Author: Vatche Chakhmakhchian

In a video shared on You Tube, Manchester United’s Paul Pogba says a phrase in Armenian.

“What’s up, man?” Pogba says in the video.

Asbarez – The Armenian National Committee of Canada (ANCC) calls upon the international community to pressure Azerbaijan to respect its international promise and imprison Ramil Safarov, the Azeri lieutenant responsible for the horrific murder of Armenian lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan.

The ANCC condemns the pardoning and rewarding of this convicted killer by the government of Azerbaijan.

On February 18, 2004, while both men were participating in a NATO-sponsored course in Hungary, Azerbaijani lieutenant Ramil Safarov axed to death Armenian lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan, when the latter was sleeping. Safarov subsequently admitted to the murder, and was convicted by a Hungarian court and sentenced to life in prison for his heinous act. Hungary had consistently refused extradition until August 2012, when it allowed Safarov to return to Azerbaijan, under assurances and promises by Azerbaijani officials that he would serve out his full prison term. However, upon his arrival in Azerbaijan, Safarov was welcomed as a hero, received a full presidential pardon by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and was promoted to a Major rank in addition to receiving various compensations.

Commenting on the issue, ANCC president, Shahen Mirakian said “With a track record of complete disregard for international law, and continuous abuse of human rights, Azerbaijan cannot be trusted as a credible partner to the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) peace process brought forth by the OSCE Minsk Group.

“By not calling on Azerbaijan to imprison Safarov, the international community sends a message that it will not uphold Azerbaijan’s obligations in respect to the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) peace process.” said Mirakian.

Since the internationally brokered ceasefire of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) conflict, Azerbaijani forces have repeatedly attacked the Republic of Artsakh’s border on multiple occasions, targeting ordinary civilians, women and children.

These ongoing violations of the ceasefire in the Artsakh conflict represent an escalation of the ongoing disregard by Azerbaijan for the efforts of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France, to solve the conflict peacefully.

“Azerbaijan’s latest actions are another clear example of how the Aliyev regime continues to incite ethnic hatred and violence, and threaten peace in the region; all in an effort to deflect focus away from its own corrupt practices” said Mirakian.

The extradition and pardoning of Safarov in 2012 raised concerns in the OSCE Minsk Group’s co-chairmanship countries of Russia, France and the United States (where both the White House and Congressional leaders strongly expressed their concerns regarding Azerbaijan’s actions) and the Canadian parliament. Despite international calls on Azerbaijan to abide by its promise to the Hungarian authorities and imprison Safarov, the axe murderer continues to live freely in Baku today.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Saturday confirmed the release of Armenian Arsen Voskanyan, who was held captive by the Cimarron Resistance Front of the ELN, Colombia’s second-largest rebel group,  reports.

“This morning a person of foreign nationality who was detained by the ELN was handed over to a humanitarian mission of the ICRC at the rural area of ​​the department of Chocó,” the organization said in a statement.

According to the authorities, the Armenian citizen was kidnapped in Pizarro, Chocó when he was looking for golden frogs to export them – apparently illegally – from the country.

In a communication intercepted by the authorities, the rebels said that they had a Russian citizen in their possession.

The golden frog produces a deadly toxin used in laboratories in Europe to manufacture pain drugs. These animals are sold up to 1,500 euros on the illegal market.

The National Assembly of the Nagorno Karabakah Repubvlic will convene a special session on January 17.

A corresponding decision was signed by Speaker Ashot Ghulyan today.

The lawmakers are set to resume discussions on the draft Constitution.

An exhibition of works by Armenian artists opened at Tehran’s Maryam Gallery on Friday.

Entitled “Sodality”, works by Lilitte Therian, Serjh Avakian, Edman Aivazian, Simon Aivazian and Garnik der Hacoopian have been put on display, reported.

In the Armenian tradition, the holy birth of Jesus Christ is celebrated on January 6.

The ceremony was attended by the Armenian Archbishop of Tehran, Sebouh Sarkissian, and director of the Art and Cultural Organization of Tehran Municipality Mahmud Salahi.

In his brief speech at the ceremony Salahi said that the Christian artists of Iran narrate the history of Iran through their arts, adding, “I see no separation between my compatriots, we have been together and fought against the enemy during the (Iran-Iraq) war and some of the martyrs are Iranian Christians.”

“Now, the relations between Iran and Armenia are good and visa requirements for both citizens have been lifted. Iran emphasizes peaceful coexistence with all the people in the world. I hope the artists can help draw the attention of the world to peace and friendship,” he added.

Armenian Archbishop of Tehran Sebouh Sarkissian expressed his congratulations over the arrival of the New Year and the birth anniversary of Jesus.

He also thanked the organizers of the exhibit and said that the Armenians have made good progress in art with over 90 masters of art.

The opening ceremony ended by honoring the artists whose works are on display.

The exhibit has been arranged in collaboration with the Ardak Manoukian Museum in Tehran and will be running until January 11.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has pipped Henrikh Mkhitaryan to be named Manchester United’s Player of the Month for December.

The towering Swede, United’s top scorer this term, was honoured after an irresistible period in which he was an ever-present and scored seven goals in six games, as well as providing three assists.

Ibrahimovic earned 38 per cent of the combined votes in our polls on ManUtd.com and Twitter to finish marginally ahead of Mkhitaryan, whose own impressive month (which yielded his first three goals for the club) was recognised by 36 per cent of the 140,000 fans who voted.

The duo’s fellow summer signing Paul Pogba, who also found the net twice in December, finished third with 26 per cent – a further illustration of the collective contribution to United’s excellent month, which featured six wins and a draw.

It’s the first time Ibra has picked up this particular prize and the result continues a recent trend of different winners – the 35-year-old succeeds previous recipients Antonio Valencia (November), Juan Mata (October), Marcus Rashford (September), Eric Bailly (August), Anthony Martial (May) and David De Gea (April).

Henrikh Mkhitaryan faces weeks rather than months on the sidelines with an ankle injury.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan left the field on a stretcher after scoring in Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, but Jose Mourinho has, thankfully, played down the severity of the injury.

The Armenian beat Hugo Lloris with a superb effort to register his first-ever Old Trafford goal, just days after netting his maiden Reds strike in the Europa League win at Zorya Luhansk. His match ended with disappointment, though, when he suffered an injury following a challenge by Danny Rose on 81 minutes. 

The England international was booked and Mkhitaryan was carried off to a standing ovation from the appreciative United fans. After the final whistle, his manager Jose Mourinho gave a positive update on the summer signing when talking to .

“It looks like the next match [at Crystal Palace] is a ‘no’, but it looks like it is nothing that is really dangerous or that needs surgery,” the manager told Stewart Gardner. “So hopefully we will probably have Micki on Boxing Day [against Sunderland at Old Trafford].”

The early assessment would also mean Mkhitaryan missing next Saturday’s trip to West Brom.

Today, the newly appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Republic of Armenia Maria Pavlova Tsosorkova-Kaymaktchieva presented her credentials to President Serzh Sargsyan, President’s Press Office reports.

The President of Armenia congratulated the ambassador on her appointment and wished every success. Serzh Sargsyan noted with satisfaction that the Armenian-Bulgarian interstate relations have a strong base anchored in the cultural similarities and centuries-long friendship and dynamically developing political and economic dialogue. All this, according to the President, create an excellent foundation for further strengthening and deepening of the relations between Armenia and Bulgaria. Serzh Sargsyan expressed hope that the newly appointed ambassador will promote these relations through her active work, contributing to the opening and development of the entire potential for cooperation in different areas.

Ambassador Maria Pavlova Tsosorkova-Kaymaktchieva concurred with the President’s assessment of the interstate relations and stressed the importance of the full utilization of the existing legal field, which comprises over five dozen documents, and expansion of cooperation.

The parties exchanged also views on the NK peace process and challenges existing in the region.

Galawezh, a literary festival in the city of Sulaimani that has endured for two decades, is focusing this year’s edition on literature from the Armenian genocide under the Ottoman Empire, reports.

On 22 November 2016, the National Defense Research University of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia (NDRU, MoD, RA) hosted the Military and Air Attaché of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the RA, Senior Colonel Li Guang Ya, and the RA Military Attaché in PRC, Colonel Hamik Sayadyan. The guests were welcomed by the Head of the NDRU, Doctor of Political Science, Professor, Lieutenant-General Hayk Kotanjian. The meeting was also attended by the NDRU Deputy Head for Research – Head of the Institute for National Strategic Studies, PhD in History Beniamin Poghosyan.

During the meeting, Lieutenant-General Hayk Kotanjian handed the Military Attaché the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the NDRU and the China Institute for International Strategic Studies (CIISS).

The basis for cooperation between the two institutions was laid in 2014, during the visit of NDRU’s Head Hayk Kotanjian to the CIISS. The MOU was signed during the visit of NDRU’s Deputy Head for Research Beniamin Poghosyan to China in 2016.

During the meeting, Senior Colonel Li Guang Ya emphasized the cooperation between the NDRU and the CIISS, expressing confidence that it would further deepen the relations between the two nations.