2017 – Page 37 – Armenian Directory & News

AzerNews, Azerbaijan

Dec 14 2017

14:53 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The OSCE Minsk Group that is mediating the peace diplomacy over the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has recently demonstrated a noticeable intensification in the negotiation process.

Farhad Ibrahimov, expert of Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy & International Relations, hails such a positive trend observed in the activities of the mediators, who were subject of criticism for a long time due to lack of any tangible result in the conflict resolution.

Ibrahimov told Day.Az on December 13 international mediators began to declare increasingly that the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh indeed belongs to Azerbaijan, as well as the need to resolve the conflict in accordance with the UN Security Council’s resolutions.

“The reality is that during its existence, the OSCE Minsk Group has not made due efforts to achieve certain goals, and this is one of the reasons that today the problem remains unresolved and the situation on the line of fire is tense,” said Ibrahimov, adding that the increased activity of international mediators is now reduced to a mutual desire of the parties to resolve the issue so that there are no losers or winners.

The four resolutions (822, 853, 874, 884), adopted in 1993, condemned the occupation of Azerbaijani territories, stressed the unacceptability of forcible appropriation of territory, confirmed the inviolability of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and borders of Azerbaijan and demanded the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of Armenian occupation forces from Azerbaijani lands. However, these demands are still on paper, as Armenia refuses to comply with the decision of the UN Security Council.

The expert expects progress in resolving the conflict, given a certain activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, as evidenced by the past meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Geneva, where the parties agreed to take measures to intensify the decisions on the conflict.

“The military solution to the conflict is undesirable, as it can lead to unpredictable consequences, added Ibrahimov. “This is why the OSCE Minsk Group will intensify its activities so that the next hotbed of tension does not erupt.”

He also noted that the threat of renewed hostilities is real, and the Armenian side, which is still demonstrating a stubborn and aggressive policy against Azerbaijan, must understand and realize this truth.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. For more than 20 years, Russia, the U.S. and France, who are co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, have been trying to broker a peace to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.

AzerNews, Azerbaijan

Dec 14 2017

18:27 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The expansion of military-technical cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia will further bring bilateral ties closer together and positively affect the level of further cooperation.

Azerbaijani MP Aydin Mirzazade made the remarks while commenting on the current state of military-technical cooperation between the two countries in his interview with Day.az on December 13.

Baku hosted the 11th meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission for Military-Technical Cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia on December 12-13, where the parties discussed topical issues of the working agenda and the main activities for 2018.

Mirzazade said Azerbaijani-Russian relations have been developing dynamically in recent years, which positively affects the level of achieved cooperation.

“Undoubtedly, today’s high level of relations between the two countries is the result of a well-thought-out foreign policy pursued by these two regional states. Our countries build relations exclusively in the sphere of trust and respect, thereby contributing to strengthening the partnership dialogue and expanding the sphere of interaction,” the MP said.

In this context, he added, the development of military-technical cooperation is given special attention, and the strategic cooperation between Baku and Moscow is one of the main cumulative factors in the bilateral relations.

Mirzazade also touched upon the fact that Armenia, Russia’s closest ally in the region, is greatly dissatisfied with the country’s consistent supply of arms to Azerbaijan.

“Armenia, which has been conducting an occupation policy against Azerbaijan for more than two decades, in every possible way expresses its concern and dissatisfaction with the policy of Russia precisely because of military supplies to Azerbaijan. However, Armenia has not achieved progress on this issue – on the contrary, this fact has not affected the volume of Russian armaments in Baku,” said the Azerbaijani MP.

The existence of the Armenia-triggered Nagorno-Karabakh conflict makes Azerbaijan purchase arms to further improve its military-defense power and strengthen its combat capability.

Russia has been among main arms suppliers for Azerbaijani Armed Forces for many years. As for Armenia's incomprehensible claims, Russia declares that this issue is solely its internal affair, and that the military cooperation continues within intergovernmental contracts. It is also noteworthy that Azerbaijan, unlike Armenia, is fully able to pay for its purchases without getting into multi-million debts like its western neighbor does.

Anadolu Agency (AA) Turkey
 Wednesday


Greece says Erdogan's visit freed up frozen relations


Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias says talks between Turkish president,
Greek prime minister were 'sincere'


By Furkan Naci Top
 ATHENS

Greece's foreign minister on Wednesday said the Turkish president's
visit last week was successful as it had freed up communication
channels between the countries which had been frozen.

Nikos Kotzias was speaking to journalists in a briefing after meeting
Armenian Foreign Minister Edvard Nalbandyan in Athens.

"The visit was successful because we restored the necessary
communication channels that were frozen. It was successful because a
series of new negotiations are being prepared," Kotzias said.

Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras
talked "sincerely," he added.

Kotzias also said Greek Migration Minister Ioannis Mouzalas would
visit Turkey soon, adding that a High-Level Cooperation Council
meeting between Turkey and Greece would be held in February.

Erdogan paid a historic two-day visit to Greece on Dec. 7-8, the first
by a Turkish president in 65 years.

Anadolu Agency website contains only a portion of the news stories
offered to subscribers in the AA News Broadcasting System (HAS), and
in summarized form. Please contact us for subscription options.

Anadolu Agency, Turkey

Dec 14 2017

Turkish Foreign Ministry says blaming Ankara for delay in ratifying protocols aims to 'mislead' world public opinion

14.12.2017 Ankara

Features

archive

FILE PHOTO – Archbishop Karekin Bekciyan

By Andac Hongur

ISTANBUL

The top authority in the Turkish-Armenian Church on Thursday urged calm over the Jerusalem issue to prevent it from escalating into a larger crisis.

"We believe that all sides should make a common effort to prevent harming Jerusalem's character as a common site for worshipping and visiting” for Jews, Christians, and Muslims, said Archbishop Karekin Bekciyan, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Turkey until a patriarch is elected.

In a media statement, Bekciyan said they are following with anxiety the global tension triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that the U.S. is recognizing Jerusalem as Israeli’s capital.

Bekciyan urged all sides not to take any action that would lead to a worse crisis.

Trump’s decision has angered many leaders and activists across the world, fearing it could fatally damage hopes for peace in the Middle East.

This week an Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Istanbul recognized East Jerusalem as Palestine’s capital — condemning Trump’s decision — and urged all other nations to do the same.

Armenia

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Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian (left) and EU Federica Mogherini sign the EU-Armenia agreement in Brussels on Nov. 24

BY K.M. GREG SARKISSIAN

The European Union and Armenia signed a Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on November 24, 2017, in the presence of high representatives of both parties.

The US and Russia should support this agreement because Armenia lies along the geopolitical fault lines of two civilizations: the East and the West, Europe and Asia, Christendom and Islam. This agreement enhances the neutrality of Armenia and the security in the region.

The EU will be supporting democratic reforms in governance, the rule of law, the protection of human rights and fundamental freedom, the independence of the judiciary, and the development of public and social institutions in Armenia. CEPA also enables cooperation in the energy, transport, environment and trade sectors. It also promises improvements in banking, travel and business infrastructures along with investment opportunities and a healthier environment. CEPA does not include free trade arrangements as Armenia is a member of Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

The road to EU integration enjoys broad consensus among Armenians in the political arena and civil society. Armenia chose this path because it is public knowledge that its discontinuation in 2013 of its newly-minted association with EU was due to clear warnings from Moscow that its security guarantees by Russia would be withdrawn if it proceeded with the association agreement. In fact, Armenia was the first country that experienced strong backlash from Russia in response to its negotiations with EU due to the problems in Ukraine.

Armenia signed this agreement knowing well that it needs the establishment of active bilateral relations with as many countries as feasible to overcome the risk of isolation and garner guarantees for its national security. One presumes that Moscow has been kept informed all along that Yerevan will sign such an Agreement.

Russia holds the keys to Armenia’s security which was solidified by the November 2016 Agreement on the creation of Armenian-Russian Joint Military Forces. Russia also holds the key to the Karabakh issue and energy policies, given the Armenian-Russian gas agreement signed on December 2, 2013, substantially limited Armenia’s options to devise an independent energy policy. Thus, CEPA is a huge step for Armenia to regain space for sovereign decisions and credibility with the international community.

However, the Russian press, a highly centralized and censored media, reacted negatively to Armenia signing this Agreement. There is nothing in the Agreement that may pose any danger or create tension toward a third party. Armenia, with an improved social contact, a stronger and more independent judiciary and rule of law, fairer business conditions, and modern regulatory frameworks will be a catalyst between the two economic unions. Russian officials such as the Ambassador to Armenia agree with Mr. Zheleznak, a Russian politician of a ruling party who “…supports developing relations and cooperation with others on an open basis and in this context, Armenia is furthering its ties with both Russia and European Union…Wise and balanced policies being implemented in Armenia, that will allow for the greatest use of developmental potential that exists in Armenia.”

If this agreement, which includes duties, obligations and commitments succeeds, it will create opportunities to improve the quality of relations between the East and West. The countries within EAEU, lead by Russia, would equally benefit if Armenia becomes a bridge between the EU and EAEU countries, in trade and development, as this agreement is a test case for co-existence between EU and EAEU.

Similarly, the benefit to the West is best described by Dan Coats, Chief of US National Intelligence, who states: “The main mediators of OSCE-Minsk Group, do not want the resumption of large scale military operation, as this does not meet national, regional and international interests.” The European Union has huge economic interests in Azerbaijan, invested heavily in the country’s energy sector, fears that war between Azerbaijan and Armenia can lead to disruption of supply of oil bypassing Russia. US on the other hand, uses Georgia to pursue its interest in Transcaucasia. The more peace in the region, the more chance that Georgia may become a member of NATO.

The Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh is one of the most destabilizing factors in the Caucasus involving regional and international powers. The April 2016 Azerbaijani attempt to break through Armenian defense lines had no effect on the situation as a whole. The present stage of the negotiation process has reached deadlock, politically and militarily. Politically, the conflict is not resolved because the positions of the parties are irreconcilable. War, on the other hand, is unacceptable to the political forces and interests of both regional and international powers. All parties know that the outcome of war is by no means certain. It will involve a huge number of victims and damage to civilian structures.

While Azerbaijan showed the world that it is willing to take the risk of resolving the conflict by military means in April 2016, it too needs peace in the region, despite its belligerent language in its relations with Armenia.

Armenia’s external foreign policy is carried out by establishing active, bilateral relationships with as many countries as feasible, and multilaterally, through participation in international organizations such as the EU and EAEU. Both these approaches are critical for Armenia to earn a measure of respectability in the international system.

The signing of the CEPA is a milestone for Armenia as it represents a compromise between the old Association Agreement of Europe and Armenia’s new commitment to a Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement. The US and Russia should support the EU-Armenia Agreement (CEPA), invest in Armenia and help it to solve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict peacefully. A prosperous, neutral Armenia, defusing the fault line of tensions and the clash of civilizations, will be a critical component of peace and development in the region and the world.

K.M. Greg Sarkissian is the president of the Zoryan Institute

| 13:09 | December 12 2017

Category

Society

Investigation has launched to clarify the details of the death of soldier Narek Adibekyan, the Investigative Committee reported.

According to preliminary information, Narek Adibekyan has died after being accidentally shot by a fellow soldier in the evening of December 11 while on duty in a northern military base of Artsakh.

Criminal case has been launched into the incident.

The fellow soldier has been arrested in suspicion of killing soldier Narek Adibekyan.

Investigation continues.

                                        Wednesday, 

Yerevan Reaffirms Plans To Scrap Turkish-Armenian Accords


Greece - Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias (R) and his Armenian
counterpart Edward Nalbandian at a news conference in Athens,
13Dec2017.

Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian reaffirmed on Wednesday the
Armenian government's intention to formally annul U.S.-brokered
agreements to normalize Armenia's relations with Turkey, citing
Ankara's "groundless preconditions" for their implementation.

The two protocols signed in Zurich in October 2009 committed Turkey
and Armenia to establishing diplomatic relations and opening their
border. Shortly after the high-profile signing ceremony, Ankara made
clear, however, that Turkey's parliament will ratify the deal only if
there is decisive progress towards a resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict acceptable to Azerbaijan.

The Armenian government rejected this precondition, arguing that the
protocols make no reference to the conflict. The United States, the
European Union and Russia have also repeatedly called for their
unconditional implementation by both sides.

President Serzh Sarkisian again denounced Turkey's stance when he
addressed the UN General Assembly in September. "Given the absence of
any progress towards their implementation, Armenia will declare the
two protocols null and void," he said. "We will enter the spring of
2018 without those, as our experience has demonstrated, futile
protocols."


Switzerland -- Armenia's Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian (L) and
his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu sign documents during the
signing ceremony of Turkey and Armenia peace deal in Zurich, 10Oct2009

Nalbandian echoed that statement during a visit to Greece. "Those
documents have still not been ratified since Turkey came up with
groundless preconditions that run counter to the letter and spirit of
the protocols," he said.

"Those documents cannot be held hostage forever, and that is why the
president of Armenia declared in September # that Armenia will declare
the protocols null and void," Nalbandian said in a speech delivered at
the Greek Foreign Ministry.

Ankara has still not officially reacted to Sarkisian's September
statement. Successive Turkish governments have kept that border with
Armenia completely closed since 1993 in a show of support for
Azerbaijan.

Sarkisian already threatened in February 2010 to scrap the protocols
if they are not ratified by the Turks "in the shortest possible time."
But he avoided doing that, saying two months later that he does not
want to upset the U.S. and other world powers that strongly backed the
landmark deal.

Speaking after talks with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias,
Nalbandian also described Greek-Armenian relations as a "true
brotherhood." "We both suffered from genocides and crimes against
humanity, defended shoulder-to-shoulder our right to life and stood by
each other in difficult times," he said.


Greece - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras (R) and Armenian
President Serzh Sarkisian meet in Athens, 15Mar2016.

Meeting with Sarkisian in Athens last year, Greece's Prime Minister
Alexis Tsipras likewise said that Armenians and Greeks were victims of
genocide perpetrated by the Ottoman Turks during World War One. For
his part, Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos told his Armenian
counterpart that "at the beginning of the 20th century the two peoples
endured tragic moments for the same reason."

Turkey condemned those statements. "Solidarity between Greece and
Armenia is built upon a joint hostility and slander language directed
against the Turkish identity," a Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman
said in March 2016.

Greece's strained relations with Turkey, a fellow NATO member, again
came to the fore during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's
official visit to Athens last week.



Armenian Military To Continue Afghanistan, Kosovo Missions


# Sargis Harutyunyan


Afghanistan -- Armenia's Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian inspects
Armenian troops near Kunduz, 24Jul2010.

Armenia will continue to contribute troops to the NATO-led missions in
Afghanistan and Kosovo and step up its broader cooperation with NATO,
senior officials in Yerevan said on Wednesday.

According to Levon Ayvazaian, head of a defense policy department at
the Armenian Defense Ministry, 121 Armenian soldiers are currently
deployed in Afghanistan and 35 others in Kosovo.

"Our participation has continued on the same scale this year and we
have made a political decision to also continue it in the coming
years," said Ayvazian.

The soldiers serving there are part of the Armenian army's special
peacekeeping brigade that has received considerable assistance from
the United States and other NATO member states. In particular, the
U.S. has helped to renovate the brigade's training center near
Yerevan. Senior Armenian and U.S. military officials inaugurated the
facility on October 31.


Kosovo - Armenian soldiers walk in riot gear to a UH-60 Black Hawk
during a training exercise on Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo, March 12,
2014. (Photo courtesy of www.army.mil)
The Armenian deployments in Kosovo and Afghanistan have highlighted
Armenia's growing ties with NATO stemming from an Individual
Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) originally launched in 2006 and
repeatedly updated since then.

Armen Yedigarian, a senior Armenian Foreign Ministry official, said
the most recent, fifth version of the IPAP was approved by NATO in
April. The document lists joint activities planned for 2017-2019, he
told reporters.

Yedigarian and Ayvazian met the press at the official launch of an
annual "NATO Week" in Armenia. Rosaria Puglisi, deputy head of a NATO
liaison office in the South Caucasus, also spoke at the event. She
announced that NATO's Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller will
arrive in Yerevan on Monday for talks with President Serzh Sarkisian
and other Armenian leaders.


Armenia - Soldiers of the Armenian Peacekeeping Brigade lined up for
an exercise monitored by NATO, September 2015. (Photo courtesy of the
U.S. Embassy in Armenia.)
In Ayvazian's words, "military-technical cooperation" is also on the
agenda of Armenia's dealings with NATO and its individual member
states. "It is not confined to buying weapons and ammunition," he
said. "It also has many other components such as cooperation on
technology, joint solutions, ventures and so on."

The defense official cited the example of a Polish-Armenian joint
venture that was set up in 2013 to manufacture protective gear such as
army helmets, flak jackets and inflatable tents and decoys for the
Armenian military.

"We also have a fairly long experience of setting up and operating
joint ventures with Greece," added Ayvazian. "We are holding
negotiations in this direction with various states and I think that we
will have better, more visible results over time."


Opposition Slams More Borrowing Planned By Government


# Tatevik Lazarian


Armenia - Naira Zohrabian of the Tsarukian Bloc speaks during a
parliament session in Yerevan, 13Dec2017.

Opposition lawmakers faulted the government for Armenia's increased
public debt on Wednesday as the National Assembly lifted a legal limit
on further government borrowing.

An Armenian law has stipulated until now that the total amount of debt
incurred by the government cannot exceed a sum equivalent to 60
percent of Gross Domestic Product.

Government-drafted amendments will scrap this borrowing cap. At the
same time, they will require the government to come up with a plan to
ease the debt burden.

The parliament passed the amendments in the first reading by 61 votes
to 37. Voting against them were deputies from the opposition Yelk
alliance and businessman Gagik Tsarukian's bloc, the second largest
parliamentary force.

"The sole aim of this bill is to attract more foreign loans. This is
unacceptable," Naira Zohrabian, a senior lawmaker from the Tsarukian
bloc, said just before the vote.

Zohrabian said Finance Minister Vartan Aramian failed to present
convincing arguments when the parliament debated the bill on Tuesday.

Aramian claimed during the debate that the bill is not primarily aimed
at allowing the government to obtain more multimillion-dollar
loans. He insisted that the government is committed to cutting the
GDP-to-debt ratio from 55.4 percent to 54.4 percent by the end of next
year.

Aramian also dismissed claims by another Tsarukian Bloc deputy, Mikael
Melkumian, that the government has wasted or misused many loans
extended by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other
multilateral lenders. "Armenia is considered by them a best performer
country," said the minister.

Armenia's public debt, which also includes foreign loans extended to
its Central Bank, currently stands at $6.4 billion. It was below $2
billion before the 2008-2009 global financial crisis that plunged the
county into a severe recession.

Later in the day, the parliament allowed the government to take a $40
million loan from the Asian Development Bank. The money is to be used
for financing the state budget deficit.



Armenia No Friend To Muslim States, Says Aliyev


# Lusine Musayelian


Turkey - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (R) and other Muslim heads
of state pose for a photograph at a summit in Istanbul, 13Dec2017.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev urged Muslim countries to avoid
close relations with Armenia as he attended on Wednesday an emergency
summit of their leaders held in response to the U.S. decision to
recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Addressing the summit in Istanbul organized by Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, Aliyev again denounced Armenian "occupation" of
Nagorno-Karabakh and what he called the destruction of Islamic
monuments in "the historic land of Azerbaijan."

He described as "hypocritical" Armenia's desire to forge friendly ties
with Islamic states. "Muslims of the world must be aware that an
Armenia tearing down mosques cannot be a friend of Muslim countries,"
he said, according to Azerbaijani news agencies.

Aliyev did not specify which Azerbaijani mosques were destroyed during
or after the 1991-1994 war in Karabakh.

The region's largest Shia mosques are located in the war-ravaged towns
of Shushi (Shusha) and Aghdam. While they are in need of repairs, they
were not torn down after those towns were captured by Karabakh
Armenian forces. At least one of them has undergone cosmetic repairs.

The Karabakh leadership announced late last year it has contracted an
unnamed Iranian company to complete the reconstruction of Shushi's
19th century Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque.


Nagorno-Karabakh - Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque in Shushi, July 2011.
In his speech, Aliyev also thanked countries making up the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for supporting Azerbaijan's
position on the Karabakh conflict. Three of them -- Turkey, Saudi
Arabia and Pakistan -- refuse to establish diplomatic relations with
Armenia out of solidarity with Azerbaijan.

A joint declaration adopted by the heads of OIC member states at a
2016 summit branded Armenia an "aggressor" and called for more
"coercive" measures that would help Azerbaijan regain control over
Karabakh. The Armenian government responded by accusing the Muslim
bloc of "completely distorting the essence of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict."

Predominantly Christian Armenia maintains cordial relations with some
OIC member states, notably neighboring Iran. The latter has had an
uneasy rapport with Azerbaijan.


Press Review



"Zhoghovurd" claims that the Armenian government wants to scrap a
legal limit on the relative size of its debt because it needs new
large-scale loans in order to save Armenia's economic from "collapse."
The paper fears that increasing the country's public debt burden
further will be fraught with grave economic risks.

"The state propaganda machine is already busy boosting the approval
ratings of the future prime minister, Serzh Sarkisian," writes
"Hraparak." The paper points to what it calls a fraudulent opinion
poll that have been conducted by a government-linked group
recently. The poll found that Sarkisian's approval ratings have risen
while Prime Minister Karapetian's have fallen in the past year. "They
are naturally delighted with these results in the Republican Party
(HHK)," comments the paper. "Especially the party's youth wing whose
leaders worship Serzh Sarkisian and can't imagine their life without
his existence."

"Hraparak" also quotes a parliament deputy from the HHK, Mihran
Hakobian, as denying any "rivalry" between Armenia's president and
prime minister. He says that no HHK figure would "compete" with
Sarkisian because the latter is the party's "undisputed leader elected
and accepted by everyone." "I don't think that anyone in the HHK is
now trying to or has chances to compete with the head of state," he
tells the paper.

"Zhamanak" reacts to Prime Minister Karapetian's visit to the Defense
Ministry in Yerevan this week during which he chaired a meeting of a
government commission on armaments and familiarized himself with new
weapons developed by the Armenian defense industry. The paper says
that Karapetian went to the sprawling ministry headquarters in Yerevan
shortly after those weapons were demonstrated late last month during
military exercises held in Karabakh and watched by President
Sarkisian. It wonders whether the premier tried to "keep up" with the
president or Defense Minister Vigen Sargsian and underline his
ambition to retain his post in April.

"For years and decades, our entire public discourse was based on
national romanticism," writes "Aravot." "Starting from the
kindergarten, the premise [of children's upbringing] was a narrative
about miserable, long-suffering but also proud and revengeful
Armenians.That narrative played a major role in the 1960s and 1970s
but is absolutely useless now that we have a more or less decent state
with an army and all other attributes." The paper goes on to make a
case for "modernizing education" in Armenia and, in particular,
getting rid of its "national-liberation" overtones. "The generation,
or at least a part of it, has avoided that outdated upbringing," it
says.

(Elen Chilingarian)


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

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Garo Paylan calls Turkey’s 2018 budget unfair and unconscionable

Soldier arrested in suspicion of killing fellow soldier

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 12/13/2017