Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan welcomed a US Congressional delegation to Armenia
While meeting with a visiting U.S. Congressional delegation Thursday, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said advancing relations with the United States was a key priority for his government.
The visiting American lawmakers are part of the U.S. House Democracy Partnership Commission, a bi-partisan group that works directly with partner countries around the world to support the development of effective, independent and responsive legislative institutions.
Pashinyan told the members of Congress that Armenia is undergoing radical reforms and is steadfastly pushing ahead with democratic reforms. He referred to last spring’s Velvet Revolution and the subsequent special parliamentary election in December, noting that it was the first free, democratic and transparent election held in Armenia since independence as described by international observer missions.
Pashinyan emphasized that his government anticipates that Armenia’s international partners among them the United States, will support Yerevan aggressive efforts to strengthen democratic institutions and economic reforms.
The HDP co-chairman, Rep. David Price (D-NC) hailed the reforms underway in Armenia, noting that the HDP is prepared to promote a culture of parliamentary activities in Armenia through exchange of experience and consultation, as well as to strengthen U.S.-Armenia relations and inter-parliamentary cooperation.
In response to lawmaker’s inquiry, Pashinyan elaborated on the ongoing economic reforms in Armenia and regional developments. He praised the youth’s contribution to the Velvet Revolution and to the reform process. He also highlighted the role women play in Armenia’s political and administrative life, and briefed them on how Armenia functions under parliamentary form of government.
Speaking about democracy, Pashinyan underscored that democracy is intinctive belief, and not a geopolitical or external political orientation for Armenia and the Armenian people.
Pashinyan also detailed economic growth rates recorded so far, noting that consistent steps are being implemented to combat monopolies, curb shadow economy and create new jobs, adding that his government seeks to ensure inclusive economic growth and, in this respect, he would appreciate cooperating in the fields of infrastructure building, innovations and technologies.
In addition to Rep. Price, the HDP delegation includes representatives Vern Buchanan (R-Fla., HDP co-chair) Dina Titus (D-Nev.), Michael Conaway (R-Texas), Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Adrian Smith (R-Neb.), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) and Terri Sewell (D-Ala.). In addition to Armenia, the group will visit Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
The delegation arrived in Yerevan Wednesday and met with Speaker of Armenia’s National Assembly Ararat Mirzoyan and His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians at Etchmiadzin. Armenian lawmakers Gayane Abrahamyan and Hovhannes Hovhannisyan are accompanying the delegation.
Arsen Martirosyan became the gold medalist of 102kg weight class at the European Weightlifting Championship in Batumi, Georgia. The Armenian team was represented by Arsen Martirosyan and Samvel Gasparyan in this weight category.
As the National Olympic Committee reported, Gevorgyan won small silver in the clean and jerk and became a European vice-champion with a total of 377kg.
Friday,
Opposition Leaders Question Government Crackdown On ‘Fake News’
• Naira Bulghadarian
• Naira Nalbandian
Armenia - Bright Armenia Party leader Edmon Marukian (R) at a news conference
in Yerevan, March 27, 2019.
Leaders of the opposition minority in Armenia’s parliament questioned on Friday
a crackdown on false news reports and social media comments ordered by Prime
Minister Nikol Pashinian.
One of them, Bright Armenia Party (LHK) leader Edmon Marukian, expressed
concern over the order, while admitting that slanderous and offensive public
statements have become commonplace in the country.
“There is definitely concern regarding freedom of speech,” Marukian told
RFE/RL’s Armenian service. “I can’t imagine the methods with which it is
possible to fight against fake news.”
Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Pashinian ordered the National
Security Service (NSS) crack down on anyone who uses mass media or social media
to “manipulate public opinion.” He singled out “fake” social media users making
untrue claims on government policies or calling for violence.
Asked to comment on the order, Marukian said: “I can’t imagine how that is
going to be done. When concrete steps are taken with regard to
counterpropaganda waged against us I will welcome it.”
Marukian referred to what he described as online smear campaigns targeting
senior members of his party. He said law-enforcement authorities recently
opened a criminal case in connection with threats and verbal abuse reported by
the LHK.
“Let’s see what happens now,” added the LHK leader. “But I want to say that
fighting against that is very difficult. It also raises the issue of protecting
freedom of speech and many other concerns.”
Armenia - Gevorg Petrosian, a parliament deputy from the Prosperous Armenia
Party, at a news briefing in Yerevan, April 1, 2019.
Gevorg Petrosian, a senior lawmaker representing the opposition Prosperous
Armenia Party (BHK), also complained about the “hooligan atmosphere” on social
media. He wondered if Pashinian decided to deal with the problem now because of
a “change in the correlation of fake news” which is not favorable for the
Armenian government.
Petrosian also said that the problem must be tackled by the Armenian police,
not the NSS. “The NSS has much more important things to do than to deal with
fake news,” he added.
Armenia’s human rights ombudsman, Arman Tatoyan, echoed the opposition
concerns, saying that his office will closely monitor NSS actions to make sure
that they do not limit press freedom. “I want to stress that the monitoring
will be at the center of my personal attention,” Tatoyan told reporters.
All forms of libel were decriminalized in Armenia about a decade ago.
Justice Minister Artak Zeynalian insisted, meanwhile, that the authorities want
to target only those who spread offensive and false statements that “threaten
national security.”
“If you look at separate instances you may not see abuse of freedom of
expression,” he said. “But if you look at the bigger picture and see that that
is being managed from a center and [those reports] are interconnected, they can
receive such an evaluation.”
Zeynalian could not say just how the authorities will be combatting the
“manipulations” mentioned by Pashinian. “We don’t yet have a formula regarding
it,” admitted the minister.
Pashinian demanded the NSS crackdown after lambasting unnamed “former
oligarchs” who he said falsely accuse his government of pushing up fuel prices
in the country with its taxation policies.
No Charges For Kocharian Over 1998 ‘Election Fraud’
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia - Former Deputy Defense Minister Vahan Shirkhanian is released from
custody, 25 June, 2018.
An Armenian law-enforcement agency has refused to launch a formal criminal
investigation into allegations to that former President Robert Kocharian rigged
a presidential election to come to power in 1998.
Vahan Shirkhanian, who was a deputy defense minister at the time, made the
allegations in an incriminating open letter to Kocharian released last month.
He claimed that Karen Demirchian, Armenia’s Soviet-era leader, was the rightful
winner of the two-round election held in February-March 1998.
Demirchian refused to concede defeat, alleging widespread fraud strongly denied
by Kocharian and his allies. Western election monitors reported serious
irregularities during the ballot.
Shirkhanian stood by his claims when he was questioned by the Special
Investigative Service (SIS) later in March.
The SIS said on Friday that it will not open a criminal case because of the
statute of limitations. It also refused to act on Shirkhanian’s claims that
Kocharian was not eligible to run for president in the first place. The SIS
explained that similar allegations made in the past were investigated by
law-enforcement authorities and proved unsubstantiated.
Shirkhanian accepted the SIS explanations, while deploring the fact that
Kocharian will not be prosecuted for vote rigging.
ARMENIA -- Then Armenian President Robert Kocharian talks to the media at a
polling station in Yerevan, February 19, 2008
The ex-president, who ruled Armenia for ten years, was arrested in December on
different coup charges which he rejects as politically motivated.
During the 1998 presidential race, Shirkhanian was a figure close to then
Defense Minister Vazgen Sarkisian, arguably the country’s most powerful man.
Sarkisian and Demirchian subsequently co-founded a political alliance that won
parliamentary elections held in May 1999.
Sarkisian became prime minister while Demirchian parliament speaker as a
result. Both leaders as well as six other officials were killed in the October
1999 terrorist attack on the Armenian parliament.
In his open letter, Shirkhanian also accused Kocharian of covering up the
attack. For his part, the ex-president claimed in a memoir published in 2018
that Shirkhanian tried to use the shock assassination to replace him as head of
state.
In 2015, Shirkhanian was arrested and charged with plotting to seize power
together with members of a clandestine militant group led by Artur Vartanian,
an obscure man who had reportedly lived in Spain for many years. He, Vartanian
and about two dozen other individuals went on trial a few months later.
Armenia - An alleged 2015 photograph of members of an Armenian militant group
arrested on coup charges.
The National Security Service (NSS) said at the time that Vartanian and his
associates drew up detailed plans for the seizure of the presidential
administration, government, parliament, Constitutional Court and state
television buildings in Yerevan. It claimed that Shirkhanian agreed to
participate in the alleged plot and suggested in 2015 that the armed group
assassinate then President Serzh Sarkisian, instead of focusing on the seizure
of the key state buildings.
Shirkhanian denied the accusations as politically motivated. He was released
from custody in June 2018 pending the outcome of the high-profile trial.
Vartanian and core members of his group remain behind bars.
Tax Authorities Move To Arrest Armenian Tycoon
• Sargis Harutyunyan
Armenia - Businessman Davit Ghazarian (C) shows Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian
around a newly built dairy factory of his Spayka company, Yerevan, March 26,
2019.
Ten days after inaugurating a new factory in the presence of Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian, the official owner of Armenia’s leading freight and
agribusiness company faced on Friday tax evasion charges which he strongly
denied.
The State Revenue Committee (SRC) said that the Spayka company evaded over 7
billion drams ($14.4 million) in import taxes as it asked a court in Yerevan to
allow the pre-trial arrest of Davit Ghazarian.
In a statement, the SRC said that the accusations stem from large quantities of
cheese and agricultural produce which were imported to Armenia by another
company, Greenproduct, in 2015 and 2016. It claimed that Greenproduct is
controlled by Spayka and that the latter rigged its customs documents to pay
less taxes from those imports.
The court held hearings on the SRC demand later in the day. Ghazarian’s lawyer,
Karen Sardarian, told reporters that the court will announce its decision on
Monday.
Ghazarian angrily denied the accusations and accused the authorities of
“paralyzing” his company’s operations at a news conference held before the
court hearings. He insisted that Spayka is not connected to Greenproduct and
has only carried out cargo shipments for it.
Armenia - A greenhouse belonging to the Spayka company, November 13, 2018.
The businessman said that she was charged because he refused to pay
Greenproduct’s back taxes after being summoned to the SRC late on
Thursday.“They told me, ‘Either you will sign [a relevant document] or be
arrested,’” he claimed. “I view this as Spayka’s persecution by the SRC …
because nobody from Greenproduct is willing to pay up.”
Ghazarian implied that Pashinian had a hand in the criminal charges brought
against him. “He [the SRC chief] went to the boss and told him that we owe 7
billion drams,” he said. “The boss, our prime minister, whom we all respect,
said that ‘if they owe the money then they must pay it.’”
As recently as on March 26, Pashinian visited Spayka’s sprawling premises in
Yerevan’s southern Noragavit suburb to attend the inauguration of a
state-of-the-art dairy factory built there. Ghazarian showed him around the
facility.
A March 26 statement by the prime minister’s office gave details of the $15
million business project. “120 new jobs have been created under the project,”
it stressed.
Ghazarian said that Spayka planned to invest another $100 million this year.
The Kazakhstan-based Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) has already frozen planned
funding for the project because of the tax fraud case, he said.
Armenia - Heavy trucks belonging to the Spayka company are parked in Yerevan,
April 19, 2017.
Spayka was set up in 2001 and has since become Armenia’s leading producer and
exporter of fruits, vegetables and some prepared foodstuffs. The company
currently employs more than 1,200 people mostly working in its greenhouses and
buys produce from thousands of Armenian farmers. It also has a large fleet of
heavy trucks.
Ownership of Spayka has long been a subject of Armenian media speculation. Some
media outlets have linked it to the family of former President Robert Kocharian
and his successor Serzh Sarkisian’s son-in-law, Mikael Minasian. Ghazarian
again asserted on Friday that he is the company’s sole real owner and has no
“business relationship” with Minasian.
Spayka was already fined about 2.5 billion drams ($5 million) for profit tax
evasion in July last year, two months after Sarkisian’s resignation and
Pashinian’s rise to power. The company agreed to pay the fine at the time.
Ghazarian claimed on Friday that that SRC penalty was also unfair and that he
agreed to pay it in order to have Spayka’s bank accounts unfrozen.
First Arrest Reported In Armenian ‘Fake News Probe’
• Marine Khachatrian
Armenia - Artur Vanetsian, director of the National Security Service (NSS),
speaks to journalists in Yerevan, 18 June 2018.
Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) said on Friday that it has arrested a
person spreading “disinformation” on Facebook as part of a crackdown ordered by
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.
The NSS director, Artur Vanetsian, said that individual had opened and “hid
behind” a Facebook page called “Dukhov Hayastan Open Society.” He declined to
identify him or her.
The page, which has more than 2,200 followers, mainly contains derogatory posts
on Pashinian and his associates. It was most recently updated on Thursday
evening.
“There is a well-known Facebook page which spreads clear disinformation,”
Vanetsian told reporters. “It is the ‘Dukhov Hayastan Open Society’ which all
users know very well. The individual hiding behind that page has been
identified and arrested.”
“A criminal case regarding the spread of racial, religious and ethnic hatred
has been opened. Other details will be provided by the NSS press center,” he
said.
Pashinian on Thursday ordered Vanetsian to clamp down on “criminal circles”
that he said “spend millions on manipulating public opinion through the press
and social media.” “That’s a matter of national security,” he said, singling
out “fake” social media users.
“The instruction regarding fake users issued by the prime minister has been
executed,” Vanetsian declared when he announced the first arrest in the
crackdown demanded by Pashinian.
Armenia -- Shushan Doydoyan, head of the Center for Freedom of Information,
April 5, 2019
Some opposition politicians and civil rights activists have expressed concern
about Pashinian’s order, saying that it poses a threat to freedom of expression
in Armenia.
Shushan Doydoyan, the head of the Yerevan-based Center for Freedom of
Information, on Friday criticized it as hasty and unfounded. The NSS, which is
the successor to the Armenian branch of the Soviet KGB secret police, must not
deal with mass or social media content in any way, she said.
“There is no clear legal definition of what information can be deemed
manipulative,” Doydoyan told RFE/RL’s Armenian service. “This [order] enables
any state body and the NSS in particular to arbitrarily decide whether a
particular report is manipulative or not.”
Doydoyan also said there is nothing wrong with citizens opening anonymous or
fake social media accounts to protect their privacy. She argued that Armenian
law provides for libel suits against anyone who makes offensive or slanderous
public statements.
“Why do we want to complicate the situation?” said Doydoyan. “We must avoid
resorting to any tough, crude legal interventions and creating an atmosphere of
fear.”
Press Review
“Zhamanak” reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin has had telephone
conversations with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijan’s
President Ilham Aliyev following their March 29 meeting in Vienna. The Russian
Foreign Ministry said after those phone calls that Moscow is ready to help the
two leaders implement agreements reached by them in the Austrian capital. The
paper suggests that Aliyev and Pashinian may have only agreed to continue to
observe the ceasefire and that the Russians will help the warring sides prevent
major truce violations.
Lragir.am says that after the Vienna summit Yerevan and Baku “reaffirmed their
opposite approaches” to the Karabakh settlement. “Azerbaijan maintains that it
will restore its territorial integrity and refuses to discuss [Karabakh’s]
status, while the Armenian side says that Artsakh’s status and security are the
key issues of a settlement,” explains the publication. “The negotiating process
has returned to a period of hiatus.” It notes Putin’s phone calls with Aliyev
and Pashinian, saying that the leaders of the two other mediating powers, the
United States and France, did not personally react to the latest
Armenian-Azerbaijani summit. The publication too believes that Moscow is most
probably keen to bolster the ceasefire regime in the conflict zone.
“Zhoghovurd” comments on Pashinian’s calls for “very harsh” government action
against individuals who he said “manipulate public opinion” through mass and
social media. The paper says that the best way to combat fake news is to
increase people’s “media literacy.” “Especially in a country which is in a
state of war and whose citizens can be targets of various propaganda and
sabotage ploys and other criminal practices,” it says. “This is what the
National Security Service (NSS) should focus its resources on because it is
obliged to guarantee not only the physical but also information security of
citizens.”
“Haykakan Zhamanak” voices strong support for Pashinian’s declared campaign
against “fake news,” saying that they pose a threat to national security. The
paper edited by Pashinian’s wife, Anna Hakobian, says that false reports about
Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks could negatively affect the combat readiness
of Armenia’s armed forces. It says the authorities should also crack down on
those who falsely predict an imminent depreciation of the national currency.
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org
All-new military equipment presented to PM Pashinyan
19:14, 3 April, 2019
YEREVAN, APRIL 3, ARMENPRESS. Accompanied by Chief of the General Staff of the Armend Forces of Armenia Artak Davtyan, PM Pashinyan visited “Baghramyan” military training center, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister of Armenia.
All-new military equipment of the Armed Forces of Armenia were presented to the PM. Pashinyan watched the testing of the new equipment.
Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan on March 26 received chairman of the Pan-Armenian Games’ World Committee Ishkhan Zakaryan.
Issues related to the organization of the 7th Pan-Armenian summer games planned to be held in Artsakh in 2019 were discussed during the meeting.
President Sahakyan noted that the preparatory works are being conducted in a fast-paced manner highlighting that everything possible would be done for organizing the games at the highest level.
Minister of State Grigory Martirosyan and other officials were present at the meeting.
Armenia fully ready to cooperate with EU within the frames of reform agenda, says Pashinyan
13:05,
YEREVAN, MARCH 19, ARMENPRESS. The European Union is ready to support programs in a number of sectors in Armenia. These concern infrastructure development, water reservoir construction, near two dozen water reservoirs are expected to be constructed in Armenia, as well as road construction, police, judicial reforms, energy development, the process of forming an energy corridor, education and tax administration reforms, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan told reporters during today’s press conference in Matenadaran, reports Armenpress.
“We are fully ready to cooperate within the frames of the whole agenda of reforms. The EU leaders also expressed readiness to assist the implementation of all these programs. Here there is one recording: the EU is ready to provide serious support to the programs, but we all understand that it will not finance these programs at once. Armenia also must have its investment. But here we face a problem in connection with the legislative restrictions on state debt”, Pashinyan said. “Armenia’s state debt cannot exceed certain percent of GDP. At this moment the most visible source for Armenia’s investment is the foreign funding which can lead to increase of the state debt volume. And now we must hold a serious discussion whether we are ready to go on this path. We will have a discussion with the Central Bank in the coming 20 days to observe these issues”, the Armenian PM said.
Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
Armenian Government discusses 89 investment projects of 2.7 billion USD - introductory speech of Nikol Pashinyan at a press conference
18:01,
YEREVAN, MARCH 19, ARMENPRESS. 89 investment projects of 2.7 billion USD are under discussion with the Government of Armenia. 42 out of the 89 projects (774 million USD) are in fact in various stages of implementation, the others are under active discussions, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan announced during his introductory speech at a press conference.
As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan particularly said in the introductory speech,
''Good day dear colleagues,
I am glad to meet you.
This is our 3rd press conference, meeting in this format, if I am not mistaken, and during this period I avoided answering questions in order to make our meeting more demanded. Before I start answering your questions, I would like to make 2 brief observations and share with you information that I received this morning.
In February of 2019 the volume of mortgage lending of the Republic of Armenia rose by 100% against February of 2018. The increase of mortgage lending in the sidelines of the projects implemented by our Government amounted to 145%, the comparison is again between February of 2019 and February 2018. By now, the mortgage portfolio of our country has increased by 30%, and according to experts, this is a great increase. I want to describe the chain by which these numbers will have an impact on the real life. This means that in the near future we will have demand for construction. This will lead to the creation of new jobs not only in the sphere of construction, but also in the sphere of the production of construction materials, and generally, in the sphere of service and so on. I think this is a very important index, which will lead to decline of unemployment and creation of new jobs.
I want to inform you that at the moment there are, at least are discussed with the Government 89 investment projects totaling 2.7 billion USD. 42 out of the 89 projects (774 million USD) are in fact in various stages of implementation, the others are under active discussions. This means that we also have some rise in investment interests in our country.
The next thing I would like to tell you is that you know that March 23 is declared a nation-wide clean-up day and I hope that we all will participate in that event. Naturally, I will participate too, and will try to participate in a place not announced in-advance. I hope our citizens will also be active. I want to say that visually the main problem of our country is waste. Once I had the chance to say during a Cabinet meeting that I will assess that really revolutionary changes have occurred in our country, of course, it will be the visual side of the issue, when we manage to free our country, our beautiful country from waste. I am glad this process has kicked off.
In general, you will have the opportunity to refer to the details of the activities of the Government during the discussion of the report on the implementation process of the Government's Action Plan at the National Assembly. For that reason today I do not refer to those details and I am happy for this opportunity.
I want to say that I have come here to answer the questions of all of you and I hope all the possible questions will be asked during today's meeting because I know based on the previous press-conferences that there are cases when there are stormy issues that go viral on the internet but I do not know why no questions are asked about those issues during the press conferences. I hope you will ask all the possible questions referring foreign policy, domestic policy, private or non-private because the key goal of this format of press conference is to make personally me, the Government, all of us including my family 100% transparent and accountable before our public.
I assure you, there is no question that I would prefer not to be asked and there is no question, I am confident, that I have no answer to it. So if there is someone who does not ask his question thinking that I have no answer to it, please do not worry, freely ask your questions.
Thank You”.
Afterwards the PM answered the questions of the journalists.
Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Armenia suggests reforming Refugee Convention
09:40,
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Regional Bureau for Europe invited the first high level Conference of the Asylum Systems Quality Initiative in the Eastern Europe and South Caucuses (QIEE), held in Geneva, Switzerland. Government of Armenia have been actively engaged in QIEE since 2013. Over these years, the project led to substantial achievements in the quality of asylum procedures in Armenia, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan and Moldova. UNHCR stands ready to continue to support the governments on working towards solutions to challenges in this sphere. During the conference, Armen Ghazaryan talked about the defense of the national security in the context of not violating the refugee defense system. Particularly, the head of the Migration Service highlighted that in this field it is of infrequent importance to apply not only the legal approach but also the political one.
“I want to highlight the characteristics of the national security and also mention that we continue the cooperation with the National Security Service trying to balance the national security and the defense of the refugees,” mentioned Armen Ghazaryan. The head of the Migration Service indicated that there are problems in this field, such as the refugee institute is used to avoid the punishment of the committed crime. “This institute is also used for the purposes of desertion and terrorism. The special territorial and political situation of the Republic of Armenia assumes serious challenges in this regard,” mentioned Armen Ghazaryan. During the conference it was suggested to create united information platform and an effective institute, which will balance the solutions to those problems. In his speech the head of the Migration Service of Armenia indicated that the Refugee Convention was adopted in 1951 and the time has come to make some reforms according to the modern challenges.
“We should aim not to let the defense of the refugees be exploited and transformed to the “trade for shelter”. We should refresh the Convention, so that it considers the current dangerous risks in the world,” concluded his speech Armen Ghazaryan. The conference was followed by a working lunch with participation of Volkan Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on international defense affairs.