Author: Tatoyan Vazgen

‘Military movements near un-demarcated borders are irresponsible and provocative’ – Jake Sullivan tells Aliyev

Tatoyan Vazgen

‘Military movements near un-demarcated borders are irresponsible and provocative’ – Jake Sullivan tells Aliyev

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 10:07,

YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. US President’s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke separately with caretakter Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia and President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, the White House reported.

Mr. Sullivan conveyed the commitment of the United States to peace, security, and prosperity in the South Caucasus. 

He expressed concern over recent tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and emphasized that military movements near un-demarcated borders are irresponsible and provocative. He welcomed the ongoing communication between the two sides and both leaders’ commitment to resolving this issue peacefully. 

In addition, he underscored the need for the two countries to conduct formal discussions to demarcate their international border. Finally, he conveyed the commitment of the United States to achieving regional reconciliation through bilateral engagement and as a Minsk Group Co-Chair.

CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers to discuss situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Tatoyan Vazgen
Public Radio of Armenia

Armenia’s acting Defense Minister Vagharshak Harutyunyan had a telephone conversation with the Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Stanislav Zas.

Vagharshak Harutyunyan presented the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, noting that despite the fact that according to the agreement reached, several groups of Azerbaijani servicemen returned to their starting positions today, some of them are still in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, and the problem, actually, has not been solved.

The Armenian Defense Minister noted that taking into account the fact that the Azerbaijani military is under the full control of the Armenian units, as well as the fact that large forces are accumulated on both sides of the border, the consequences may be unpredictable if the situation is not resolved quickly.

Stanislav Zas noted, in turn, that they are closely following the developments, and added that the issue will be discussed at the upcoming meeting of the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers in Dushanbe.

Armenian authorities treacherously failed all opportunities of organization of Armenia’s self-defense – expert

Tatoyan Vazgen
Aysor, Armenia
    

Syunik is external border for Iran, political analyst Suren Sargsyan wrote on Facebook.

“It is an entry to the EAEU (which [Iran] wants to join to). The only land border with the EAEU. If Iran loses this border it becomes fully dependent on Turkey (NATO). Iran also looses the road to Europe independent from Turkey (through Armenia and Georgia),” Sargsyan wrote, adding that above he also described the interest of the USA and Israel.

The expert writes that Syunik gives Turkey opportunity to implement its “Big Turan” project which will essentially raise Turkey’s influence in the Islamic and Turkic world – Turkey will become global super power (like the USA and China).

“Apart from it the oil-gas resources of Middle Asia countries (and not only Middle Asian) will pass through Syunik (which could become part of Azerbaijan or Turkey) as a result of which in the issue of energy bearers Europe will depend not only on Russia like it is now, but exclusively on Turkey,” the analyst wrote, adding that it is about Russia’s interest.

“Together with it Russia’s influence will essentially reduce not only in Europe but in the Middle Asia. Alongside, Russian base in Syunik means military base under Turkey’s nose with all the stemming consequences,” Sargsyan wrote.

"Here is a historical reference. Back in 1992 Turkey’s President Ozal Bush was convincing to exchange Karabakh with Syunik. “Karabakh – to Armenians, Syunik to Azerbaijan. All the pipelines are going to Russia or are passing through Russia’s territory. Even now Turkmen gas passes through Russia. With the help of my plan we can unite this pipeline through Azerbaijan to Turkey and take to Europe. These states need to go out to Europe not through Russia’s territory.”

The most painful in all this is that the Armenian authorities have treacherously failed all the opportunities of organization of Armenia’s self-defense,” Sargsyan noted.

Armenian parliament to be dissolved, early elections scheduled on June 20

Tatoyan Vazgen

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 20:00, 10 May, 2021

YEREVAN, MAY 10, ARMENPRESS. The National Assembly of Armenia did not elect Nikol Pashinyan as Prime Minister for the 2nd time according to the political consensus to call early elections. The Constitution of Armenia envisages that the parliament gets dissoved if it fails to elect a Prime Minister twice.

Early parliamentary elections are scheduled on June 20.

Kim Kardashian says son Psalm “looks Armenian”

Tatoyan Vazgen

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 15:35,

YEREVAN, MAY 10, ARMENPRESS. American-Armenian reality TV superstar Kim Kardashian congratulated her son Psalm on the 2nd birthday, noting that he “looks most Armenian”.

“My Taurus baby Psalm. He turns 2 today on Mother’s Day. Such a special day to share together. He’s my child that looks most Armenian to me like my grandpa and reminds me so much of my dad. He is the sweetest baby ever!!! I can’t even describe his smile and sweetness that everyone just feels when they are with him. Psalm- you have brought such calmness and evenness into all of our lives! All of your cousins and siblings love you so much! You really are the joy of our crew! Mommy loves you SOOOOOO much!!!” Kim Kardashian said on Instagram.





Three more prisoners of war returned to Armenia from Azerbaijan

Tatoyan Vazgen
JAM News
May 5 2021
    JAMnews, Baku-Yerevan

Three more prisoners of war have been returned to Armenia from Azerbaijan.

The plane landed with them at the Erebuni airport in Yerevan. The government reported that their return took place thanks to the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries and against the backdrop of growing international pressure on Azerbaijan.

“We hope that this process will have a logical continuation and will soon be completed,” acting Vice Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan.

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The last time the exchange of prisoners between Armenia and Azerbaijan took place was on February 9, 2021.

Then, five Armenian prisoners of war returned to their homeland. In total, since the end of the second Karabakh war, 66 prisoners, including civilians, have been returned to Armenia.

Armenia handed over 15 people to Azerbaijan. Among them are not only the Azerbaijanis Shahbaz Guliyev and Dilham Askerov, who were convicted long before that in Nagorno-Karabakh for the murder of a child, espionage and other crimes. Before the war, the Armenian side did not agree to return them under any pretext.

At least 59 people continue to remain in Azerbaijan. All of them, like those who returned to Yerevan today, come from the Shirak region of Armenia.

Baku earlier confirmed information that 62 soldiers were taken prisoner by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces in Karabakh in December 2020, that is, after the cessation of hostilities. Azerbaijan refuses to give them away, declaring them to be saboteurs.

Meanwhile, the Armenian side appeals to the trilateral statement signed by the heads of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia, according to which all prisoners of war and detainees should be returned.

Armenian human rights activists claim that Azerbaijan continues to hold about a hundred more prisoners of war. The Azerbaijani side does not confirm this information.

According to Azerbaijani media reports, “in accordance with the humanism and humanistic policy demonstrated by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, three Armenian servicemen disarmed in Karabakh after the trilateral statement signed on November 10, 2020” were released.

It is noted that Robert Vardanyan, Samvel Shukhyan and Seyran Tamrazyan were released.

“During the investigation, it was confirmed that these persons are Armenian military personnel, but their involvement in criminal activities, including operations that resulted in the death or injury of Azerbaijani military personnel or civilians, has not been established,” the statement said.

In December 2020, 62 servicemen of the Armenian Armed Forces were detained on the territory of the Khojavend region in Karabakh.

President Ilham Aliyev presented Azerbaijan’s position regarding their retention during his press conference for local and foreign journalists:

“After the end of hostilities, according to our information, on the 20th of November from Armenia – from the Shirak region, from the city of Gyumri and adjacent regions – a detachment of more than 60 people was sent. Azerbaijani army.

It turned out that this was a sabotage group that attacked both our servicemen and civilians. […]

Naturally, we carried out a counter-terrorist operation, as a result of which several terrorists were completely neutralized, and more than 60 were captured. Today, when they are trying to call them prisoners of war, I think that they deliberately distort the essence of the issue. […]

These are terrorists and saboteurs. And any speculation on the part of Armenia or some countries is inappropriate. “

https://jam-news.net/three-more-prisoners-of-war-returned-to-armenia-from-azerbaijan/

Works of Saryan, Babajanyan, Ter-Tadevosyan to be performed at Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall –

Tatoyan Vazgen
Panorama, Armenia
May 4 2021

Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall will host a concert on Tuesday at 19.30 to open the 12th edition of the Armenian Composers' Art Festival. The concert programme features works by Ghazaros Saryan, Arno Babajanyan, Jivan Ter-Tadevosyan. Violinist Hayk Kazazyan will perform with the State Symphony Orchestra of Armenia. The concert will be conducted by Vahagn Papyan. 

The Armenian Composers' Art Festival will be held this year from May 4 to 22, aiming to  popularize the works of Armenian classic and contemporary composers’ works, recording of the symphony and chamber works of Armenian composers as well as digitization of the scores.  Each year the festival traditionally bears the name of one famous composer, whose anniversary is being celebrated during that year. The Festival is held twice a year, and each session consists of 5-6 concerts.

Turkish press: Turkey-US relations after Biden’s 1915 scandal | Opinion

Tatoyan Vazgen
 OP-ED 
APR 27, 2021 12:05 AM GMT+3
Turkish protesters are kept separated from Armenian protestors to avoid confrontation in front of the Turkish Embassy on the 106th anniversary of the 1915 events, in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 24, 2021. (AFP Photo)

On April 24, U.S. President Joe Biden recognized the 1915 events as "genocide." Considering the U.S.' aggressive foreign policy as of late, this move does not come as a surprise at all.

In recent years, there has been an increasing trend in the West to verbally attack Ankara and engage in populism – indicating that the West perceives Turkey as a threat.

It is true that Ankara's reforms and investments in its national defense industry have made the country more powerful today than ever before. However, this does not make Turkey a threat to the world.

If the West paid sincere attention to the Turkish strategy, it would understand that Ankara is open to the world, offering great commercial, investment and military advantages.

In other words, by allying with a stronger Turkey, the West could strengthen its position in the geostrategic balance of the entire Middle East, for example.

However, these NATO "allies" attempt to weaken Turkey both economically and politically while destabilizing the region. Take the U.S. for example, the globals arms lobby and U.S. establishment prevent the White House from following a rational foreign policy in the existing multipolar world.

The incumbent U.S. president even once said that he would overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with the help of the Turkish opposition following the July 15 coup attempt by the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ).

The situation is similar in Greece. Taking advantage of the conflict between Ankara and Athens, the U.S. is expanding in Greece by opening new military bases.

While Greece thus becomes a U.S. pawn, Turkey faces a military threat from its Western border. This is also how Washington came to open a naval base in Western Thrace, 30 kilometers (18.5 miles) from the Turkish border.

Therefore, when taking into consideration the current situation in U.S. foreign policy, it is not surprising that Biden officially recognized the alleged genocide. But can a state in principle recognize an alleged genocide?

Although the U.S. and several European states have so far declared that there was a genocide against the Armenians, these declarations are void ex tunc.

Simply put, it is not for any political authority to pass judgment on genocide as politicians and state institutions lack the necessary expertise and legal authority in this regard. This can be clearly seen from the European Court of Human Rights' (ECtHR) judgment in the case "Switzerland vs. Perinçek" (27510/08).

While the ECtHR allows for open discussion of the topic, it also affirms that only an international criminal court can pass judgment about whether an event can be classified as genocide.

It is also clear from the judgment that there was no evidence to authenticate the alleged genocide against the Armenians, nor did an international criminal court confirm the charges.

Consequently, the ECtHR proved in its ruling that the Armenians were not subject to genocide at any point.

Despite this decision, some Western parliaments and presidents continue to accuse Turkey of having committed genocide against Armenians, which clearly shows that the aim is to weaken Turkey.

Now, the West's next step could be to demand reparations or territories from Ankara as compensation through a judicial process.

Yet, the ECtHR's ruling, as evidenced by numerous documents in the archives, prohibits such a step. Accusations do not automatically become reality solely based on one state's recognition.

Despite the ECtHR's ruling, Ankara has even offered to open its archives and establish an international committee to examine the genocide claims. But Armenia has repeatedly rejected this offer.

If one listens to the first Armenian president, Hovhannes Kajaznuni, one can understand why Armenia is against this proposal.

Kajaznuni once said that there was only a conflict between Turks and Armenians, which the latter instigated to establish a "Greater Armenia" with the promised support of the West in 1915, but there was no genocide.

According to him, Armenians murdered countless Turks to achieve this goal and the Turks were only defending themselves. Thus, opening the archives will reveal that the genocide did not take place.

In fact, it is quite the contrary. Turks were systematically killed in the name of Greater Armenia. As a result, Yerevan would have to apologize to Turkey for the accusations.

Based on this evidence, Ankara should entirely reconsider its foreign policy toward Washington given that the U.S. fails to act as an ally and attempts to besiege Turkey by all means possible.

*Author, master of arts at Friedrich Alexander University in Erlangen, Germany

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
*Author, master of arts at Friedrich Alexander University in Erlangen, Germany

For Jews and Armenians, two victories in the war on hate

Tatoyan Vazgen
Forward Magazine
April 27 2021

For Jews and Armenians, two victories in war on hate 

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When your vocation is dealing with prejudice, hatred and antisemitism you don’t win many battles.

Yet this past week, there were two moments that allowed for momentary rejoicing.

Interestingly, both dealt with words and reminded us of the enduring power of speech. First, Joe Biden became the first American president to recognize the Armenian Genocide. And second, the Associated Press, whose Stylebook is the leading reference for newspapers, corporations and English teachers at every level, announced it would no longer hyphenate the word “antisemitism” or spell it with an upper-case letter.

“Who today speaks of the Armenians?” Some historians contend that Adolf Hitler asked this question in 1939 when he suggested that a forthcoming war would result in the destruction of European Jewry, although the evidence that he actually said those words is murky.

But the truth of the anecdote is beside the point. Hitler was certainly well aware of the fact that, although only two decades had passed since the horror of the 1915 Armenian Genocide, virtually no one outside the Armenian community spoke of it. Hitler may have legitimately assumed the same would happen with the genocide of Europe’s Jews.

In time, the Armenian genocide became a “model” for yet another aspect of Holocaust history: denial.

The Turkish government, in the face of much evidence, has adamantly denied that its campaign against the Armenians was a genocide. It adopted that stance in the earliest years after the event, and maintains it today. I have Armenian friends and colleagues whose parents and grandparents were survivors of this tragedy. The persistent insistence of the Turkish government that it was just a “civil disturbance” has driven them and their families to distraction.

It was not until I began to study and battle Holocaust denial that I fully understood how terribly painful this was.

At the opening of the Holocaust Museum in Washington in 1993, a Holocaust survivor approached me to insist that I keep up the fight. I pointed to the magnificent structure behind us and asked: “There is a Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C. adjacent to the National Mall. The deniers are nothing compared to this.” She shook her head and said: “They are relentless.”

She was right. I was wrong.

Therefore, President Biden’s recognition of the fact of the Armenian Genocide brings not just some balm to the descendants of this horror, but also renders long overdue historical justice.

It cannot bring back the dead. However, it can properly recognize what happened to them.

The other victory might be dismissed by some people as nothing more than a stylistic change.

Historians have been complaining about the use of “anti-Semitism” instead of “antisemitism” for years. The hyphen, they argued, suggested that the word meant hatred of something called “Semitism,” when in fact, the word “Semitic” was coined in 1781 by a German historian to describe a group of languages that originated in the Middle East and that have some linguistic similarities.

Wilhelm Marr, a German journalist of the late 19th century, popularized use of the term “Semitic” and its offshoots in reference to Jews. He contended that Jews who had converted to Christianity were incapable of assimilating. These converts, he argued, remained foreign and intended, through their other-ness, to destroy pure Christian civilization. He rejected the term “Judenhass,” which translates roughly to “Jew-hatred,” because it suggested only Jews who were still Jews should be hated. Seeking a word that had a racial and “scientific” connotation, rather than just a religious one, he chose “Antisemitismus.”

For him and the legions of people who adopted the term, it meant one thing and one thing only: hating members of the Jewish “race.”

For some reason, when the word first appeared in English in 1893 it was given a hyphen and became anti-Semitism. This has allowed legions of people to insist that they cannot be antisemites, because they too are “Semites.” (This argument, of course, ignores the fact that one can be “of” a group and, nonetheless, hate the group.)

As to the value of the AP deciding to make the term “antisemitism” all lower-case: something as illogical, delusional and full of absurd self-contradictions as antisemitism doesn’t deserve the dignity of capitalization.

It should not escape our notice that both these events have to do with words. Some may be tempted to dismiss them as stylistic developments signifying little at all. I would remind those who are so inclined that every genocide begins with words. Not all hateful words need necessarily lead to a genocide. But no modern genocide — Armenian, Holocaust, Rwanda and so many other — began with killings. First, there came the words.

This week one word — genocide — was properly applied to a terrible tragedy. Another word was altered to reflect its true meaning. Small and long overdue victories? Maybe. But, if words count, these are victories nonetheless.

So, I, together with so many others, momentarily rejoiced.

Why Turkey calls Biden’s Armenian genocide remark a "serious mistake"

Tatoyan Vazgen
MSN – Source CBS News
April 28 2021



Why Turkey calls Biden's Armenian genocide remark a "serious mistake"

Pinar Sevinclidir

Istanbul — Turkey and the U.S. have once again found each other at odds after President Joe Biden's characterization of the Ottoman atrocities committed against ethnic Armenians more than 100 years ago as genocide. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called Mr. Biden's statement "baseless, unfair and untrue."

Erdogan said the American leader's "wrong step" would hinder bilateral relations, and he hinted strongly at hypocrisy, urging the U.S. to "look in the mirror."

Breaking with previous administrations, Mr. Biden described the deadly forced deportation of well over a million Armenians from the Ottoman Empire — modern-day Turkey — at the beginning of World War I as "a genocide."

"Each year on this day, we remember the lives of all those who died in the Ottoman-era Armenian genocide and recommit ourselves to preventing such an atrocity from ever again occurring," Mr. Biden said in a statement on April 24, widely recognized as Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day.  

His use of the word brought immediate, sharp condemnation from Turkish officials. The country's foreign ministry said the words would not change history, and it summoned the U.S. Ambassador in Ankara to deliver a formal complaint.

Even political rivals inside Turkey closed ranks over Mr. Biden's statement. Turkey's leading opposition Republican People's Party echoed the government's criticism and called the statement "a serious mistake."

What happened in 2015, and since?

Historians say that in the summer and autumn of 1915, Armenian civilians were forced from their homes and marched through the valleys and mountains of Eastern Anatolia (Turkey) towards the Syrian desert. Armenian leaders say 1.5 million civilians died of starvation and disease as about 90% of the ethnic group in Anatolia were driven from their homes.    

Turkey's government says Armenian armed gangs posed a national security threat as they were colluding with Western-allied Russia to enable the occupation of eastern provinces of the Ottoman Empire.

Turkey admits that Armenians were deported, but it disputes the numbers, putting the death toll at a few hundred thousand and insisting there was no intention of eliminating a race of people. Since the fall of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, modern-day Turkey's state policy has been to reject any description of the treatment of the Armenians at the time as genocide.  

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan became the first Turkish leader to offer condolences for the Armenian deaths when, in 2014, he acknowledged that the events of 1915 had "inhumane consequences," and expressed hope that those who had died were at peace.

Historian Umit Kurt is skeptical of the defense offered by Turkish officials of the deportations. He told CBS News that officials who deny the charge of genocide should explain why Armenian properties were seized and then sold off by the state. The homes were distributed among local Ottoman elites and Muslim refugees quickly after the Armenians were forced out, virtually erasing the ethnic group's longtime presence in the region.

"The seizure of properties shows the Ottoman rulers never expected Armenians to return." Kurt told CBS News.

U.S.-Turkey relations

The decision by the U.S. leader to use the highly-charged word was "political," Faruk Logoglu, a former Turkish Ambassador to the United States, told CBS News. "Biden's decision is likely to stir the hornet's nest, and it will have medium and long-term consequences for Turkey-U.S. ties."  

For sure, Mr. Biden's remark couldn't have come at a more delicate time for the two NATO allies.

© Provided by CBS News U.S. kicks Turkey out of fighter jet program 04:00

The relationship has been strained for years over Turkey's purchase of Russian S-400 missile defense systems. The Russian missiles are considered a threat to NATO's own defense systems in the region, and it all comes at a time when Russia is locked in a standoff with the West over its actions in eastern Ukraine — the sharp edge of Russia's geographic sphere of influence.

The U.S. sanctioned Turkey specifically over the purchase of the Russian missile systems and kicked the country out of the project with NATO partners to develop the advanced F-35 fighter jet.

The rift between Turkey and the U.S. has also deepened in recent years over America's support for Kurdish rebels in Syria. The U.S. has relied for a decade on the Syrian Kurds as an affective ally in the fight against ISIS extremists, but Turkey considers Syria's Kurdish militias terrorists with links to the PKK, an armed separatist group fighting for greater autonomy in southern Turkey.

© Provided by CBS News Ongoing impact in Syria after U.S. leaves 01:59

In a 2020 interview with The New York Times, Mr. Biden said he'd "spent a lot of time" with Erdogan, and he called him an "autocrat."

On Monday night, Turkey's government said Mr. Biden would meet his Turkish counterpart on the sidelines of a NATO summit in June. The genocide remark will be just the latest issue adding to the tension in the room.

Armenian voices today

Survivors and descendants — including a vocal Armenian diaspora in the United States — have campaigned for decades to get other governments across the world to recognize the killings as an act of genocide. About 30 countries have now characterized the events that way.

Recent history has also been marked by trauma for the roughly 60,000 ethnic Armenians who still live inside Turkey. The assassination of a prominent Armenian journalist, Hirant Dink, by a Turkish ultra-nationalist in 2007 showed that the small community could still be targeted.

A recent survey conducted by a foundation set up by Dink's family found that Armenians are still the most-maligned minority group by Turkish media outlets.