11:57,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. President of Russia Vladimir Putin briefed members of the Security Council on the results of the talks with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Sochi, the Kremlin said in a press release.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participates in the 30th meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund in Yerevan.
As the press service of the Armenan government told NEWS.am, President Armen Sarkissian, President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan and others are also participating in the meeting.
The meeting began with a minute of silence in memory of the Armenians who died in the name of security and protection of the Motherland, after which those present began to discuss issues on the agenda.
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22:04,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS. The CSTO is not only a multilateral platform, but also a very strong channel and platform of our strategic relations with Russia, ARMENPRESS reports Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said in an online press conference, answering the question in which cases Armenia can think of leaving the CSTO.
“I do not think that Armenia will consider leaving the CSTO, since I want to emphasize that the CSTO is not only a multilateral platform, but also a very strong channel and platform of our strategic relations with Russia. As a presiding country, we must work for the CSTO to play a proper role in ensuring security in our region”, Pashinyan said.
He noted that some of the CSTO member states signed with Turkey the strategy of the Turkic world, which is a reality that cannot but have an impact. “The next reality is that the RF is the strategic partner of the Republic of Armenia and that partnership is invaluable. I want to emphasize that I highly appreciate the role of the Russian Federation in ensuring Armenia's security. I highly appreciate the activities of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno Karabakh. We must state that Russia, being a strategic ally of Armenia, is not an enemy of Azerbaijan, but a friend and ally”, Nikol Pashinyan said. He expressed a desire for Armenia's allies and partners to use political leverage to protect mutually recognized rights.
"On the other hand, Armenia will not limit itself to various international instances and circles. An attempt is made to oppose the meetings in Brussels and Sochi. There is no contradiction between them, because we cannot refuse the offer of any partner”, Pashinyan said.
and
Armenian soldiers patrol a checkpoint outside Agdam, Azerbaijan to let vehicles leave the region as the territory is due to be returned to Azerbaijan as stipulated in a Moscow-brokered peace deal signed by Armenia and Azerbaijan, in 2020.
Photographer: Karen Minasyan/AFP/Getty Image
Russia brokered a truce between Armenia and Azerbaijan Tuesday after deadly clashes prompted Yerevan to ask Moscow for military assistance in a new flare-up between the Caucasus neighbors that fought a 44-day war last year.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that fighting had stopped in the area after negotiations with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Tass reported. Armenia’s Defense Ministry said a truce took effect at 6:30pm local time.
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the crisis in a phone call with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the Kremlin said.
That call came after Armenia appealed for Russian assistance under a 1997 mutual-defense treaty. There was no immediate official response from Moscow.
Armenia’s Defense Ministry said it lost two military positions and one soldier was killed. Another 12 were captured by Azeri forces, it said.
The Azeri Defense Ministry said Armenians were leaving their military positions “in panic.”
Tensions remain high between Azerbaijan and Armenia after six weeks of fighting last year that killed over 6,000 troops on both sides. Azerbaijan reclaimed control of parts of the mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding territory before Russia brokered a cease-fire a year ago, deploying 2,000 troops to maintain peace.
14:42,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 20, ARMENPRESS. Foreign minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan gave an interview to French Le Figaro newspaper, ARMENPRESS was informed from the MFA Armenia.
What is the situation on the border and in Nagorno Karabakh one year after the conflict?
Azerbaijan's military aggression against Nagorno Karabakh ended with a trilateral declaration on the ceasefire on November 9, 2020. However, the situation remains very tense. During this year, about thirty serious violations of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan have been registered, as a result of which there have been casualties on the Armenian side. Civilians were also killed.
Nevertheless, Armenia is making every effort to establish lasting peace in the region. However, for this process to be effective, the efforts must be bilateral.
What efforts is Armenia ready to make?
The rhetoric of the two sides is very different. Armenia speaks of opening all channels of communication, while Azerbaijan insists on the so-called "corridor" (with Nakhichevan, which is located between Armenia, Turkey and Iran, ed.). Armenia, as a manifestation of goodwill, is ready to hand over all the maps of minefields located in the region, but Azerbaijan, despite its obligation, does not release the Armenian prisoners of war.
When we talk about peace, Azerbaijan multiplies xenophobic statements. These are evidenced by the speeches of the president of Azerbaijan, the “trophy park" opened in Baku this spring, where Armenians are presented humiliated and ridiculed.
Where can lead this hate speech you are talking about?
The answer to this difficult question is in Baku. Hatred can lead to annihilation or genocide. The Armenian people know that.
Lasting peace is possible, but it is difficult to imagine the presence of the Armenian population in the territories controlled by Azerbaijan. No Armenians live in the territories that passed under the control of Azerbaijan as a result of the war, which is a factual proof of ethnic cleansing.
How many POWs are kept in Azerbaijan?
There is a lot of evidence about the inhuman, degrading treatment and torture of Armenian prisoners of war. These cases have been documented by various international non-governmental organizations, including the Human Rights Watch. We also have documented videos and photos that prove that these people were captured, but Azerbaijan does not confirm their existence.
They may have been executed extrajudicially, held in underground prisons, or trafficked in human organs. Azerbaijan has confirmed the existence of 40 Armenian prisoners of war, and has denied the existence of 100 of them.
Last Wednesday you met with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, and then took part in a trilateral meeting with your counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov involving the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. What was the result of the meeting?
First of all, I would like to thank President Macron, the French parliamentarians, all those who have shown support to Armenia.
I would also like to emphasize the importance of resuming negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. Of course, the issue of the final settlement of the conflict is on the agenda. But at this stage we agreed to take small steps to secure the release of prisoners of war and the entry of international organizations, including UNESCO, into Nagorno-Karabakh for humanitarian purposes, which will be aimed at monitoring the Armenian historical and cultural heritage, since the historical-cultural heritage of Artsakh under threat of deliberate extinction by Azerbaijan.
One such example is the bombing of the Holy Savior Cathedral in Shushi with the use of UAVs during the war. About 1,500 cultural monuments and 19,000 museum specimens of Artsakh are endangered.
What role should Russia play, which has deployed 2,000 peacekeepers in Nagorno Karabakh to maintain the ceasefire?
Russia managed to end the war on the 44th day of hostilities. Russia is a Co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group. The Russian peacekeeping forces ensure the security of the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh, contribute to the restoration of normal life. Violations of the ceasefire by Azerbaijan are directed also against the reputation of Russian peacekeepers.
Is Armenia ready to normalize its relations with Turkey, to accept the corridor connecting Azerbaijan with Turkey?
We have always stated that we are ready to normalize our relations without preconditions, despite the huge support provided by Turkey to Azerbaijan during the war against Artsakh, both politically and through the supply of weapons, as well as the deployment of thousands of foreign mercenaries.
We have received positive signals from Turkey to reopen the dialogue, but it remains complicated. Ankara puts forward new conditions. Among them is the "corridor" connecting Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan. It cannot be a subject of discussion at all. Countries should allow transit while maintaining their sovereignty over their territory. All communication channels in the region should be reopened.
Russian, Turkish FMs discuss regional issues
19:37,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed regional issues in a telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, ARMENPRESS reports, Ria Novosti informs, citing its source in the Turkish foreign ministry.
“Today, the Turkish Foreign Minister had a telephone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, discussing bilateral relations and some regional issues”, the source said.
16:03,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 18, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Foreign Ministry says it has preliminary information that there are two Armenian citizens among those who are being evacuated from Afghanistan by the Russian military. “This is preliminary information,” foreign ministry spokesperson Vahan Hunanyan told ARMENPRESS.
The Foreign Ministry spokesperson was asked to elaborate when the Russian government announced that its military planes are en route to Afghanistan to evacuate citizens of Russia and other CSTO countries, including Armenia.
Aram Sargsyan
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
On November 14, at around 1 pm, in one of the eastern sections of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces with the support of armored vehicles intruded into the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, Armenia’s Security Council said in a statement.
“As a result of negotiations, the Azerbaijani military equipment and troops left the territory of the Republic of Armenia, the units of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia were withdrawn from the above-mentioned four combat positions. Nevertheless, Azerbaijani servicemen who invaded the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia in May of this year continue to be deployed in the mentioned section,” the Council said.
“The rumors that the superior command of the Armed Forces or the political leadership has given an instruction not to show resistance do not correspond to reality. The Security Council of the Republic of Armenia has instructed the relevant bodies to conduct a proper investigation of the incident,” the statement reads.
The Security Council draws the attention of the Russian Federation, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the international community to the aggressive actions of the Azerbaijani armed forces and emphasizes that these actions are directed against the authorities of the Republic of Armenia, Armenia’s territorial integrity and regional security and stability, and contradict the provisions of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020.
The Security Council of the Republic of Armenia expresses the determination of the authorities and the people to protect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of the homeland.
“The Government of the Republic of Armenia has taken measures to create a new network of alternative roads in Syunik region and these works will be completed in the near future. We consider it necessary to emphasize that no settlement of the Republic of Armenia is deprived of vital roads,”
The Security Council of the Republic of Armenia continues to emphasize the need for a peaceful resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border situation, i.e. the withdrawal of troops from the de jure established border of Soviet Armenia and Soviet Azerbaijan and the start of demarcation and delimitation of the border under international auspices.
The Council also calls on the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to intensify efforts for a peaceful and comprehensive settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
YEREVAN. – Foreign Minister of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan, who is in Paris to participate in the 41st session of the UNESCO General Conference, on Thursday held a meeting with the foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki of Palestine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.
The FM emphasized the rich historical-cultural ties and traditional friendship of the Armenian and Arab peoples.
The interlocutors touched upon the urgent issues of mutual interest, and underlined the importance of undertaking practical steps aimed at deepening the Armenian-Palestinian political dialogue.
The issues on the Armenian historical-cultural and religious heritage in the Holy Land were discussed, too.
18:48,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Russia highlights continuation of efforts aimed at solving the problems facing the region in the format of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs, ARMENPRESS reports official representative of the Foreign Ministry of Russia Maria Zakharova said in a weekly briefing.
“The format of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs has broad international support, as stated in a statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry on November 9 this year. We consider it necessary to continue the efforts of the troika in the context of solving the socio-economic and humanitarian problems facing the region”, Zakharova said.
She recalled the September 24 meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia within the framework of the UN General Assembly in New York under the auspices of the Minsk Group on September 24. "Currently, the trio is contacts in a number of European capitals. We consider it important to resume the practice of the troika visiting the region in full format as soon as possible," Zakharova said.