Author: Lilit Nahapetian

“The fierce fighting at the contact line six weeks ago  shows that the status quo is untenable in the long run,” German Foreign Minister, OSCE Chairman-in-Office Frank-Walter Steinmeier said ahead of the meetings of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs with the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Vienna.

“The longer the conflict continues and the more the parties upgrade their weapons, the greater the risk of a new escalation, even a war between Azerbaijan and Armenia,” the German FM said.

“The OSCE plays an important role in conflict resolution. France, Russia and the US have been trying for years as co-chair of the Minsk Group to consolidate the ceasefire and the resumption of the political process. Germany supports the OSCE Chairmanship with great emphasis. We are committed to ensuring that the parties move forward on the path towards sustainable conflict resolution,”reads a statement from the German Foreign Ministry.

“In our view, the aim must be that the ceasefire is respected at the contact line and strengthened, confidence-building measures are agreed so that the negotiations can resume,” he added.

“That will take time, overnight there will be no solution. This does not mean, however, that we should leave attempts to search for a solution to the conflict,” the German FM concluded.

The Mayor of Yerevan, Taron Margaryan has issued a statement on Radio Day.

“Under the conditions of the plurality of mass media and sources of information, radio has always been and remains a convenient and accessible source of information.”

Addressing all employees of radio stations, the Mayor said: “I’m glad to note that you have been doing your work of reporting timely and true information to the public with all responsibility, cordiality and honor. Our conviction was further reinforced this April, when you headed for the frontline together with your colleagues to promptly inform the public about the developments.”

“I’m confident that you’ll continue your responsible work of providing exact and unbiased information with the same devotion and responsibility and will have your important and considerable contribution to the development and prosperity of the country and capital,” the Mayor said.

On 25 April Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan received member of the European Parliament, head of EU-Artsakh friendship group Frank Engel, NKR President’s Press Office reports.

A range of issues related to the Europe-Artsakh relations and regional developments were discussed during the meeting.

Special attention was paid to the large-scale combat operations launched by Azerbaijan from 2 to 5 April and their consequences.

President Sahakyan expressed gratitude to Frank Engel for his high-principled work and sincere friendship, noting that those very ideas are at the basis of the Europe-Artsakh relations.

The National Armenian Genocide Commemoration Evening on Sunday, April 24 will host supporters and friends of Armenian-Australians from both the Federal and NSW governments, who will gather with the community to honour and remember the over 1.5 million innocent victims of the first Genocide of the 20th Century.

The gathered will hear from Keynote Speaker, prominent Military Historian and Co-Author of the recently-published Armenia, Australia & the Great War, Professor Peter Stanley.

The Member for Bennelong, John Alexander OAM will be in attendance, continuing his full-fledged support to the cause of Federal recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Alexander has been vocal in raising the issues and concerns of the Armenian community in the Australian Parliament.

In recent weeks, he has been vigilant and attentive to the violent aggression by Azerbaijan upon the Armenians of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, and has made a public statement regarding this.

The new Member for North Sydney, Trent Zimmerman will also be attending the Commemoration for the first time in his capacity as a Member of the Australian Parliament since taking over his seat from Joe Hockey, now Australia’s Ambassador to the United States.

On March 2, Zimmerman gave his maiden speech in Australia’s House of Representatives, calling on Turkey to recognise and atone for the Armenian Genocide.

Senator Lee Rhiannon will be joining the Commemoration. Rhiannon became the first Federal member of the Greens Party to declare support for formal acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide, and has been a prominent advocate in the Greens ranks, making speeches in the Upper House of Parliament.

NSW Treasurer and prominent Armenian-Australian, Gladys Berejiklian will be in attendance representing the Premier of NSW, Mike Baird.

From the NSW Parliament, the Member for Davidson, Jonathan O’Dea, who is the Chair of the Armenian-Australian NSW Parliamentary Friendship Group, will be present to be a part of the remembrance.

O’Dea has been a champion for all issues and concerns of the Armenian community, and has continuously called on the Australian Government to recognise the Armenian Genocide. In recent weeks, he has also been vocal in condemning Azerbaijan’s aggression, and remembered the innocent victims of Sumgait.

Also joining Armenian-Australians on the night will be the  Hon. Reverend Fred Nile MLC, Leader of the NSW Christian Democratic Party, who continues to pursue his party’s policy of full recognition of the Armenian Genocide by Australia. Rev. Nile famously introduced a Motion to the Legislative Council, recognising the Armenian, Assyrian and Greek Genocides. This motion was passed unanimously. Rev. Nile is also a member of the Parliamentary Friendship Group.

The Hon. David Clarke MLC will also be in attendance. He has been a long time supporter of Armenians, advocating for recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the Federal Government and has also travelled to Armenia with other members of the Parliamentary Group.

Also in attendance will be the Hon. Courtney Houssos MLC from the NSW Upper House and member of the Parliamentary Friendship Group.

Arin Markarian of the organising Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee said: “It is great to see our good friends join us on this very important occasion to remember and honour those 1.5 million innocent lives that perished during the Armenian Genocide.”

“It is with their continued support, that we will one day finally see Australia recognise the Armenian Genocide, like other countries have.”

The National Armenian Genocide Commemoration Evening will take place at The Concourse in Chatswood from 7pm on Sunday, April 24th.

The Melbourne Armenian Genocide Commemoration Evening will take place on Satuday, April 23rd from 6pm at the Mazenod College (5 Kernot Avenue, Mulgrave). The Keynote Speaker will be the other Co-Author of Armenia, Australia & the Great War and prominent researcher at the Australian Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Vicken Babkenian.

The Armenian-Australian communities of Sydney and Melbourne have organised the following events to mark the occasion of the 101st Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide:

Asbarez – Richard Hovannisian, Professor Emeritus at UCLA, Chancellor’s Fellow at Chapman University, and Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Southern California as a consultant for the Shoah Foundation, was in Cleveland in April 4-6 for back-to-back events relating to remembrance of and learning from the Armenian Genocide.

At Case Western Reserve University, Hovannisian was a key speaker at the inaugural Cleveland Humanities Festival organized by the University’s Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities. Prof. Peter E. Knox, the new Director for the Center, selected “Remembering War” as this year’s theme for the Festival.
Dr. Hovannisian’s topic was “Under Cover of War: The Armenian Genocide and Its Continuing Ramifications.” The capacity audience of over 200 people was captivated as they learned about the relationship of the Armenian Genocide to World War I and its relationship to the Holocaust one generation later and continuing crimes against humanity. The Q & A that followed included brisk discussions and possible international measures to deal with the scourge. A reception of Armenian pastries ended the event.

On April 5, Richard Hovannisian was invited to speak at the Federal Building in Cleveland to connect the Armenian Genocide and its lessons with the Holocaust and massive civil rights violations in its annual Holocaust Remembrance Observation program. Mr. John Luckas, Chief of Staff, for Finance and Accounting Service, Department of Defense opened the program. Ms. Dzaghig Poundardjian, a Department of Defense employee and Chair of the Holocaust Remembrance Committee, introduced the speaker after sharing her own personal family’s past and current impact of the continuing turmoil in Syria today.

Dr. Hovannisian delivered a powerful message on the theme of “Learning through Acts of Courage.” Several hundred employees in Cleveland, and remote connections, listened as the speaker integrated the experience of the Armenian Genocide into the daily lives of students and the public today.
Cleveland Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee’s Ara Bagdasarian and Kevan Asadorian initiated conversations with Case Western Reserve University to include Dr. Hovannisian in this important inaugural Cleveland Humanities Festival on April 4. Ms. Dzaghig Pounardjian invited Dr. Hovannisian and organized the April 5 talk at the Federal Building.

Richard and Vartiter Hovannisian were guests of honor at a reception at the Armenian Church of St. Gregory of Narek on the evening of April 5. Ara Bagdasarian and Father Hratch Sargsyan welcomed the couple and reflected on the importance of the recent programs relating to the Armenian Genocide, before presenting Hovannisian with a beautiful commemorative plaque. The church’s chorale group enriched the evening prior to enjoyable reception.

Vice-President of the Armenian National Assembly Edward Sharmazanov chaired working consultations at the National Assembly, featuring representatives of all factions and members of Armenian delegations to international organizations, Parliament’s Press Service informs.

According to the source, the ways of raising the effectiveness of cooperation with the foreign partners and provision of exact information about the situation at the frontline.

The participants of the consultations decided to call on the international community to chide Azerbaijan unless it’s too late, considering that Aliyev’s dictatorial regime can undertake inhumane actions.

The Azerbaijani side used artillery weapons of different caliber as it fired over 3,200 shots in the direction of the Armenian positions on March 27 and 28, the NKR Defense Ministry reports.

The rival mostly refrained from using heavy weapons after the Karabakh forces repelled an Azeri attack on March 26.

The front divisions of the NKR Defense Army keep the situation under control and confidently continue with their military duty all along the line of contact.

According to the data of the Belgian authorities, there are no Armenians among the victims of the Brussels blasts, the Armenian Embassy in Brussels informs in a Twitter post.

The Embassy also notes that there will be no passenger flights into and out of Brussels Airport tomorrow, 24 March and advises to contact the airlines for flight information.

Scientist Stephen Hawking has paid tribute to the teacher who inspired his early steps into scholarship, the reports. 

He says Dikran Tahta at St Albans School opened his eyes to maths, which he describes as the “blueprint of the universe”.

“My handwriting was bad, and I could be lazy. Many teachers were boring. Not Mr Tahta,” said the physicist.

Prof Hawking was speaking ahead of this weekend’s award of the Global Teacher Prize.

The award-winning scientist has recorded a video commending his teacher, who died in 2006.

“His classes were lively and exciting. Everything could be debated. Together we built my first computer, it was made with electro-mechanical switches,” said Prof Hawking.

“Thanks to Mr Tahta, I became a professor of mathematics at Cambridge, a position once held by Isaac Newton.”

Prof Hawking said that “behind every exceptional person, there is an exceptional teacher”.

Dikran Tahta’s family settled in Manchester after the Armenian Genocide. Much of his childhood, and the influence of his Armenian religious upbringing, is reflected upon in his penultimate book Ararat Associations, in which he notes how his parents were keen for their children to have an English education, yet made sure that they spoke Armenian at home. He was christened by Bishop Tourian in the Armenian Church in Manchester, and his name Dikran was shortened to Dick, but he never forgot his Armenian roots.

German luxury carmaker BMW will throw a lavish 100th birthday party today, looking back at its often troubled history and forward as it seeks to adapt to the age of “personal mobility,” AFP reports.

In its home city of Munich, the iconic headquarters, a complex dubbed the “BMW four-cylinder”, towers as a source of pride while its vast plant, offices and museum are the southern city’s main private employer, with a total of 41,000 staff.

Since its World War I beginnings, the company has grown into a multinational giant with plants in 14 countries, more than 116,000 employees and 80 billion euros (S$121 billion) in annual sales.

BMW today makes cars and motorcycles and its brands also include Rolls-Royce and Mini.