Author: Toneyan Mark

Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Executive Director Aram Hamparian issued the following statement in the run up to the meetings led by the Foreign Ministers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group Co-Chair countries with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev regarding Nagorno Karabakh.

“Everything we have seen in the forty-five days since Azerbaijan launched its April 2nd offensive confirms that Ilham Aliyev is hell-bent on conquest, that he’ll only leverage concessions by Nagorno Karabakh to intensify his attacks, and that the OSCE, the international community, and – sadly – our own U.S. government are all unable or unwilling to confront ongoing Azerbaijani ceasefire violations that continue to claim lives on all sides. Given Azerbaijan’s track record of escalating violence, we remain profoundly opposed to one-sided deals that require Nagorno Karabakh to make up-front, strategic, and irrevocable security concessions in return for deferred, vague, and reversible Azerbaijani promises regarding Artsakh’s future status.”

“We remain supportive of the OSCE platform and hopeful for progress in today’s talks and the timely implementation of concrete confidence building measures – including the placement of a ceasefire monitoring systems at the line of contact and an agreement on the non-deployment of snipers, heavy arms and new weaponry.”

The annual Armenian Genocide Commemorative Lecture, organised by the Australian Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (AIHGS) in remembrance of the 101st Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, will feature the launch the book “Armenia, Australia & The Great War” and will take place on May 17 from at NSW Parliament House, the Armenian National Committee of Australia reports.

Co-authors of “Armenia, Australia & The Great War”, Vicken Babkenian and Professor Peter Stanley will address the audience, along with NSW State Treasurer, the Hon. Gladys Berejiklian MP.

As conducted in previous years, a Wreath Laying Ceremony will first take place at the Armenian Genocide Memorial “Khatchkar” in the Peace Garden of Level 9 in NSW Parliament House.

Later, inside the Theatrette, Vicken Babkenian will address the audience, before moving on to the official launch of“Armenia, Australia & The Great War”, which will feature a Panel Discussion with the Authors, chaired by Gladys Berejiklian.

At the conclusion of the event, copies of “Armenia, Australia & The Great War” will be available for purchase. There will also be a chance for the co-authors to sign the books.

The intensity of the armed conflict in Nagorno Karabakh is not reducing, Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Nikolay Bordyuzha said, TASS reports.

“The threat of escalation of so-called frozen conflicts is still there. Unfortunately, the intensity of the armed confrontation in Nagorno Karabakh is not reducing,” Bordyuzha said at the 5^th Moscow conference on internationals security.

Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamayn today awarded a number of Armenians, who participated in the elimination of consequences of the Chernobyl disaster.

More than 3,000 Armenian citizens participated in the elimination of consequences of the worst nuclear disaster in history, 400 of them have died over the past 30 years because of radiation. More than 2,000 are still under permanent supervision of a specialized medical center.

The numbers were announced today by Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan.

Following the debate in the European Parliament, two members of Parliament (MEPs) from two different political groups – Salvatore Pogliese and Remo Sernagiotto – that could not participate in Tuesday’s debate on Nagorno-Karabakh, have tabled a written question to Federica Mogherini, EU High-Representative/Vice-President.

In the document, they underline that the Azerbaijani attacks “are accompanied by gross violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law, particularly the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977, and the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child.” They especially deplore civilian victims of the conflict, saying that “Civilian infrastructures and civilian population have been the main targets of the Azerbaijani offensive. In particular, among the first victims was a 12-year-old boy. In addition, cases of mutilation, execution and torture of civilians have been registered and documented.”

They conclude by asking Ms Mogherini if she is going “to propose sanctions to be taken against Azerbaijan, given the breaches of the above-mentioned international law and the very basis of the EU-Azerbaijan Partnership and Cooperation Agreement”. Lastly, they ask for EU’s support to “the OSCE Minsk Group proposal on the creation of a cease-fire violations monitoring mechanism, to avoid continuous breaches of this only self-regulated truce in Europe.”

European Friends of Armenia () welcomes this initiative. “Written questions are an important tool of oversight, including also EU’s foreign policy” comments EuFoA Director, Mr Eduardo Lorenzo Ochoa. “More than 6 questions have been tabled on the different hostilities that Nagorno-Karabakh has suffered in the last 12 months, which shows the deep concern of the House on this matter”.

According to the European Parliament’s rules of procedure, written questions must be answered within 6 weeks of their submission.

MEP Pogliese is member of the EPP group, the largest group in the European Parliament. MEP Sernagiotto is member of the ECR group, the third biggest group in the Parliament.

President Serzh Sargsyan had a meeting with Armenia’s first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan at the initiative of the latter.

Th hour-long meeting was dedicated to the recent development along the line of contact between the armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, the expected developments in the negotiation process on the settlement of the Karabakh conflict and the need for national unity against that challenge.

The meeting took place at Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s home.

Thirty- two Armenian soldiers have been killed, 121 wounded during the four days of military calshes along the Nagorno Karabakh line of contact, Colonel Victor Arustamyan, Head of the operative department of the NKR Defense Army, told a press conference today. He said that another 25 servicemen are missing.

He informed that the ceasefire violations continued all along the line of contact even after the parties agreed to cease all hostilities at midnight Tuesday. Col. Arustamyan said the rival used mortars in the northern direction of the frontline. He added that an Azerbaijani tank hit an ambulance in the northern direction.

This morning separate groups tried to attack and conquer military positions in the north, but failed to succeed.

Colonel Arustamyan gave clarifications about an Armenian military position left under Azerbaijani control. According to him, it’s of no strategic significance, as the area of its peak is 5 meters, and the height is 20 meters as compared to the overall landscape.

As for the reports that Azerbaijan is bringing its reserve troops to the frontline and preparing for a new attack, Victor Arustamyan said “the reserves are stationed not far from the frontline and it’s hard to assess the plans of a new attack.”

An Azeri drone had attacked a bus carrying Armenian volunteers to Nagorno-Karabakh, killing five people, Armenpess quotes Defensy Ministry Spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan  as saying.

The bus carrying volunteers from Sisian came under Azeri fire on its way to Martakert. The heads of Darbas and Akhlatyan communities were among the victims.

The Government of the Republic of Cyprus monitors closely the worrying developments in Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh, following the violations of the armistice line from Azerbaijani military forces, the Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs siad in a statement.

“We denounce the use of force and the loss of life, particularly civilian casualties, and we urge Azerbaijan to respect the status quo ante. There is no alternative to the peaceful settlement of the conflict and the Cypriot Government highlights the important role of the OSCE Minsk Group and the three co-Chairs towards this end,” the statement reads.

At the same time, Cyprus urges Turkey to refrain from any activities and statements that further destabilize the unfolding situation.

The Azerbaijani side fired more than 1,000 shots from weapons of different caliber in the direction of the Armenian positions last night, the NKR Ministry of Defense reports.

Front divisions of the NKR Defense Army keep control of the situation at the line of contact and confidently continue with their military duty, the Ministry said.