Thursday, December 21 2017 European Body Calls For More Anti-Graft Measures In Armenia December 21, 2017 Armenia - A courtroom in Yerevan, 8Jun2017. An anti-graft arm of the Council of Europe on Thursday urged the Armenian authorities to make "further significance progress" in combatting corruption and boosting judicial independence in the country. The Strasbourg-based Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO) said so far they have fully taken only five of the 18 policy measures that were recommended by it last year. "Of the remaining recommendations, twelve have been partly implemented and one has not been implemented," it said. In a February 2016 report, GRECO described corruption as an "important problem for Armenian society." The 18 recommendations contained by it concern independence of judges and prosecutors as well as corrupt practices among them and members of Armenia's parliament. GRECO assessed the authorities' response to those proposals in a follow-up report. The five recommendations which it says Yerevan has "implemented satisfactorily" relate to the work of judges, the appointment and dismissal of prosecutors and mandatory asset declarations by these and other state officials. "GRECO notes that further significant progress is necessary in order to achieve an acceptable level of compliance with the [other] recommendations within the next 18 months," reads its latest report. Most of the "partly implemented" recommendations also involve mechanisms for boosting judicial independence and preventing "improper political influence" on Armenian prosecutors. In particular, they call for restricting the Armenian president's role in the selection and dismissal of judges. In that regard, GRECO welcomed relevant constitutional amendments that were enacted in Armenia in 2015. It stressed, though, that the authorities in Yerevan have yet to put in place "effective rules against undue interference" in court cases. Despite having undergone frequent structural changes over the past two decades, Armenia's judicial system is still regarded by many people as corrupt and dependent on the government. Armenia's former human rights ombudsman, Karen Andreasian, highlighted the problem in a 2013 report that accused judges of routinely taking bribes. At least four Armenian judges are known to have been arrested and prosecuted on charges of bribery over the past year. Lawyers Protest Against Court Fines December 21, 2017 . Sisak Gabrielian Armenia - Lawyers for arrested radical opposition members argue with security guards at the entrance to a district court in Yerevan, 26Jul2017. A group of Armenian lawyers went on a symbolic brief strike on Thursday to protest against a government bill that will allow judges to fine them for contempt of court. One of the government-drafted amendments to Armenia's Judicial Code passed by the parliament in the first reading sets the maximum amount of such fines at 100,000 drams ($210). The protesting lawyers announced the 10-minute strike during one of the ongoing trials of radical opposition members who seized a police station in Yerevan in July 2016. They all represent the arrested gunmen. "This is ludicrous," said one of the lawyers, Tigran Hayrapetian. "Through that law they want to restrict a right given by the [Armenian] constitution and international conventions. Lawyers' rights cannot be restricted." "We want to show that legal advocacy and human rights advocacy must not be restricted in an unfounded and illegal way," said another attorney. Tigran Atanesian, another lawyer, also condemned the measure as a "disgrace." "This is an unacceptable norm that will kill advocacy in our county," Atanesian told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "It will serve as a stick in the hands of judges which will be used for suppressing lawyers." The protesting lawyers threatened more acts of "civil disobedience" if the controversial amendment is approved by the National Assembly in the final reading. Court hearings in the three high-profile trials have been frequently disrupted by bitter wrangling between the presiding judges and the defendants and their lawyers. The latter have been routinely barred from hearings for contempt of court. Armenian Government Expects Strong Growth In 2017 December 21, 2017 . Emil Danielyan . Sargis Harutyunyan Armenia - Workers at a new brewery in Dilijan, 21Nov2017. Armenia's economy will grow by more than 6 percent this year after stagnating in 2016, President Serzh Sarkisian said on Thursday. A senior Armenian government official forecast even faster economic growth earlier in the day. "Only ten days remain until the end of the year, so let's wait and see [macroeconomic data,]" Deputy Minister for Economic Development Tigran Khachatrian told reporters. "A growth rate exceeding 7 percent is likely." Speaking after a weekly cabinet meeting in Yerevan, Khachatrian said growth is driven by upswings in manufacturing, trade and other services as well as rising exports. "I don't want to make predictions but think that we are going to have economic growth of more than 6 percent," Sarkisian told leading Armenian businesspeople at a traditional year-end reception held in the presidential palace in Yerevan. The Armenian government forecast a 3.2 percent growth rate for 2017 a year ago. Official statistics showed the country's Gross Domestic Product increasing by around 5 percent in the first half of this year on the back of a double-digit rise in industrial output. Finance Minister Vartan Aramian said in September that full-year growth will likely come in at 4.3 percent. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Prime Minister Karen Karapetian said the domestic economy will expand even faster but gave no numbers Both Sarkisian and Karapetian also touted a 23.5 percent rise in Armenian exports which they said passed the record-high $2 billion mark in January-November 2017. "We have never had such an indicator," the president said. "For the first time in a fairly long time, our dear Armenian dram is not feeling any [downward] pressure in December and is on the contrary trying to gain ground," he added. In its most recent World Economic Outlook released in October, the International Monetary Fund said that Armenian growth will reach 3.5 percent this year. The IMF forecast a 3 percent growth rate in June. For its part, the international rating agency Fitch revised its 2017 growth projection for Armenia from 3.4 percent to 4.3 percent last week. "The economy is experiencing a strong recovery following a large external shock in 2014-15, driven by a structural improvement in export performance, firmer external demand conditions and recovering remittances, and supported by a credible monetary policy framework," it said. Fitch also upgraded Armenia's economic outlook from "stable" to "positive" and gave the country a "B+" credit rating. According to official statistics, the Armenian economy grew by only 0.2 percent last year not least because of a recession in Russia, Armenia's leading trading partner and main source of migrant worker remittances. Russia has posted modest growth this year. Opposition Condemns `Illegal' Votes In Parliament December 21, 2017 . Astghik Bedevian Armenia - A session of the National Assembly in Yerevan, 19Dec2017. The Armenian opposition accused the ruling Republican Party (HHK) on Thursday of resorting to blatant violations to push a government bill through the parliament. The bill involved amendments to Armenia's Judicial Code rejected by the two opposition groups represented in the National Assembly: the Tsarukian Bloc and the Yelk alliance. The parliament's electronic voting system showed on Wednesday that only 61 deputies backed it in the first reading, two votes short of the three-fifths majority needed for its passage. Nevertheless, speaker Ara Babloyan said the bill passed because one HHK deputy, Arpine Hovannisian, cast a verbal absentee ballot while another, Rustam Makhmudian, also voted for it but that the system did not count his vote because of a malfunction. The explanation infuriated leaders of the opposition minority, who accused the HHK-controlled majority of breaking the law. Deputies from the Tsarukian Bloc walked out of the parliament floor on Thursday morning in protest. Their colleagues from Yelk stayed on and tried unsuccessfully to prevent the bill's adoption in the second reading. "There is no legal provision that allows an oral statement by a deputy to count as a vote," said one of them, Nikol Pashinian. HHK lawmakers countered that they could not restrict Makhmudian's voting right because of what they insisted was a technical problem. Yelk responded by exercising, for as many as ten times, its legal right to interrupt a parliament sitting for 20 minutes, leaving many HHK parliamentarians exasperated. "Do our opposition colleagues object to the law or just want to disrupt the normal work of the National Assembly?" complained Vahram Baghdasarian, the HHK's parliamentary leader. "I think that they don't really care about the law right now." "This is our last remaining right," responded Yelk's Edmon Marukian. Babloyan, meanwhile, added to the controversy when twice put the bill to a final vote. Thursday's first vote also fell short of the required majority, something which the speaker blamed for the "disruptive" opposition tactic. He secured the necessary 63 votes during the repeat vote, triggering more opposition allegations of foul play. Press Review December 21, 2017 Pavel Felgenhauer, a Russian military analyst, tells "168 Zham" that Russia would strongly oppose any attempts by Armenia to give the West a major role in the country's national security system. "There was such an attempt in 2013 and it was thwarted," he says. "I think that it will not be repeated." A German parliamentarian, Albert Weiler, is quoted by "Aravot" saying that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be resolved peacefully and at the same time "slowly but prudently." Such a settlement, he says, requires major concessions by both parties to the conflict. "A decision must be made with Azerbaijan, not against Azerbaijan," Weiler says when asked about bellicose statements made by Azerbaijani leaders. "As one of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia can play the role of a good moderator on this issue so that the conflict is best resolved." "Zhamanak" comments on Wednesday's "turmoil" in Armenia's parliament that marked the passage of a government-drafted amendments calling for fresh structural changes in the country's judicial system. The paper attributes it to the incompetence of some officials and lawmakers and personal feuds among them. It specifically points the finger at Justice Minister Davit Harutiunian and the chairman of the parliament committee on legal affairs, Hrayr Tovmasian, who are said to dislike each other. "The demographic situation in Armenia is the most serious problem facing us," writes "Haykakan Zhamanak." Citing official statistics, the paper says that the country's population has shrunk by 14,000 in the past year. It says this is further proof that President Serzh Sarkisian's target of increasing the population to 4 million by 2040 is not realistic. (Anush Mkrtchian) Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2017 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
Category: 2017
ՀՀ առաջին տիկին Ռիտա Սարգսյանն այցելեց «Սիրիահայ մշակույթի շունչը Երևանում» բարեգործական ցուցահանդես-տոնավաճառ
Please find the attached press release of the Ministry of Diaspora. Sincerely, Media and PR Department (+374 10) 585601, internal 805 ---------------------- Հարգանքով` Մամուլի և հասարակայնության հետ կապերի վարչություն (+374 10) 585601, ներքին 805
446.«Սիրիահայ մշակույթի շունչը Երևանում».docx
application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
JPEG image
2.jpg
JPEG image
3.jpg
JPEG image
4.jpg
JPEG image
5.jpg
JPEG image
6.jpg
JPEG image
Armenia – Meeting between Jean-Yves Le Drian and his counterpart Edward Nalbandian (Paris, Dec. 22)
France Diplomatie
Dec 22 2017
Armenia – Meeting between Jean-Yves Le Drian and his counterpart Edward Nalbandian (Paris, Dec. 22)
This meeting provided an opportunity to underscore the strength of the ties between France and Armenia.
Jean-Yves Le Drian received Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs Edward Nalbandian on December 22.
This meeting provided an opportunity to underscore the strength of the ties between France and Armenia. The two ministers commended the quality of the political dialogue between the two countries, as well as the importance of our cooperation, one of the greatest successes of which is the French University of Armenia, which has educated several thousand Armenian students over the last 20 years. They agreed on the need to maintain this momentum, notably in the economic sphere.
Jean-Yves Le Drian assured his Armenian counterpart of France’s full commitment to supporting the efforts of the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group to encourage a negotiated resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. He underscored the importance of implementing the decisions made by the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents during their meeting in Geneva on October 16.
The two ministers also discussed preparations for the next Francophonie Summit due to take place in Yerevan from October 11-12, 2018, as well as the implementation of the framework agreement signed on November 24 between Armenia and the EU.
Garegin Bekchyan: No problem with Turkey government on election of Armenian patriarch
News.am, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Garegin Bekchyan: No problem with Turkey government on election of Armenian patriarch Garegin Bekchyan: No problem with Turkey government on election of Armenian patriarch
20:42, 22.12.2017
YEREVAN. – There is no problem with the Turkish government regarding election of the Armenian patriarch of Constantinople, Archbishop Garegin Bekchyan, the patriarchal locum tenens of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople, told Armenian News-NEWS.am.
His remark came as a comment to the recent statement by Archbishop Aram Ateshyan who said the elections would not take place because Turkish officials banned elections of a new patriarch.
“I listened to the interview of Aram Ateshyan. There is much to talk about. The state has no problem whether to ban it or not. We have not received any information from the authorities. We sent an inquiry following the elections of locum tenens and we are waiting for a response,” Archbishop Bekchyan said, adding there is time until February, and the government has not provided any dismissal.
Ateshyan says that the state does not accept locum tenens, but the locum tenens did not apply for his recognition or non-recognition by the state, Bekchyan added.
In addition, as Bechchyan noted, Ateshyan said that during the elections of the locum tenens the authorities wrote a letter.
“Yes, there was a letter, But what was the purpose? The previous patriarch, by decision of the church council, resigned a year ago, but this information was not submitted to the authorities in the form of a written statement,” Archbishop Garegin Bekchyan explained and expressed bewilderment at the reason why this creates such a confusion.
The second part of the interview is as follows:
Did Ateshyan provide wrong information?
He provided completely incorrect information, it is not true. He is doing wrong things. Why did he give such an interview in Yerevan? He has no office now, he is no longer an archbishop. When he says that he remains an archbishop, I am surprised … It is necessary to take into account the will of a church and the will of a state. The state can think differently, but the will of the church authorities was completely differently interpreted and did not proceed from the interests of the church. He is no longer an archbishop, but a church minister who must obey the decision of the church authorities, especially if we spoke with the Catholicos in Etchmiadzin. It was clarified and further stated that the work of the archbishop is completed after the elections of the locum tenens, therefore, it turns out that he does not obey the will of the church authorities.
Aram Ateshyan also said that Turkey only recognizes him as a locum tenens of the Constantinople Patriarchate of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
This is a fairy tale, this is untrue. The axis of the state’s interest is our activities, not Ateshyan. Ateshyan has no right to give incorrect information, especially to the public.
It was announced in advance that the election of the Patriarch would be held on December 13. What is the reason for canceling the elections?
The initiative group noted that it only suggested that elections might be held on that day, but no final decision was made. It was only a proposal that if they received a written permission from the state, the elections could have been scheduled for this day. We can get a written response next week or in February.
Turkey launches investigation after Paylan’s assassination warnings
Panorama, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
The Turkish Public Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation following a statement by Garo Paylan, an Armenian member of the Turkish Parliament representing the opposition People’s Democratic Party (HDP), waring against assassination plans targeting Turkish citizens living in Europe, among them Armenians who have left Turkey, Ermenihaber reported citing Alevinet Turkish media outlet.
Paylan was invited to testify in the investigation, according to a statement from the prosecutor’s office.
“I received intelligence last week about plans of assassination or chain of assassinations of our citizens living in Europe, particularly those in Germany, information that I have verified from multiple sources,” Paylan told reporters at Parliament on Wednesday.
“This Turkey-based structure mobilized certain people to carry out these assassinations,” he said, adding that several European countries have taken such tips seriously and their intelligence services have provided security for the persons and groups on the target.
Sharmazanov about statement of Paraguay parliament: This is a biased and anti-Armenian statement
News.am, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Sharmazanov about statement of Paraguay parliament: This is a biased and anti-Armenian statement Sharmazanov about statement of Paraguay parliament: This is a biased and anti-Armenian statement
19:55, 22.12.2017
YEREVAN.- The Vice President of the National Assembly of Armenia Eduard Sharmazanov addressed with a letter to the President of Chamber of Deputies of Congress of the Republic of Paraguay Pedro Lorenzo Alliana Rodriguez on December 22, where he expressed his concern over one-sided, anti-Armenian statements concerning the Nagorno Karabakh problem adopted by the Chamber of Deputies of Congress, where the reality was distorted, and exclusively the false approach of Azerbaijan was presented over the problem, particularly, on 1992 Khojalu events, the press service of the parliament of Armenia reported.
The Vice President of the National Assembly noted: “This is a biased and anti-Armenian statement which damages the peaceful settlement process. The Armenian military units have no connection and could not have any relation. The former President of Azerbaijan Ayaz Mutalibov stated at best in one of his interviews given to the Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta on April 2, 1992, noting that the Azerbaijani opposition organized the Khojalu tragedy for organizing his ousting, and the Armenians have no connection with it.”
Eduard Sharmazanov expressed hope that from now on they would do utmost to reach the position of the Republic of Armenia and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to the legislators of Paraguay and with that avoiding the adoption of the false resolutions.
Armenia ranked 88th in Forbes’s Best countries for Business
News.am, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Armenia ranked 88th in Forbes's Best countries for Business Armenia ranked 88th in Forbes's Best countries for Business
20:14, 22.12.2017
Armenia is ranked 88th in the Forbes Best Countries for Business List.
According to the article, the government has made some improvements in tax and customs administration in recent years, but anti-corruption measures have been largely ineffective. Armenia will need to pursue additional economic reforms and strengthen the rule of law in order to raise its economic growth and improve economic competitiveness and employment opportunities, especially given its economic isolation from Turkey and Azerbaijan. Armenia's geographic isolation, a narrow export base, and pervasive monopolies in important business sectors have made it particularly vulnerable to deteriorations in the global commodity markets and the economic challenges in Russia.
Armenian neighbor Georgia takes the 52th position, Turkey is 56th, Iran is 100th, and Azerbaijan is 70th.
According to Forbes, the best country for business this year is UK. Chad was ranked the worst place to do business in 2018.
Armenia voices its disagreement with unilateral decisions by backing UN resolution rejecting Trump’s decision on Jerusalem – expert
Panorama, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Making unilateral decisions over the recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital is wrong, as it is inappropriate to make one-sided decisions on the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement process, an Armenian expert said on Friday.
Speaking to Panorama.am, Tevan Poghosyan, who also heads the International Center for Human Development NGO, stated such issues need to be negotiated in a comprehensive manner, with an agreement reached between all the sides, as he commented on the newly adopted resolution by the United Nations General Assembly on the status of Jerusalem.
The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution that will make US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital have no legal effect. The draft resolution tabled by Turkey and Yemen was adopted 128-9 with 35 abstentions. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed satisfaction over the decision.
Touching upon the fact Armenia voted for the mentioned resolution, the expert highlighted by backing the measure the country did not voice its support to Turkey, but rather expressed disagreement with the process of adopting a one-sided decision to be imposed later to the entire world.
“Armenia’s vote should be viewed more globally. Dealing with the Artsakh conflict, we have to condition any voting with that issue, taking into the effects it can leave on ourselves. A similar approach was adopted when voting on the issue of Ukraine. The thing refered to an initiative where it was impossible to oppose the right to self-determination and to put the Ukrainian-Armenian community at risk,” Tevan Poghosyan said.
The expert noted that the consequences of Armenia's voting in the UN will largely depend on how our country will support its vote to the American and Israeli sides. Moreover, Armenia should immediately explain this step, instead of waiting for various comments to release.
“If we do not delay, there will be no consequences, but if we defer we will be reminded of our vote, as we are reminded of a number of previous votes. If any pressure is exerted on Armenia our vote will certainly be recalled at that time,” he added.
Summing up, Mr. Poghosyan stated the UN resolution will no way affect the policies pursued by the US and Israel, as evidenced by a series of UN-adopted decisions against Israel, which however did not hinder that country to move forward.
As far as the US is concerned, the country, according to the expert, will run a policy of self-interest towards those 128 countries, which backed the UN General Assembly’s resolution.
Philips Lighting may launch production in Armenia
Pan Armenian, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Philips Lighting may launch production in Armenia
Armenian prime minister Karen Karapetyan on Friday, December 22 met Philips Lighting vice president Eric Benedetti and his delegation to discuss the possibility of launching production in Armenia.
Philips Lighting is a global market leader with recognized expertise in the development, manufacturing and application of innovative (LED) lighting solutions.
According to Karapetyan, the government has a lot of projects that can jointly be implemented.
Benedetti said, in turn, that Philips Lighting is ready to discuss issues of expanding cooperation with Armenia.
Putin praises Russian military’s operations in Syria
Panorama, Armenia
Dec 22 2017
Russian President Vladimir Putin has assessed the operations of the Russian troops in Syria as excellent.
Putin noted the Russian military successfully repelled the well-organized and armed terrorist forces posing a threat to Russia and the whole world, Gazeta.ru reported.
He urged never to forget those servicemen who fell while defensing their homeland and nation.
To remind, Putin visited the Hemeimeem Russian air base in Syria’s coastal province of Latakia on 11 December and ordered the country’s Defense Ministry to start withdrawing the Russian group of troops from Syria. He announced that Russia's armed forces and the Syrian Army have defeated the most battle-hardened groups of terrorists in Syria.