Author: Samvel Nahapetian

US urges reopening road between Armenia and disputed enclave

Samvel Nahapetian
Germany – May 1 2023

Azerbaijan and Armenia have been in a deadlock for decades, fighting two wars over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave that have killed thousands of people.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan over the weekend, expressing American support for the peace process and calling for the reopening of a vital road to a disputed territory.

For decades, the two neighbors have been in a deadlock, fighting two wars over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave. Tens of thousands of people have died in this conflict.

Blinken spoke with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and emphasized the importance of reopening the Lachin corridor, the only land link between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

A US State Department statement said that Blinken asserted to Aliyev US's concern that "Azerbaijan's establishment of a checkpoint on the Lachin corridor undermines efforts to establish confidence in the peace process," stressing the importance of reopening the corridor to "commercial and private vehicles as soon as possible."

Blinken also spoke with Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, reiterating the importance of Armenia-Azerbaijan peace discussions and promising continued US support.

Armenia had objected to Azerbaijan's establishing a checkpoint at the corridor's entry, calling it a violation of the 2020 cease-fire.

In 2020, Moscow brokered a cease-fire and posted peacekeepers along the Lachin corridor, but the US and the EU have sought to facilitate a thaw in ties since Russia is preoccupied with Ukraine and does not want to upset Turkey, Azerbaijan's main ally.

Asbarez: Azerbaijani Forces Fire at Farmers in Artsakh

Samvel Nahapetian
by Asbarez Staff

 

 May 5, 2023

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories

A farmer in Artsakh was targeted by Azerbaijani forces on May 5


Azerbaijani forces on Friday opened fire at farmers in Artsakh’s Askeran regional, regional law enforcement reported.

At around 10:55 a.m. Friday morning, Artsakh law enforcement agencies received reports of gunfire around the Vardazor village of the Askeran region, where a farmer, identified as A. Vahanyan, was working the field in his tractor. Azerbaijani forces had opened fire from their military positions in the area.

There were no injuries and the incident was reported to the Russian peacekeeping forces in Karabakh.

Azerbaijani authorities, meanwhile, have started the illegal settling the occupied city of Hadrut in Artsakh.

President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan personally participated in this illegal process, together with his wife Mehriban Aliyeva.

The Aliyevs “participated in the groundbreaking ceremony for the first residential quarter in Hadrut settlement,” APA reports citing information of the Azerbaijani presidential press service.

The Artsakh State Minister Gurgen Nersisyan reported on Friday that his government has sent a truckload of essential supplies to the four villages that have been surrounded by Azerbaijani forces since they breached the line-of-contact on April 11.

The supplies were sent by the Russian peacekeeping forces to the villages of Hin Shen, Mets Shen, Yegtsahogh and Lisagor in the Berdadzor located around Shushi, which are under a two-pronged blockade after Azerbaijan installed an illegal checkpoint on the Lachin Corridor on April 23.

“After Azerbaijan installed an illegal checkpoint on the highway connecting Artsakh to Armenia on the border with Armenia (Lachin (Kashatagh) corridor) on April 23, the four communities of Berdadzor sub-district of Shushi region (Hin Shen, Mets Shen, Yegtsahogh and Lisagor) appeared under a bilateral blockade, deprived of all possibilities of connection with the rest of Artsakh and Armenia. Due to the Azerbaijani obstacles, all humanitarian supplies to the residents of these villages were also stopped, and in recent days, an acute humanitarian crisis emerged there, without any stock of basic necessities,” State Minister Nersisyan explained in a social media post on Friday.

“Azerbaijan continues the complete blockade of Artsakh through both the illegal checkpoint on the Artsakh-Armenia border and the road near Shushi, already openly and illegally blocked by the Azerbaijani state. And the humanitarian supplies to Artsakh are carried out by the Russian peacekeeping troops, in very limited volumes. We are making additional efforts to restore transportation by the International Committee of the Red Cross,” added the Artsakh State Minister.

Theater: Play by thespians from Iran, Armenia, Russia, Ukraine promotes peace

Samvel Nahapetian
 TEHRAN TIMES 
Iran –

TEHRAN – A troupe comprising artists from Iran, Armenia, Russia and Ukraine has produced a theatrical performance in Yerevan promoting peace.

The play “The Border’s Secret” was co-directed by Shiva Sarmast from Iran and Harutyun Hovhannisyan from Armenia at Babylon Theater on March 24 and 25.

Sarmast and Hovhannisyan also played roles in the play, which was performed by a cast composed of Shideh Ghaffarian and Pedram Zamani from Iran, Aram Sardaryan from Armenia, Corrina Odd from Russia and Anastasia Rykunova from Ukraine.

“The idea to stage the play entered my mind during a meeting with my Armenian friends, including Harutyun Hovhannisyan,” Sarmast told the Persian service of MNA on Friday.

“We agreed to speak in our native languages, asking something from each other,” she said and added that the result was amazing, because they perceived each other demands despite their unfamiliarity with each other’s languages.
 
She said that play is about the perception of freedom in different countries and the endless struggle to achieve it and added, “Harutyun perceived the idea as the Tower of Babel myth and suggested taking it to the stage as a theatrical performance.”

Cast members first rehearsed separately and then they joined together in rehearsals that ran for a week. 

Sarmast said that due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many Ukrainian artists left their homes to live in Armenia.

“The husband of our Ukrainian cast member, Anastasia, is from Russia; they met each other at the university and one day before the beginning of our rehearsals they married amid the flames of war flickering between their countries,” she explained.

Sarmast referred to wars as mutual human sufferings and noted, “We just want to live in peace and happiness.”

She said that their desire for freedom shaped the idea for the performance and added, “Accordingly, the characters each had their own stories; they united in their performance and achieved freedom.”

“In fact, languages and borders do not matter; the secret behind the borders between the countries is not the lines drawn on maps, but the measure of the communication between the peoples living on the two sides of the lines is of great importance,” she asserted.

Sarmast said that “The Border’s Secret” won public acclaim in Yerevan and noted that their troupe is seeking to perform the play in several other countries. 

Photo: A scene from “The Border’s Secret” co-directed by Shiva Sarmast and Harutyun Hovhannisyan.

MMS/YAW

Armenian Prime Minister, Air Arabia Group CEO discuss development of partnership

Samvel Nahapetian

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 16:20,

YEREVAN, APRIL 27, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held a meeting on April 27 with CEO of Air Arabia Group Mr. Adel Al Ali.

The Prime Minister “attached importance to the partnership between the Armenian government and Air Arabia Group in the civil aviation sector, whereby the Fly Arna airline was launched and is operating,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a readout.

PM Pashinyan said that the government of Armenia is interested in further enhancing the mutually-beneficial partnership.

CEO of Air Arabia Group Adel Al Ali praised the cooperation with Armenia and noted that it has big potential for development. He expressed Air Arabia Group’s readiness to continue and expand the joint projects.

Prospects of development of the Fly Arna Armenian airline, a joint venture company between ANIF and Air Arabia Group, were also discussed. In context of developing civil aviation and increasing tourism flows, issues relating to the increase of the volumes of passenger transportation, continuous improvement of service and expansion of the geography of flights were discussed.

Survey on CSOs in Armenia highlights lack of proper protection against hate speech, pressure, and attacks against CSOs

Samvel Nahapetian

The Transparency International Anti-Corruption Centre in Armenia has presented its latest Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Meter report for Armenia.

The study was conducted by the ‘CSO Meter: A Compass to Conducive Environment and CSO Empowerment’ project, implemented with the financial support of the European Union.

The survey revealed both positive and negative developments in the areas of participation in the decision-making process, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, protection by the state, right to privacy, and digital rights.

According to the survey, the legislative progress has slightly improved the rating of freedom of speech, but practical issues remain.

It also says that a lack of proper protection against hate speech, pressure, and attacks against CSOs and unequal treatment of CSOs and businesses in registration and taxation issues continue to be problematic. Additionally, the effectiveness of CSO participation in decision-making processes and lack of incentives for financial stability of CSOs are also issues.

The report is available in English and Armenian.

Find out more

Press release

https://euneighbourseast.eu/news/latest-news/survey-on-csos-in-armenia-highlights-lack-of-proper-protection-against-hate-speech-pressure-and-attacks-against-csos/

Sports: Samvel Gasparyan – two-time European Champion

Samvel Nahapetian
NEWS.am
Armenia –

Samvel Gasparyan (109 kg) became a two-time European Champion.

2021 European Champion and 2022 World Championship bronze medalist Samvel Gasparyan won the European Champion title by lifting the total weight of 395 kg.

The second representative of Armenia in the same weight category, Petros Petrosyan, became the bronze medalist with the total result of 379 kg.

The representative of Georgia Giorgi Chkheidze became the Vice-Champion of Europe – 381 kg.

Pashinyan signals readiness to sign Yerevan’s draft of peace agreement with Baku

Samvel Nahapetian
 TASS 
Russia –
Armenia and Azerbaijan have exchanged drafts of a peace agreement several times through international mediators

YEREVAN, April 21. /TASS/. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is poised to put his signature on Armenia’s draft of the peace agreement with Azerbaijan, but Baku is not reciprocating, Pashinyan said at the parliament on Friday.

"I am ready to sign the document which we submitted to the Azerbaijani side, but Azerbaijan is not accepting it. We have to decide what to do. We have enough legitimacy, a sufficient mandate to make decisions concerning Armenia’s future," he said.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have exchanged drafts of a peace agreement several times through international mediators.

Television and Radio Commission chief tells lawmakers to watch their language during live broadcast debates

Samvel Nahapetian

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 14:00, 13 April 2023

YEREVAN, APRIL 13, ARMENPRESS. The Chairman of the Television and Radio Commission of Armenia Tigran Hakobyan called on lawmakers to watch their language and refrain from using profanities during debates in order to reduce negative content and hate speech on television.

Hakobyan made the remarks in parliament during the debates on the commission’s 2022 report and freedom of information in the audio-video media, when asked by MP Gegham Nazaryan about the violations of the ethical norms and spread of hate speech and violence by online television companies.

“How will Armenia get rid of this garbage and disaster? People watch channels on their phones full of hate speech, evil, fake news. What can be done to regulate this issue?” Nazaryan asked.

“It is very difficult to fight against calls of violence, hate speech, generally negative content on the air if the same is happening in parliament during live broadcast debates. I don’t have the right to call upon you. But, if you want to reduce this on television, you must watch your language and not allow such lexicon here,” Hakobyan told lawmakers.

Russia asks Armenia to clarify why it is taking part in NATO military drills

Samvel Nahapetian
 TASS 
Russia –
"Certainly, Yerevan's refusal to host CSTO maneuvers causes regret and does not contribute to enhancing regional security," Maria Zakharova stressed

MOSCOW, April 12. /TASS/. Moscow has asked Yerevan to clarify why Armenia is taking part in joint military exercises with NATO, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing on Wednesday.

"We have requested official explanations from our Armenian partners about their participation in NATO exercises. We will decide on our reaction when we receive the answer," she said.

"Certainly, Yerevan's refusal to host CSTO maneuvers causes regret and does not contribute to enhancing regional security," the diplomat stressed.

NATO continues the practice of actively engaging partner countries in its maneuvers and seeks to mold the defense complexes of these states and gain leverage over their domestic and foreign policy processes. Zakharova noted. "First of all, of course, this applies to the post-Soviet space, which is a real arena for NATO's geopolitical confrontation with Russia. The United States and its allies are trying to undermine the cooperation of states in the region with our country by involving them into various formats of interaction, which are clearly anti-Russian, if not to say Russophobic at times," the diplomat said.

"Such actions by NATO lead to the destabilization of the situation in various regions, the growth of conflict potential and the creation of new dividing lines," Zakharova summed up.

Senior MP comments on CSTO document on deployment of mission

Samvel Nahapetian

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 15:17, 6 April 2023

YEREVAN, APRIL 6, ARMENPRESS. Armenia never rejected the deployment of a CSTO monitoring mission on its territory, but the document envisaging the deployment is still in the phase of amendments, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs MP Sargis Khandanyan told reporters.

“Armenia never rejected the deployment of a CSTO monitoring mission, but the document envisaging the deployment is still in the phase of amendments. And it is important for the records to be made, which we believe would objectively present what actually happened against the sovereign territory of Armenia. Naturally, without accepting this and without assessing the situation in detail, it will be difficult to imagine what kind of a mission and in what territory the mission is to be conducted,” Khandanyan said.

“And when Armenia will consider the draft document in a given stage to match Yerevan’s position and desires, that’s when it will be possible to speak about the deployment of a CSTO monitoring mission,” he added.