Thursday,
Regulators Cut Energy Price For Poor Families
Armenia - A newly refurbished energy distribution facility in Gyumri, 13Sep2014.
Armenian utility regulators announced on Thursday a 25 percent reduction in the
price of electricity supplied by it to low-income families.
The Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) said the daytime price for
them will fall from 40 to 30 drams (6 U.S. cents) per kilowatt/hour starting
from February 1. They will pay 20 drams per kilowatt/hours during night hours,
it said.
The daytime price for the rest of the population is currently set at just under
45 drams per kilowatt/hour.
The price cuts affecting some 110,000 households were supposed to take effect
on July 1. They were promised by both the government and the Electricity
Networks of Armenia (ENA), the national power utility, in June. Then Energy
Minister Artur Grigorian said the electricity price for the poor will go down
“at the expense of ENA’s profits” and cost the private company 2 billion drams
($4.1 million) in annual revenue.
The PSRC said it decided to cut the price during an annual review of energy
tariffs in Armenia which found a net “positive result” in the domestic energy
sector. ENA did not immediately comment on the regulatory body’s decision.
The power distribution network is owned by the Tashir Group of Russian-Armenian
billionaire Samvel Karapetian. Tashir seems to have significantly reduced ENA’s
massive losses since purchasing the debt-ridden company from a state-run
Russian energy giant, Inter RAO, in 2015.
Iranian, Armenian Diplomats Discuss U.S. Sanctions
Iran- Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) meets with Armenian
Ambassador Artashes Tumanian in Tehran, December 26,2018.
Armenia’s ambassador to Iran has reportedly discussed with a senior Iranian
official ways of reducing the impact of U.S. sanctions against Tehran on
bilateral commercial ties.
According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Artashes Tumanian
briefed Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on recent political
developments in Armenia and his government’s foreign policy priorities when
they met on Wednesday.
A statement released by the ministry on Thursday said they then discussed
Armenian-Iranian relations.
“In particular, they spoke about deepening the political dialogue, developing
economic cooperation in the conditions of American sanctions, organizing
high-level mutual visits and a number of other issues,” added the statement. It
gave no other details.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian made clear on December 22 that his government
intends to “deepen not only economic but also political relations with Iran”
despite the U.S. sanctions that have been re-imposed by President Donald Trump.
He spoke at the official opening of an Armenian-Iranian joint venture in the
northern city of Vanadzor.
Pashinian said last month the United States “understands” Armenia’s desire to
maintain a “special” relationship with the Islamic Republic.
Earlier in November, a team of U.S. officials visited Yerevan to explain the
sanctions to Armenia’s government and private sector. Iran was also high on the
agenda of U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton’s October trip to Armenia.
Bolton said after talks with Pashinian that commercial and other traffic
through the Armenian-Iranian border is “going to be a significant issue” for
Washington.
With Armenia’s borders with Azerbaijan and Turkey closed due to the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Iran as well as Georgia serve as the sole conduits
for the landlocked country’s trade with the outside world.
Armenia also imports Iranian natural gas and other fuel. The gas supplies
should increase significantly after the ongoing construction of a third power
transmission line connecting the two countries is completed next year.
According to official Armenian statistics, Armenia’s trade with Iran soared by
40 percent, to $297 million, in the first ten months of this year.
Armenian Tycoon Freed On Bail
• Anush Muradian
Armenia - Businessman Samvel Mayrapetian at the official opening of his Toyota
car dealership in Yerevan, 23 June 2009.
A court in Yerevan on Thursday granted bail to a prominent Armenian businessman
who was arrested nearly three months ago on corruption charges which he flatly
denies.
The millionaire businessman, Samvel Mayrapetian, was charged in early October
with “assisting in bribery.”
The Special Investigative Service (SIS), a law-enforcement body prosecuting
him, has still not publicized any details of the accusations. It thus remains
unclear whom the SIS accuses or suspects of accepting a bribe with the tycoon’s
help.
Mayrapetian’s lawyer, Karen Batikian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service the court
released his client from custody on health grounds. Batikian said the tycoon is
seriously ill and is now undergoing in a Yerevan hospital a medical examination
ordered by investigators.
“He will remain in the hospital for now,” added the lawyer.
Mayrapetian is one of Armenia’s leading real estate developers who also owns a
national TV channel and a car dealership. His company was involved in a
controversial redevelopment of old districts in downtown Yerevan during the
1998-2008 rule of former President Robert Kocharian. Pro-opposition media
outlets for years linked Kocharian’s elder son Sedrak to the Toyota dealership.
Kocharian is currently held in pretrial detention, having been charged in
connection with the deadly breakup of post-election opposition protests staged
in Yerevan in March 2008. He denies the accusations as politically motivated.
In September, Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) launched a separate
corruption inquiry into the embattled ex-president. The NSS chief, Artur
Vanetsian, revealed earlier this month that Sedrak Kocharian has been
questioned as a “witness” as part of that probe. Vanetsian did not elaborate.
Putin Again Praises Ties With Armenia
Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Armenian Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian in Moscow, .
Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke of a “good dynamic” in Russia’s
relationship with Armenia as he met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in
Moscow on Thursday.
The two men discussed what the Kremlin described as “key topics of the
bilateral agenda.” Those most probably included a new agreement on the price of
Russian natural gas supplied to Armenia and the thorny issue of who should be
the new secretary general of the Russian-led Collective Security Organization
(CSTO).
Neither leader made any public statements immediately after the talks held in
the presence of other senior Russian and Armenian officials. Nor did their
aides or press offices report any agreements reached by them.
Armenia pays $150 per thousand cubic meters of Russian gas under a bilateral
deal that runs until the end of this month. The Armenian government hoped in
the run-up to Thursday’s talks that the Russians will at least not raise this
price. But some officials in Yerevan did not rule out the possibility of a
price rise.
Armenia also hoped for Russian support in its dispute with Belarus over the
vacant post of CSTO secretary general which was held by a retired Armenian army
general, Yuri Khachaturov, until last month. Khachaturov was sacked after being
controversially charged by Armenian authorities in connection with the 2008
post-election violence in Yerevan. Moscow strongly criticized the charges.
Pashinian has been trying to ensure that another representative of Armenia is
allowed to complete Khachaturov’s three-year tenure which was due to expire in
2020. However, at least four other CSTO member states -- Belarus, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan -- want a Belarusian nominee, Stanislav Zas, to
become the next secretary general.
A CSTO spokesman said earlier this week that Putin also supports Zas’s
candidacy. Moscow did not confirm that claim, however.
Putin began his latest meeting with Pashinian by congratulating the latter on
his My Step alliance’s “convincing victory” in the December 9 parliamentary
elections. “I want to wish you success in the realization of all objectives
which you set for yourself and your team to the benefit of Armenia and the
Armenian people,” he said.
Putin has still not congratulated Pashinian in writing, fuelling Armenian media
speculation about his discontent with the new authorities in Yerevan.
In his opening remarks publicized by the Kremlin, Putin also praised “truly
allied relations” between the two nations and growing trade between them. “I
think that the dynamic is good,” he said. “It must be maintained.”
“We will do everything in our power to maintain this level of our relations not
only in this sphere but also in other directions,” he added, referring to the
CSTO and the Eurasian Economic Union.
“We intend to deepen our relations in all directions,” Pashinian said, for his
part. He invited Putin to pay an official visit to Armenia next year.
Press Review
“Zhamanak” cites the Kremlin as reporting on Wednesday that Russian President
Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian will discuss “key
topics of the bilateral agenda” when they meet in Moscow on Thursday. The paper
describes this wording as “quite telling and perhaps even unprecedented for
high-level Russian-Armenian meetings.” “The Armenian society undoubtedly
expects today’s meeting to answer some questions regarding the gas price, the
situation around the CSTO,” it says.
Lragir.am says that Russian-Armenian relations “did not fully reflect Armenia’s
national interests” before the Armenian “velvet revolution” and need to be
“revised” now. “In the past two decades there have been many examples proving
that,” writes the pro-Western public. “Those include the April [2016] war [in
Karabakh.]” This is what Putin and Pashinian should discuss “in an open and
mutually frank atmosphere,” it says, adding that they should make sure that
their mutual rapport is unaffected by continuing “relations between Armenia’s
former ruling system and the current Russian elite.”
“Aravot” suggests that cost cutting is the main purpose of Pashinian’s plans to
reduce the number of government ministries and downsize the state bureaucracy.
The paper says successive Armenian governments failed to forge adequate links
with the Armenian Diaspora both before and after the creation of the Ministry
of Diaspora in 2009. “The main problem is that the logic of the Soviet-era
Diaspora Committee was preserved,” it explains in an editorial. “Events,
toasts, oaths of unity and the like. That was absolutely justified in the
absence of an independent Armenian state. These events may flatter some
Diaspora Armenians but they have nothing to do with independent Armenia’s
agenda. The same is true for the Ministry of Culture.”
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2018 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org
Category: 2018
Artsakh’s economic activity rate increases by nearly 12% in 2018
Artsakh’s economic activity rate increases by nearly 12% in 2018
15:14,
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. Artsakh’s GDP in January-September 2018 comprised 197.6 billion AMD, by ensuring 12.2% real growth. 6.7% of this 12.2% growth has been ensured by industry, 4.3% by trade and services, Artsakh state minister Grigori Martirosyan said at a press conference summing up 2018, reports Armenpress.
He said it is expected that by the end of the year the nominal figure of the GDP will comprise nearly 303 billion AMD by ensuring double-digit economic growth. “The GDP per capita in 2018 is expected to comprise about 4260 USD against the 3845 USD of 2017. In January-November 2018 the economic activity rate increased by 11.7% compared to the same period of 2017”, the state minister said.
He added that the legislative changes will enable to improve the business climate and will facilitate the tax burden of small and medium enterprises starting from 2019.
Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
Asbarez: Mesrobian High School Hosts ‘Path to Success’ Evening
Students take party in Mesrobian school’s “Path to Success” evening
PICO RIVERA, Calif.—Armenian Mesrobian School hosted its annual ‘Path to Success’ evening on Wednesday, December 12, at the school’s Iknadossian Hall to discuss expectations and preparation for High School and Higher Education.
The presentation had two sessions for students and parents of 8th graders and 9th through 11th graders. Faculty and administration discussed High School graduation requirements, preparing for higher education, choosing a college, and fulfilling admission requirements to different college and university systems.
Students, along with their parents, shared what characteristics they want to develop as they become adults, the professional careers they are considering pursuing, and which universities they would ideally like to attend.
Faculty and administration answered questions and spoke about the comprehensive, research-based approaches to foster student achievement at Mesrobian School, which strives for tradition, innovation and excellence.
“Mesrobian School is an environment where every student is treated as an individual, and where every student can rise to their true potential,” said the school.
Mesrobian School’s outstanding College Counseling program includes a team of professionals with a very personalized focus on each student, as well as an emphasis on starting early. Mesrobian’s 8th graders, prior to matriculating to Mesrobian High School, already begin on their journey of exploration and preparation for higher education with individualized and customized advisement.
Upon graduation, Mesrobian High School students have been directly admitted to the following colleges and universities: California Lutheran University, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, California State University including CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, CSU Los Angeles, and CSU Northridge, Claremont-McKenna College, Columbia University, Drexel University, DePaul University, Fordham University, Georgetown University, Loyola-Marymount University, Pitzer College, Pomona College, Saint John’s University, Scripps College, University of California including UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Los Angeles, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Santa Cruz, University of Chicago, University of Southern California, Whittier College, Woodbury University, and Yale University.
Mesrobian’s Alumni Network and Mentorship Program connects students with over five decades of alumni who have distinguished themselves in fields as diverse as education, science, business, medicine, music, law, dentistry, chiropractic, politics, art, marketing, engineering, veterinary medicine, and psychology.
Armenian Mesrobian School, established in 1965, is fully accredited from Preschool through High School by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and is the nation’s first Armenian Elementary School. The college preparatory High School curriculum is certified to the University of California. Mesrobian School includes Ron and Goharik Gabriel Preschool (which serves students 2-5 years old), Elementary, Middle School and a college preparatory High School on the same campus.
Armenpress: More than $38 million to be invested in Armenia’s airports
More than $38 million to be invested in Armenia’s airports
13:54,
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. The government of Armenia has approved the 2018-2022 master plan of Yerevan’s Zvartnots airport and Gyumri’s Shirak airport.
Caretaker minister of transportation, communication and IT Hakob Arshakyan said at the Cabinet meeting that the master plan gets updated once every five years in accordance to the contract.
The plan envisages nearly 38,2 million dollars investments that will result in ensuring ICAO standards, reach IATA service C level, improve security and conform with new international standards.
A 2800 meter-long section of the Zvartnots airport’s runway will be renovated, among others.
Reconstruction will also take place in Shirak airport, which will enable to ensure conditions for the operations of Airbus A-320 and Boeing B 757-200.
Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
Armenia, Russia should preserve cooperation in the sidelines of CSTO – Putin
Armenia, Russia should preserve cooperation in the sidelines of CSTO – Putin
19:31,
YEREVAN, DECEMBER 27, ARMENPRESS. Official Moscow and Yerevan should cooperate in the sphere of security in the sidelines of the Collective Security Treaty Organization and other integration unions, ARMENPRESS reports, citing “Ria Novosti”, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in a meeting with acting PM of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.
“I think there is a positive dynamic, and it should be preserved. We are ready to do that and will do everything possible to preserve such a high level of relations not only in that sphere (economy), but also other directions. I mean also the security sphere and our cooperation in the sidelines of the CSTO”, Putin said.
Pashinyan noted that Armenia is interested in developing relations with Russia in all the directions and has positive approach towards integration in the sidelines of the EAEU.
Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Verelq: Ոստիկանությունը կանխել է թմրամիջոցի ապօրինի տեղափոխումը Հայաստան
- 27.12.2018
- Հայաստան
- arm
41
Ոստիկանության ԿՀԴՊԳՎ ԹԱՇԴՊ վարչության աշխատակիցները մաքսանենգ ճանապարհով Հայաստան թմրամիջոց տեղափոխելու վերաբերյալ օպերատիվ տեղեկություններ են ստացել։
Ինչպես տեղեկացնում են ՀՀ ոստիկանության լրատվության և հասարակայնության հետ կապերի վարչությունից, դեկտեմբերի 24-ին, համագործակցելով Պետական եկամուտների կոմիտեի մաքսանենգության դեմ պայքարի վարչության օպերատիվ հետախուզության բաժնի, Մեղրիի ոստիկանության և ՌԴ սահմանապահ զորքերի ծառայողների հետ, ժամը 3-ի սահմաններում պետական սահմանի «Ագարակ» անցակետի մաքսային հսկողության գոտում մաքսային զննման ենթարկվեց Իրանից ժամանած ավտոբուսը։
Ուղևորներից մեկի՝ Մոջտաբա Էզեդինֆումեշի անձնական խուզարկությամբ և նրա նստատեղի հենակի դարակում հայտնաբերվեց «Տրամադոլ» դեղամիջոցի «200» և «100» գրառմամբ՝ ընդհանուր 20 հաբ։
ՊԵԿ քննչական վարչությունում հարուցվեց քրեական գործ։ Ըստ դատաքիմիական փորձաքննության եզրակացության՝ հաբերում հայտնաբերվել էր «տրամադոլ» տեսակի հոգեմետ նյութ։ Մոջտաբա Էզեդինֆումեշին ձերբակալվել է։ Կատարվում է նախաքննություն։
Aronian loses at the opening game of the 2018 World Rapid Championship
Panorama, Armenia
Dec 27 2018
Sport 18:01 27/12/2018 Armenia
The rapid world title fight started on Thursday in St. Petersburg with the first of three days of rapid chess. The Blitz Championship will follow on Saturday and Sunday. The format is a 15-round Swiss open with a prize fund of USD $350,000, and $60,000 for 1st place.
The first day of the World Rapid Championship saw a shocking start for Magnus Carlsen, who lost his first two games before recovering with 3/3.
Armenia’s grandmaster Levon Aronian also started with a defeat, losing to another Armenian player Robert Hovhannistyan. In the following games of the first day the Armenian grandmaster celebrated three victories and one draw.
After five rounds, the Open Section is led by Ian Nepomniachtchi, Dmitry Andreikin (both Russia), and the 15-year-old Alireza Firouzja (Iran) with 4.5 points each. 15 players scored 4 points.
Putin Told Pashinyan What They Are Ready to Do
Lragir, Armenia
Dec 27 2018
Trade between Russia and Armenia is growing, it is necessary to maintain the progress, as well as cooperation between the two countries in all directions, the Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during the meeting with the Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Tass informed.
Greeting Pashinyan in the Kremlin, Putin said it is the first visit of the acting prime minister to Russia since the victory of his party in the national elections.
“We would like to wish you good luck, success in implementing all programs that you have assigned to your team for the sake of Armenia and for the sake of the wellbeing of the Armenian people,” the Russian president said.
“Our relations need not be described, they are genuine relations of allies which are highly meaningful,” the Russian President said. He said, in particular, that Russia continues to rate number one among the foreign economic partners of Armenia. Bilateral trade grew by 30% in 2017.
“In the past nine months of this year [trade] increased by another 17.5%. Progress is good, it must be maintained,” the Russian president said. According to him, Moscow is ready to do everything it can to maintain the same level of relations with Yerevan, not only in the economic sector but also in other directions, particularly security.
On the whole, we have a rich, saturated agenda,” Vladimir Putin concluded.
During the meeting Putin said that Moscow and Yerevan must cooperate in the sphere of security in CSTO and other integration unions.
In his turn, Pashinyan reiterated the commitment of Armenia to develop relations in all directions with Russia, is positive about integration in the EEU. He invited Putin to Armenia for an official visit in 2019. “We will also expect you in Armenia next year for an official visit, and it will be pleasant for us too,” Pashinyan stated during the meeting in the Kremlin.
Sports: This was a successful year for European champion Ferdinand Karapetyan
MediaMax, Armenia
Dec 26 2018
This was a successful year for European champion Ferdinand Karapetyan
Photo: Mediamax
European Champion in judo Ferdinand Karapetyan thinks that 2018 was a successful year for him.
He won the gold medal in the European Championship, but before he had become the winner in the Grand Prix, and took the bronze medal in the Grand Slam.
“I felt that I was in a good shape. I am extremely happy to have won in the European Championship, where I got advantage over experienced and title-holder athletes. Unfortunately, I didn’t participate in the World Championship in Baku, but one shouldn’t stop or regret,” the judoka noted.
He added that he will train more next year and aim to multiply his victories: “I don’t concentrate on Olympic points. Now I have quite a high rating, but I need to maintain that rhythm and work even harder.”
In Ethiopia, as a capital rises, history rots
Agence France Presse
Wednesday 3:26 AM GMT
In Ethiopia, as a capital rises, history rots
Addis Ababa, Dec 26 2018
From its hillside overlooking the Ethiopian capital, Berhanu Mengistu's century-old, gabled family home has seen emperors and governments rise and fall.
It has withstood economic stagnation and the rapid population growth that replaced its once-patrician neighbours with a rabble of shacks.
But it now stands lonely in a field of weeds, the house's corrugated roof and red plaster walls stark against a fast-changing cityscape of cleared slums, tower cranes and glinting high rises.
Palatial homes like Berhanu's are scattered throughout Addis Ababa, built for imperial-era courtiers and foreign business moguls, but most have slid into dire neglect as the government focuses on an aspirational building boom.
"Nowadays, most of the buildings you see are more of the European architecture," said Berhanu, a supply chain manager whose house has been in his family for seven generations.
Across the capital, older, poorer neighbourhoods — like the one that once surrounded Berhanu's home — have been levelled to make way for glass-and-concrete towers, lauded by the government as a symbol of the rapid economic expansion transforming one of Africa's poorest countries.
But preservationists worry that the breakneck development comes at the cost of the capital's architectural heritage.
"There are isolated efforts of protecting, saving historic buildings, but it's really very limited," said Fasil Giorghis, a well-known architect.
"It is not even a given that you should protect a historic building."
– A young city –
Addis Ababa was founded in the late 19th century by Emperor Menelik II as he expanded the Ethiopian empire from the country's northern highlands to its modern boundaries.
The young city soon filled with houses belonging to members of Menelik's government, among them Berhanu's ancestor Yemtu Beznash, the family matriarch and administrator of a powerful law court.
Menelik, who died in 1913, also hired Armenians as city engineers, while merchants came from India and Yemen.
That cosmopolitanism was upended in 1974 with the arrival of the Derg military junta, which dismantled the Ethiopian empire.
Fasil recounted how, as foreign traders fled, the communist-leaning Derg handed their former mansions to poor tenants, who could not afford to maintain the earthen walls and wooden floors.
– 'Ideological shift' –
The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), which evicted the Derg in 1991 and continues to rule today, has presided over an economic boom.
This has seen contractors from China and elsewhere set to work on half-built skyscrapers that give the capital's skyline a jagged, unfinished feel.
Maheder Gebremedhin, an architect who hosts a radio show discussing the trade, says the neglect of the old buildings is due to the cost and complexity of renovation, as well as a lingering ambivalence towards the imperial past.
"Because of the ideological shift, there is not a real interest to keep these buildings," Maheder said.
– Heritage, abandoned –
Government and private donors have successfully restored a handful of buildings, including one of Menelik's palaces and the mansion of a former defence minister that's been converted into a museum.
But city authorities acknowledge that most of the 440 buildings that have been designated heritage sites are rundown.
"Because of our capacity as a developing country, they can't be repaired all the time," said Worku Mengesha, a spokesman for Addis Ababa's tourism office.
A decade ago, foreign embassies and Ethiopian preservationists tried to restore the Mohammadali house, once the property of a wealthy Indian businessman featuring prominent Indian and Arabian architectural elements in addition to its imperial-era Ethiopian style.
However, bureaucracy and shoddy construction scuppered the effort, Fasil said.
As a result, it is padlocked and abandoned, with parked cars sheltering beneath its Indian-inspired arches and a pair of discarded trousers draped across its faded cream staircase.
Other historic buildings continue in their Derg-era role of housing for the poor, or in their slow decrepitude.
The expansive former palace of Hojele Al-Hassen, a wealthy traditional ruler during the Menelik era, still houses people from his western region, who spend after-work hours socialising on the wraparound veranda.
But it's increasingly dilapidated, with an entire decaying wing that once served as a school classroom sealed off for safety.
– Family history, city history –
Three years ago, as city authorities levelled the homes that had mushroomed around Berhanu's house, he kept the bulldozers at bay by having his home designated an historic building.
Berhanu now hopes to turn his family history into national history.
Standing near a large portrait of the matriarch Yemtu, he spoke of his dream to make a museum of the house whose rooms are filled with family photographs and heirlooms, including a wall-spanning snake skin.
"This is not only our property. It belongs to all Ethiopians and people of Addis Ababa," he said.
He hopes the city will agree.
Across the street in the slum area the government wants cleared, his neighbour Solomon Damana had recently resolved a dispute with city authorities and was following orders to demolish the small family home in which he was born and raised and move to a one-bedroom apartment on the outskirts of town.
"I'm happy that one isn't demolished," he said, gesturing at Berhanu's place. "It's an historic house."