question.

Given rumors among the public, Artsvik Minasyan from the opposition Hayastan faction asked: “Do we have petrol of Azerbaijani origin in the petrol and diesel fuel market? Are the companies active in Armenia in this market directly or indirectly connected with Azerbaijani companies? And does the Azerbaijani SOCAR company have any role in the petrol and diesel fuel market? Do you have information?”

Gevorgyan said he believes that the rumors are connected with the commission’s latest deal which doesn’t have anything to do with neither SOCAR nor any other Azerbaijani company. “The deal was done between the Georgian Petrocas company, which represents the GULF brand. The countries of origin are clear. Most of the petrol and diesel fuel to Armenia comes from Russia, then from Iran, and a little from Romania and Bulgaria. I am confidently saying that there is no petrol of any other country of origin in Armenia,” Gevorgyan said.

He added that border control is taking place under the EAEU regulations, but this doesn’t hinder them to implement supervision as well.

 13:53, 16 February, 2022

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 16, ARMENPRESS. The adoption of the bill on the Occupied Territories by the Parliament of Artsakh is a response to the so-called “Shushi Declaration”, Head of the Justice faction of the Artsakh Parliament, co-author of the bill, Davit Galstyan, said in an interview to ARMENPRESS, talking about the importance of the adopted document.

“The importance of this bill lies in the fact that we firstly state that the territories mentioned in the bill are Armenian. And this is also a response to the ratification of the so-called “Shushi Declaration” by Azerbaijan. With this initiative we show that we own our historical and cultural values which today are being transformed, destroyed and eliminated by Azerbaijan”, he said.

The Parliament of Artsakh unanimously adopted today the bill on the “Occupied Territories” at first hearing. The bill has been recently put into circulation by all factions represented in the Parliament of Artsakh. According to the bill, there will be a ban on those foreign companies which will want to carry out activity in the territories of Artsakh occupied by Azerbaijan, without the permission of the Artsakh government. The bill also states that the territories of the Republic of Artsakh which have been captured by the Azeri forces during the conflict are considered as “occupied territories”.

On June 15, 2021, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkey signed a declaration on “Allied Relations” in Artsakh’s Shushi, which has come under the Azerbaijani control following the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh war. The document has been ratified recently by the Turkish and Azerbaijani parliaments.

Armenia, Brazil celebrate 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations

 09:53, 17 February, 2022

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 17, ARMENPRESS. Armenia and Brazil are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

The diplomatic relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Federative Republic of Brazil were established on February 17, 1992.

Armenia has partnering and constructive relations with Brazil.

The first high-level visit from Armenia to Brazil took place in December 1991 when Foreign Minister Raffi Hovhannisyan paid a working visit to that country. Next year, in June 1992, President Levon Ter-Petrosyan visited Brazil on an official visit. The first high-level visit from Brazil was held in November 2017 when Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes Ferreira arrived in Armenia on an official visit.

The Armenian Embassy in Brasilia was established in 2011. The Embassy of Brazil in Yerevan is operating since August 2006.

Over the past 30 years, the two countries have signed 8 agreements, the first one was signed on May 7, 2002, relating to the cultural cooperation between the Armenian and Brazilian governments. On the same day, the Presidents of Armenia and Brazil adopted a joint statement.

According to the data of the Statistical Committee of Armenia, the bilateral trade turnover between Armenia and Brazil in 2021 comprised nearly 55 million dollars.

There is an Armenian community in Brazil. Armenians have settled in Brazil since the second half of the 19^th century. Nearly 100 Armenians were living in Brazil in 1895. Currently, approximately 20-25,000 Armenians live in Brazil.

Brazil has recognized the Armenian Genocide. On May 27, 2015, the Federal Senate of Brazil unanimously adopted a resolution which was officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide.