Author: Parkev Tvankchian

10 more influential politicians join Circle of Friendship with Artsakh in Australia

Parkev Tvankchian
Arminfo, Armenia
Aug 6 2020

ArmInfo.  Ten influential  political figures joined the Circle of Friendship with Artsakh in  Australia, including the former Minister of Finance of Australia, the  former Ambassador to the United States, as well as members of the  City Councils of a number of Australian cities, prominent scientists  and public figures, the press service of Artsak MFA reports.

On behalf of the people and authorities of the Republic of Artsakh,  Permanent Representative of Artsakh to Australia Kaylar Mikaelian  welcomed the membership of the prominent Australian figures in the  expanding Circle of Friendship with Artsakh, expressing his gratitude  to them for supporting the aspirations of the people of Artsakh to  live in peace and security in their historic homeland.

The establishment of a Circle of Friendship with Artsakh in Australia  was announced during the working visit of the delegation of the  Republic of Artsakh to Australia on August 1, 2019, headed by Foreign  Minister Masis Mayilian.  Member of the National Assembly of Artsakh  David Ishkhanian was also part of the delegation. The Friendship  Circle was established with the active support of the Armenian  National Committee of Australia.

Currently, the Friendship circle has 57 members, including Australian  Federal Ministers and MPs, a State Prime Minister and members of a  State Council, political figures, scientists, intellectuals, as well  as clergymen, cultural figures and representatives of community  organizations.


Netflix acquires Armenian Genocide film The Promise

Parkev Tvankchian

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 15:10, 3 August, 2020

YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Netflix has acquired The Promise for streaming starting August 8, producer Eric Esrailian tweeted.

“We are thrilled to announce The Promise was acquired by Netflix for streaming starting 8/8. Thank you ALL for your support & we know it will now raise even more awareness. Thanks to the unparalleled generosity of our dear friend & mentor Kirk Kerkorian, our team specifically made this film & our historical documentary counterpart, Intent To Destroy, to get US legislators to recognize the Armenian Genocide once & for all. We accomplished that mission thanks to all of you & our social impact campaign. No amount of denial by human rights abusers or minions will undo that fact. We donated all of the downstream revenue from the films – & ongoing/unpublicized orders of magnitude beyond that – to charitable organizations in education, healthcare, science, human rights, social services, culture & more in the US, Armenia & around the world”, he said.

Set during the waning days of the Ottoman Turkish Empire and the Armenian Genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Turks, “The Promise” tells the story of a love triangle sparked between an Armenian medical student, Michael (Oscar Issac), Anna (Charlotte Le Bon), and renowned American photojournalist Chris Myers (Christian Bale).

Armenian-American philanthropist and billionaire Kirk Kerkorian envisioned the movie. He died before the filming began.

Reporting by Angela Hambardzumyan; Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Attack on Armenian school in San Francisco to be investigated as hate crime

Parkev Tvankchian
Public Radio of Armenia

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The vandalism and attack on San Francisco’s Krouzian-Zekarian Vasbouragan school and the adjacent community center will be investigated as a hate crime, the San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin announced late Friday, Asbarez reports.

“We are absolutely treating this investigation as a hate crime. It is outrageous. It is an attack on every single one of us in San Francisco. There is no place for intolerance or hate,” Boudin told KTVU 2, the local FOX affiliate in San Francisco.

On Friday, San Francisco Armenian community members woke up to the horrific site of anti-Armenian—pro-Azerbaijani—graffiti spray painted on the walls of the school, which is a pre-K to eight grade school run by the Board of Regents of the Prelacy Armenian Schools. The adjacent community center, on Brotherhood Way, was also vandalized with hate speech.

San Francisco District Attorney Boudin was the first to express outrage at the hate attack.

“Someone vandalized the Armenian school/community center. I’m outraged. This is totally inconsistent with San Francisco values. It is also a CRIME,” said Boudin on Twitter Friday. “We are working with San Francisco Police Department to investigate. We stand with our Armenian brothers and sisters.”

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said: “Each and every one of us has a duty to stand up to hate wherever it appears. The KZV Armenian School is a part of the beautiful fabric of our San Francisco family. The hateful defacing of this place of community & learning is a disgrace.”

Pelosi was joined by fellow Bay Area Congresswoman Jackie Speier, who also Tweeted Saturday saying, “The vandalism scarring the KZV School and Armenian Community Center must be investigated. It is an act of hate and should be considered a hate crime. My heart goes out to KZV’s students, teachers and parents. The perpetrators must be brought to justice.”

This hate crime follows a pattern of racially-motivated attacks against Armenians, including the mob attacks against Armenians by Azerbaijanis in Russia, an arson attack on an Armenian embassy vehicle in Germany, and the deliberate burning down of an Armenian business in Ukraine. A similar incident involving racially charged anti-Armenian vandalism of Armenian schools in Los Angeles took place last year, forcing these schools to be on high alert to closely monitor the situation.

Coronavirus: Iran’s total number of recoveries passes 250,000

Parkev Tvankchian

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 14:38,

YEREVAN, JULY 25, ARMENPRESS. The number of patients who recovered from the novel coronavirus in Iran has surpassed 250,000, the healthcare ministry’s official said, RIA Novosti reports.

2,316 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Iran in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 288,839.

The death toll has risen to 15,484.

Reporting by Angela Hambardzumyan; Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Asbarez: Yerevan, Stepanakert Slam Ankara for Destabilizing Region

Parkev Tvankchian

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev (left) embraces his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan

The foreign ministries of Armenia and Artsakh on Monday condemned Turkey’s unconditional support for Azerbaijan after its forces brazenly attacked military and civilian positions in Armenia’s Tavush Province on Sunday.

The Turkish foreign ministry issued a statement on Sunday voicing unequivocal support to Baku and decrying what it called “yet another manifestation of Armenia’s aggressive nationalism.”

“Turkey will continue, with all its capacity, to stand by Azerbaijan in its struggle to protect its territorial integrity,” said the Turkish foreign ministry statement.

“On July 12, the Foreign Ministry of Turkey issued a statement, in which the it not only expressed its unconditional support to Azerbaijan, and, in fact, justified the use of force by Azerbaijan on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, but also disseminated utterly false and misleading information,” said a statement issued by Armenia’s Foreign Ministry.

“This provocation by Turkey and its groundless accusations against Armenia attest to the fact that this country [Turkey] has not been acting as a member of the OSCE Minsk Group, but as a party involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. This fact makes it even more impossible for Turkey to play any role in the issues related to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, within international, and particularly the OSCE framework,” added Armenia’s foreign ministry adding that Turkey’s attempts to intervene in conflicts in its neighboring countries has already undermined the security and stability the region.

“We strongly condemn Turkey’s attempts to instigate instability in our region, and affirm that Armenia will continue to consistently work toward maintaining and strengthening international and regional security, while closely cooperating with international partners to this end,” concluded the Armenian foreign ministry statement.

Official Stepanakert also echoed Yerevan’s concerns about Turkey’s membership in the OSCE Minsk Group and condemned Ankara and Baku for destabilizing regional security.

The Artsakh Foreign Ministry issued a statement Monday strongly condemning what it called “the gross violation of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in the Tavush region of the Republic of Armenia, followed by a targeted escalation of tensions.”

”The attack on the Armenian positions by the Azerbaijani army with the employment of heavy equipment, as well as the mortar shelling of the border villages of Armenia pose a direct threat to regional security and stability. We reiterate that the distorted notions advance by Azerbaijan’s leadership of the supremacy of military force over international is a source of constant threats and a serious destabilizing factor in the South Caucasus,” added the Artsakh foreign ministry.

“We resolutely reject any attempt to encourage Baku’s neglect of its international obligations. In this regard, we consider the statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry in support of the provocations and violations of the ceasefire regime by Azerbaijan unacceptable. We emphasize once again that such a position by Turkey makes its membership in the OSCE Minsk Group senseless,” explained the foreign ministry.

“We urge the international community and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs to give a proper assessment of both the actions of Azerbaijan on destabilizing the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and the encouragement of these steps by Ankara,’’ concluded the Artsakh foreign ministry statement.

New multi-apartment district in Stepanakert will be composed of 300 apartments

Parkev Tvankchian
Panorama, Armenia
July 6 2020

Artsakh Republic President Arayik Harutyunyan convened a working consultation on house construction programs being implemented in Stepanakert.

Responsible officials of the "Dominic System" LLC presented to the President the process of the construction activities of the multi-apartment district being carried out by the company in the capital, the president office reported. Arayik Harutyunyan mentioned that the district should be complied with the requirements of the draft master plan of Stepanakert, and before being purchased by the Artsakh Investment Fund, the apartments must receive a relevant professional conclusion of the representatives of the Ministry of Urban Development. According to the President, in conformity with the logic of the announced policy, the purchase price of the apartments will be offered by the government, though the project owner will be free to make a decision in case of having a better offer.

Representatives of the "Dominic system" company expressed their appreciation to the President for the cooperation, and assured that, in accordance with the plan, 120 apartments will be commissioned in 2022, and 180 apartments will be put into operation over the next 3 years, the source said.

UNESCO warns Turkey against Hagia Sophia mosque conversion

Parkev Tvankchian
Public Radio of Armenia
July 10 2020

Society 17:45 10/07/2020Region

The UN's cultural agency UNESCO warned Turkey Friday against converting the Byzantine-era Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul into a mosque, urging dialogue before any decision is taken, AFP reported.

The Hagia Sophia, which was first a cathedral then a mosque after the conquest of Istanbul, is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site as part of an area designated as "Historic Areas of Istanbul."

"This inscription entails a number of commitments and legal obligations," a UNESCO spokeswoman told AFP.

"Thus, a state must ensure that no modification affects the exceptional universal value of the property inscribed on its territory," the spokeswoman said, adding that any modification requires prior notification to UNESCO and possibly examination by its World Heritage Committee.

She noted that the Hagia Sophia was inscribed within the "Historic Areas of Istanbul" as a museum, a position that had repeatedly been communicated to Turkey through letters.

"We call on the Turkish authorities to initiate a dialogue before any decision is taken which could undermine the universal value of the site," the spokeswoman said, adding that this message was reiterated to the Turkish ambassador to UNESCO on Thursday.

The source reminds that Turkey’s Council of State, its top administrative court, is looking at a case brought by a Turkish NGO that would allow the Hagia Sophia to be re designated as a mosque, a move backed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The decision is expected later Friday, according to Turkish media.

Foreign Ministries of Armenia, Romania hold political consultations

Parkev Tvankchian

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 20:26, 2 July, 2020

YEREVAN, JULY 2, ARMENPRESS. Political consultations were held between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Romania via video conference on July 2. The consultations were chaired by Avet Adonts, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and by Dan Neculaescu, the State Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Romania.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the MFA Armenia, during the consultations, the sides discussed a wiide range of issues related to the Armenian-Romanian relations including the promotion of political dialogue, economic, cultural and parliamentary contacts.

The sides also touched upon the issues of mutual interest on regional and international agenda, as well as the cooperation within the international organizations.

Avet Adonts presented the latest developments on the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process highlighting the importance of full support of the EU and its member states to the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

COVID-19: Armenia confirms 662 new cases in past 24 hours

Parkev Tvankchian

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 11:07, 3 July, 2020

YEREVAN, JULY 3, ARMENPRESS. 662 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) have been registered in Armenia in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 27,320, the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention said today.

448 more patients have recovered. The total number of recoveries has reached 15,484.

10 people have died in one day, raising the death toll to 469.

The number of active cases stands at 11,211.

The number of people who had a coronavirus but died from other disease has reached 156 (3 new such cases).

So far, 118,102 people have passed COVID-19 testing.

Reporting by Lilit Demuryan; Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan