Author: Mary Lazarian

Progress seen in talks to settle Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict

Mary Lazarian

March 2 2023


Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has announced that Armenia has handed over a new version of a proposed peace treaty to Azerbaijan and that he was ready to sign the document as soon as possible to guarantee lasting peace and stability in the region. 
 
In another sign that diplomatic wheels might finally be in motion to settle relations between the two South Caucasian neighbours, representatives of Azerbaijan and its breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, largely inhabited by ethnic Armenians, have held what is described as a "constructive meeting".  Armenia and Azerbaijan last fought a war over the enclave in 2020, in which Baku recovered most of the land it had lost in fighting in the early 1990s.
 
During a government Q&A session in parliament,  Pashinyan stated that Armenia has yet to receive a response to the draft peace treaty it sent to Baku earlier this year. He said: "When we receive their answer, it will take some time to prepare a response and I guess there will be a reaction after some time." Pashinyan also mentioned three stages of work on the draft peace treaty, with Azerbaijan putting forward its proposal and Armenia responding, and that work in this direction should continue.
 
Azerbaijan's peace proposals unveiled last year included fundamental principles on which it wants the future peace accord with Armenia to be based. These principles include mutual recognition of each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, joint reaffirmation of the absence of territorial claims on each other, a legally binding obligation not to make such claims in the future, abstaining from threatening each other's security, demarcation of the border, and unblocking of transport links. Pashinyan noted that the proposals made earlier by Armenia regarding opening communications, ensuring border security, and border demarcation all continue to be in force.
 
In another key development, Lusine Avanesyan, a spokesperson for the Nagorno-Karabakh president, described the latest meeting between representatives of Karabakh and Azerbaijan, facilitated by the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, as "constructive" and said the breakaway enclave hoped that results would not be long in coming. 
 
 
The first meeting between Azerbaijani and Karabakh officials occurred on February 24, the day after Harutiunyan dismissed his chief minister, Ruben Vardanyan, something that Baku had demanded throughout the blockade.
 
Karabakh President Arayik Harutiunyan said that Stepanakert would continue to resist the restoration of Azerbaijani control over Karabakh but would not avoid contacts with Baku to address humanitarian and infrastructure-related issues.
 
"Encouraging news from Khojaly today regarding contacts between Baku representatives and Karabakh Armenians. Good that discussions appear to have focused both on immediate concerns and broader issues," EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus Toivo Klaar tweeted.
 
During a regular meeting of the official representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan held on Wednesday, humanitarian and infrastructural issues were discussed, including the restoration of uninterrupted movement of people, vehicles, and goods through the Lachin corridor, restoration of electricity supply from Armenia, continuous supply of natural gas, as well as the operation of the Kashen mine. 
 
Since December 12, so-called environmental protesters backed by the Azerbaijani government blocked the only road connecting Karabakh to Armenia after the Karabakh Armenians refused to allow inspections. The authorities in the Nagorno-Karabakh capital Stepanakert and Yerevan have rejected the protesters' demands, considering them a pretext for cutting off Karabakh from the outside world. These protests persist regardless of an ICJ court ruling last month to ensure the passage of all civilians and all traffic. 
 
The Azerbaijani negotiators, including the head of a "monitoring group" investigating "illegal" mining operations in Karabakh, discussed the Karabakh Armenians' "integration into Azerbaijan" at a meeting, according to an Azerbaijani readout of the meeting cited by the APA news agency. The meeting did not mention the possible lifting of the blockade, which has led to food, medicine, and other essential item running short in Karabakh.
 
The Azerbaijani authorities have appointed Ramin Mammadov, a member of the parliament, to be responsible for contacts with Karabakh Armenians, Azerbaijani media reported. The Nagorno-Karabakh representatives included Samvel Shahramanyan, the Security Council Secretary of Karabakh.
 
The meeting, mediated by the commander of the Russian peacekeepers, took place the day after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's visit to Baku. Lavrov expressed Russia's opposition to Azerbaijani efforts to set up a checkpoint at the Lachin corridor and suggested that Russian peacekeepers could use "technical means" to address Azerbaijani concerns.
 
Baku has accused Armenia of smuggling landmines to Karabakh through the corridor, violating the 2020 ceasefire brokered by Moscow, a claim that the Armenian side has strongly denied. Seyran Hayrapetyan, a senior Karabakh lawmaker, told RFE/RL's Armenian Service that Stepanakert was willing to discuss the idea of installing X-ray scanners in the corridor. Still, they must be operated and controlled only by Russian peacekeepers.

Armenian FM, EU’s Borrell meet in New Delhi, discuss Lachin Corridor, Azerbaijan settlement process

Mary Lazarian

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 13:28, 3 March 2023

YEREVAN, MARCH 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission Josep Borrell met on March 3 in New Delhi, India.

Mirzoyan and Borrell “exchanged ideas around the Armenia-EU partnership agenda,” according to a readout issued by the foreign ministry. “Both sides attached importance to the deployment of the EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia which was officially launched on February 20.”

Regional and international security issues were also discussed. FM Mirzoyan presented the latest developments in the Armenia-Azerbaijan settlement process.

Speaking about the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno Karabakh resulting from the blockade of Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan, the Armenian foreign minister underscored the imperative of lifting the blockade without preconditions in accordance with the terms of the 9 November 2020 statement. In this context the international community’s hands-on involvement was highlighted in order for Azerbaijan to comply with the February 22 binding ruling by the International Court of Justice.

The United Nations’ highest court – the International Court of Justice – ordered Azerbaijan on February 22 to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions. The Lachin Corridor is blocked by Azerbaijan since 12 December 2022.

The Lenten Season

Mary Lazarian
 Rev. Dr. Vahan Tootikian Keeping the Faith, Columns 0

St. Stephen’s Armenian Apostolic Church, March 2019 (Photo: Facebook)

For Western churches, Protestant and Catholic alike, the Lenten season extends over a 46 day period, beginning with Ash Wednesday and ending on Easter Eve. Sundays, being weekly commemorations of the first Easter, have never been considered Lenten fast days. With six Sundays in the period, there are 40 days in Lent, which corresponds to and symbolizes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting, praying and meditating in the wilderness before He began His ministry.

In the Armenian Apostolic Church, Lent is called Médz Bahk, which means Major Feast. It is the period between Poon Barékendan and Easter. Unlike the Western Churches, the Lenten season in the Armenian church begins the day after Poon Barékendan, rather than on Ash Wednesday which the Western churches observe as the beginning of Lent. Each Sunday of Médz Bahk is devoted to a certain event and named accordingly (Sunday of Expulsion, Sunday of the Prodigal Son, Sunday of the Steward, Sunday of the Judge, Sunday of Advent and Palm Sunday.)

The Sunday preceding Lent is Poon Barékendan (Carnival), a day of celebration, an occasion for festivity and merrymaking. It is an observance of God’s creation of our first parents Adam and Eve and their life and joy in the Garden of Eden. The sharagans of the Armenian church also speak of Christ, “the Second Adam,” through Whom mankind was saved and became worthy of the heavenly happiness of paradise.

The first Sunday of Médz Bahk is Artaksman Kiraki (Expulsion Sunday), dedicated to the expulsion of Adam and Eve from paradise, and relates how Christ opened the gates of paradise to those who repent and accept Him.

The second Sunday of Lent is called Anaraki Kiraki, dedicated to the parable of the Prodigal Son, who after repentance came to his father’s home and was restored to his original state (Luke 15:11-24).

The third Sunday is called Tntesi Kiraki (Sunday of the Steward) and takes up the parable of the dishonest steward (Luke 16:1-9). It recommends the practice of prudence and wisdom for better ends.

The fourth Sunday is called Datavori Kiraki (The Judge’s Sunday) and treats the parable of the widow and the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8). The teaching of the parable is persistence in prayer.

The fifth Sunday is called Galustyan Kiraki (Advent Sunday) focusing on the second coming of Christ.  

The sixth Sunday is Tzaghkazard (Palm Sunday), dedicated to Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The rite performed on that day is the Drunpatzek (opening the door). It is a reminder of the coming of Judgement Day.

The English word Lent is derived from the Anglo-Saxon Lencten, meaning “spring.” In the Armenian tradition, it is “fasting.” It is abstinence and restraint from eating certain foods and time spent for meditation, self-examination and repentance. But whatever tradition one belongs to, Lent is a period of the deepening and broadening of spiritual life; that is, a deepening of insight, self-discipline and dedication, and a broadening of outlook, compassion and vision.

Early church leaders realized what this period of self-denial, self-discipline and prayer meant in Jesus’ life. They established this period to help the early Christians realize that the complete fulfillment of Christian living came through these very acts.

Today, people observe Lent in a variety of ways. Some observe it by giving up certain things—some by taking on certain things. The danger is that when Lent is over, the deepening and broadening process may not have occurred or may come to an end. Lent, however, is designed to be a period of such significance in our lives that what occurs in it may be that which makes possible a continuing growth and advancement in Christian faith and practice.  Self-denial, giving up something just for the sake of giving it up, means nothing. Each of us needs those times when we set out for ourselves to think of the primary concerns of our lives.  We need to put aside all the extraneous, unimportant activities and interests and center our thinking and action on that which gives the proper direction to our living.  Lent prepares us for the atonement of Jesus Christ. Atonement means unity; separating the three syllables, you have “at-one-ment”, and this is descriptive of its meaning. It is fulfillment, totality, personality integration and being in tune with life and life’s Creator.

In our spiritual life, may Lent be synonymous with spring and its meaning, emphasizing reawakening, renewal and rebirth for all of us—a time to reject our old, tired selves and to recreate anew our image. But most of all may it be a season to revive and reaffirm our faith in God.

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Rev. Dr. Vahan H. Tootikian is the Executive Director of the Armenian Evangelical World Council.


Armenian Foreign Minister meets with Turkish counterpart in Ankara

Mary Lazarian

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 12:24,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 15, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu are holding a meeting in Ankara, ARMENPRESS correspondent reported from the Turkish capital.

The meeting will be followed by an enlarged-format meeting.

The foreign ministers will then deliver press statements.

The Armenian Foreign Minister is then scheduled to visit Adiyaman in southeastern Turkey, where an Armenian search-and-rescue team is assisting in the earthquake response efforts.

PM Pashinyan sends congratulatory message on the occasion of Independence Day of Cyprus

Mary Lazarian

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 15:47, 1 October 2022

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 1, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan sent a congratulatory message to the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, on the occasion of Independence Day. As ARMENPRESS was informed from the Office of the Prime Minister, the message reads as follows,

"Your Excellency,

I convey my warmest congratulations and best wishes on the Independence Day of the Republic of Cyprus. I wish prosperity, progress and peace to always accompany the fraternal people of Cyprus.

The Armenian-Cypriot interstate relations, anchored on strong traditional ties, historical, cultural and value system commonalities, are distinguished by their allied nature and willingness to show solidarity and support to each other.

I am confident that the fruitful and ever-developing cooperation between Armenia and Cyprus will continue to be strengthened and expanded at both bilateral and multilateral levels, including in the context of Armenia-EU cooperation and within the framework of the Armenia-Greece-Cyprus trilateral format."

E Azarbaijan [Iran] governor calls for expanding ties with Armenia

Mary Lazarian
 Mehr News Agency
Iran – Sept 4 2022


TEHRAN, Sep. 04 (MNA) – The governor of East Azarbaijan considered the visit of an economic and commercial delegation from the Iranain province to Armenia as implying Iran's seriousness in expanding ties with its neighbors.

Abedin Khorram, the provincial governor of East Azarbaijan made the comments at the Iran-Armenia trade conference in Yerevan on Saturday.

Saying that the Islamic Republic of Iran considers the peace, stability, and security of the neighboring countries as its own, the governor said, "In line with h the developments in the region, strengthening the relations with other countries is of great importance to Iran."

He added, "Iran and Armenia are in a good and strategic situation in terms of political and economic relations."
 
Emphasizing that "We should improve our economic and trade relations on a daily basis", Khorram added, "The serious will of both sides is to remove the obstacles in the way of the development of relations and I hope that after this trip, regardless of formalities, we will be able to see the materialization of the will of the two governments and the two nations."

He also said that "[Iran's] East Azarbaijan and [Armenia's] Syunik province can play an important role in expanding economic exchanges between the two countries."
 
"The suitable infrastructure of East Azarbaijan, including the Aras Free Zone on the shared border with Armenia and the existence of 50 border towns and industrial zones, can enhance the level of trade between the two countries," the Iranian governor added.

"Our private sector is determined to develop relations with neighboring countries, and we hope that the Armenian private sector will also use this opportunity for cooperation and joint investment."

Khorram further said that building up joint border markets and industrial towns on the shared border of the two countries can be one of the achievements of this trip."

KI/IRN84876686

https://en.mehrnews.com/news/190984/E-Azarbaijan-governor-calls-for-expanding-ties-with-Armenia





Generation AI program launched in Armenia’s Ministry of Education

Mary Lazarian

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 20:58, 1 September 2022

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 1, ARMENPRESS. An event marking the launch of the program Generation AI (Artificial Intelligence) was held today at the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia, the ministry reports.

During the event the sides, in the person of Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Vahram Dumanyan and Founding Director of the Foundation for Armenian Science and Technology (FAST) Armen Orujyan signed a cooperation agreement, which enshrines the main directions for the implementation of the program.

Photos by Hayk Manukyan

In his remarks Minister Dumanyan said that this program will put a basis for the organization of artificial intelligence education in a number of high schools in Armenia, and it will launch from Tavush province.

“We should develop regulations relating to credit system connected with the results so that the students, who will pass with this program and will continue their professional education in a university, have a chance to transfer their knowledge gained in school to a university in the form of a credit”, he said, highlighting the necessity of creating a link between the school and the university. “We are ought to develop this direction in order to have an educational field in accordance with international standards, for you to be recognizable, assessable and acceptable in the international education system”.

“We very much highlight this cooperation as we consider artificial intelligence as a promoter not only in terms of investing in education system, but also providing our students with a competitive knowledge. We are very happy for this cooperation, and we are starting the practical stage of the program with joint efforts. We hope it will be spread in the schools of the entire Republic in a short period of time, and we will be able to jointly make a systematic change”, Armen Orujyan said.

In her turn Deputy Minister of Education Zhanna Andreasyan said that the program is completely among the targets of education strategy. “I am confident that as a a result of this cooperation we will be able to register qualitative changes because we will introduce a new content and program in schools, as well as a new way of working and teaching”, she said.

Within the framework of the program, starting January 2023, students of several high schools of Yerevan and Tavush province will have an opportunity to study deep mathematics, programming, to get aquainted with machine learning and deep study basis, as well as to get necessary skills and professional orientation.

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 08/29/2022

Mary Lazarian 
                                         Monday, 


Russia, Armenia Reaffirm Commitment To ‘Allied Ties’


Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Armenian Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian, Moscow, May 16, 2022.


Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian 
again pledged to further deepen relations between their countries when they held 
their fourth phone call in a month on Monday.

Putin and Pashinian congratulated each other on the 25th anniversary of the 
signing of a Russian-Armenian treaty on “friendship, cooperation and mutual 
assistance.”

According to the Kremlin, the two leaders reaffirmed their “mutual intention to 
further strengthen allied ties between Russia and Armenia.”

The Armenian government likewise said they expressed confidence that bilateral 
ties “will continue to grow stronger in various areas.”

Putin and Pashinian already pledged to reinforce the “privileged alliance” of 
Russia and Armenia in a joint declaration issued after their talks held outside 
Moscow in April. They said Moscow and Yerevan will seek to “jointly overcome the 
challenges” stemming from Western economic sanctions imposed after the Russian 
invasion of Ukraine.

“We sincerely value our friendship with fraternal Armenia and are determined to 
further strengthen the Russian-Armenian alliance for the sake of the prosperity 
of our countries and peoples,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement 
on the anniversary of the bilateral treaty.

Putin and Pashinian also discussed the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. They 
specifically looked at “some practical aspects” of implementing 
Armenian-Azerbaijani agreements brokered by Moscow during and after the 2020 war 
in Karabakh, the Kremlin reported without elaborating.

The Karabakh issue topped the agenda of their three previous phone conversations 
that took place earlier in August.

The latest call came two days before Pashinian’s fresh meeting with Azerbaijani 
President Ilham Aliyev which will be hosted by European Council President 
Charles Michel in Brussels. Aliyev and Pashinian already held trilateral talks 
with Michel in April and May.

Moscow indicated recently that it is also trying to organize an 
Armenian-Azerbaijani summit. It has repeatedly denounced the EU’s mediation 
efforts, saying that they are part of the West’s attempts to hijack 
Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks and use the Karabakh conflict in the standoff 
over Ukraine.

A senior EU diplomat insisted in June that the EU is not competing with Russia 
in its efforts to facilitate a “comprehensive settlement” of the Karabakh 
conflict.



Baku Slams U.S., France For Shunning Trip To Azeri-Held Karabakh Town

        • Sargis Harutyunyan


Azerbaijan has condemned the U.S. and French ambassadors in Baku for declining 
to join other foreign diplomats in visiting the Nagorno-Karabakh town of Shushi 
(Shusha) captured by the Azerbaijani army during the 2020 war.

The senior diplomats representing several dozen nations travelled to Shushi over 
the weekend to attend a conference organized there by the Azerbaijani 
government. The U.S. and French ambassadors were conspicuously absent from the 
event.

“We regard this as a disrespectful attitude towards out territorial integrity,” 
Hikmet Hajiyev, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s chief foreign policy aide, 
said during the conference.

Hajiyev charged that the United States and France have done little to help 
resolve the Karabakh conflict in their capacity as co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk 
Group.

“It’s not clear whether they cannot accept Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity or 
the reconstruction work taking place in Shusha,” he said.

The U.S. Embassy in Baku responded to the criticism on Monday in a statement 
provided to the Azerbaijani Service of the Voice of America. It said that 
embassy officials regularly visit “all regions” of Azerbaijan, including the 
Aghdam, Fizuli and Zangelan districts won back by Baku as a result of the 2020 
war.

The statement made no mention of Shushi or Hadrut, another town in Karabakh 
proper occupied by Azerbaijani forces during the six-week hostilities stopped by 
a Russian-brokered ceasefire.

Azerbaijan maintains that its victory in the war with Armenia put an end to the 
Karabakh conflict. The U.S. and France, which have for decades led the Minsk 
Group together with Russia, say, however, that the conflict remains unresolved 
because there is still no agreement on Karabakh’s status.

Washington underlined this stance last week when it appointed a senior U.S. 
diplomat, Philip Reeker, as the Minsk Group’s new co-chair. U.S. Secretary of 
State Antony Blinken said Reeker will strive for a “long-term political 
settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry responded by denouncing what it called U.S. 
attempts to “revive” the group.



Former Defense Chief Blasts Bill On Shorter Military Service

        • Naira Nalbandian

Armenia -- Armenian Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan at a news conference in 
Yerevan, April 9, 2019.


Armenia’s jailed former Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan on Monday denounced a 
Defense Ministry proposal to significantly shorten compulsory military service 
for conscripts willing to pay hefty fees.

Armenian law requires virtually all men aged between 18 and 27 to serve in the 
armed forces for two years. A Defense Ministry bill circulated last week would 
shorten this period to just four and a half months for draftees paying the state 
24 million drams ($60,000).

Representatives of the country’s leading opposition forces condemned the 
proposed arrangement as unfair and dangerous for national security.

Tonoyan added his voice to the criticism in written comments to the press 
disseminated through his lawyers.

“The presented draft is consistent with the ‘peace agenda’ of the [country’s] 
government and political leadership,” he said. “I personally and the Defense 
Ministry always spoke out against such initiatives [in the past.]”

“We must welcome and encourage service in the Armenian Armed Forces, rather than 
set a ransom for exemptions from serving the homeland,” added Tonoyan.

The bill needs to be discussed and approved by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s 
government before it can be submitted to the parliament. An explanatory note 
attached to it says that proceeds from this scheme would be used for sharply 
increasing the wages of the Armenian army’s contract soldiers.

Armen Khachatrian, a pro-government member of the parliament committee on 
defense and security, praised the proposed legislation last week. But Gagik 
Melkonian, another committee member representing the ruling Civil Contract 
party, signaled opposition to it on Monday.

“I said years ago that we must make sure that there are conditions in which the 
rich do not serve [in the military] and only [ordinary] people do,” Melkonian 
told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

Tonoyan, who served as defense minister from 2018-2020, was arrested last 
September in a criminal investigation into supplies of allegedly outdated 
rockets to Armenia’s armed forces. He strongly denies fraud and embezzlement 
charges leveled against him as well as two generals and an arms dealer. They 
went on trial in January.


Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

Turkish press: Azerbaijani forces have returned to Karabakh city Lachin: Aliyev

Mary Lazarian
 ISTANBUL AUG 26, 2022 – 11:33 AM GMT+3

An Azerbaijani soldier takes a selfie with Azerbaijan's national flag on the top of a tower outside the town of Fuzuli, Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Nov. 26, 2020. (AFP Photo)

The Azerbaijani army has been deployed to the strategic city of Lachin in Karabakh, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev announced Friday.

"Today, on Aug. 26, we – the Azerbaijanis – have returned to the city of Lachin," Aliyev said on Twitter.

"Azerbaijan's Army is now stationed in the city of Lachin. The villages of Zabukh and Sus were taken under control," he added.

Aliyev also congratulated all the Lachin residents and Azerbaijan people on this occasion, declaring: "Long live Lachin! Long live Azerbaijan!"

A video on social media showed that Azerbaijan's flag has been raised on a building in the city center of Lachin.

Accompanied by a group of soldiers, Maj. Gen. Kanan Seyidov, the commander of the army corps, said that the Azerbaijani military has taken full control of the city of Lachin, as well as the villages of Zabukh and Sus, in line with the directives of the president.

Lachin lies on the route between the city of Khankendi in Karabakh and Armenia.

Meanwhile, the Turkish Foreign Ministry also made a statement regarding the return of the city of Lachin and the villages of Zabuh and Sus to Azerbaijan.

"We are pleased that the city of Lachin and the villages of Zabuh and Sus have been returned to Azerbaijan today as part of the ongoing process in line with the issues expressed in the Tripartite Declaration of Nov. 9, 2020," the ministry stated.

"We hope that this development, which constitutes a significant step towards the establishment of peace and stability in the South Caucasus, will contribute to regional normalization as well as Azerbaijan-Armenia relations.

"Türkiye will continue to support the territorial integrity and sovereignty of brotherly Azerbaijan, as it has done so far," the statement added.

Russian peacekeepers and the Armenian population have left the areas along the route known as the Lachin corridor, where Lachin, Zabuh and Sus are located. The area was temporarily put under Russian control in line with the tripartite declaration signed by Moscow, Baku and Yerevan on Nov. 10, 2020, following 44 days of the Second Karabakh War between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

As part of the declaration, Azerbaijan built a 32-kilometer (20-mile) road passing around Lachin for the Armenian population in Karabakh to use on their way to and from Armenia.

Russian peacekeepers providing security on the route of the old Lachin corridor were required to move the checkpoints to the new road. Lachin and its villages were occupied by the Armenian Army in 1992, and then Armenians brought from Syria and Lebanon were settled there in the following years.

Throughout the process, Azerbaijan has declared that it sees this as a war crime and a violation of the Geneva Conventions.

Biden to travel to New York Sept. 18-20 for U.N. General Assembly

Mary Lazarian

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 12:23,

YEREVAN, AUGUST 26, ARMENPRESS. U.S. President Joe Biden will travel to New York Sept. 18-20 to participate in a session of the United Nations General Assembly, Reuters reports citing a statement from the White House.

The UNGA high-level week will start September 20.

Earlier Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as the head of the delegation to the 77th United Nations General Assembly.