Armenian president donates 6 million drams to society of the blind in Gyumri

ARKA, Armenia
Dec 5 2018

YEREVAN, November 5. /ARKA/. During a working visit today to Armenia’s second-largest town of Gyumri President Armen Sarkissian went to see a company run by the Armenian Society of the Blind that produces natural oil paints.

According to the presidential press service, Sarkissian spoke to members of the association and other employees and was told about the technologies used by the company and its expansion programs.

The presidential press service said this project is also of social importance, since its implementation is creating new jobs for people with disabilities. The President donated 6 million drams (about $12.4 thousand) to the company to help its expansion program.

The society members presented a picture painted with the colors of their company to the president, who promised to hang it in the presidential residence. -0-

Russian Election Commission members to observe parliamentary election in Armenia on December 9

ITAR-TASS

December 04, 2018 Tuesday 2:24 PM GMT


Russian Election Commission members to observe parliamentary election in Armenia on December 9

 MOSCOW December 4

HIGHLIGHT: Secretary of the Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) Maya Grishina and member of the commission Nikolai Levichev will act as observers at a regular election to the Armenian National Assembly on December 9, the Central Election Commission reported on Tuesday.

MOSCOW, December 4. /TASS/. Secretary of the Russian Central Election Commission (CEC) Maya Grishina and member of the commission Nikolai Levichev will act as observers at a regular election to the Armenian National Assembly on December 9, the Central Election Commission reported on Tuesday.

"Secretary of the CEC of Russia Maya Grishina will take part in the observation at the invitation of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Armenia. Member of the CEC of Russia Nikolai Levichev will take part as a member of the CIS observer mission," the CEC said in a statement.

The parliament of the republic, formed after the 2017 election, stopped operating after the MPs had not approved Nikol Pashinyan as Prime Minister at a special session on November 1. The decree on an early election was signed by the Armenian president in correspondence with the country’s constitution.

Eleven parties and blocs are taking part in the election campaign. Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s party Civil Agreement is taking part in the campaign as part of the My Step bloc, which is led by Pashinyan himself.

Canberra: Sen. Keneally Delivers Speech on Armenian Genocide

Australian Parliament News
December 4, 2018 Tuesday 4:21 PM EST
 
 
SEN KENEALLY DELIVERS SPEECH ON ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
 
 
 
Senator KENEALLY (New South Wales) (19:33): I rise today in support of a motion that was debated in the House of Representatives on 25 June. On that day, a number of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle spoke of recognising our country's first major international humanitarian relief effort. In 1917, Australians from all across the country began raising money for the survivors of one of the worst humanitarian disasters of the 20th century. Two years prior, a program of extermination had been inflicted on the Armenian people across the Ottoman Empire. The population were forced from their homes and subjected to involuntary labour, starvation and rape as they were marched across the ancestral homelands they had occupied for nearly three millennia.
 
All told, it's estimated that 1½ million people perished during this period. Their stories echoed so strongly here at home because many of our brave Anzacs bore witness to it. Our soldiers were brought into direct contact with the extraordinary suffering of the Armenian people while serving our country in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. Their accounts inspired the thousands of stories that were published in Australian newspapers at the time detailing the systemic attempt to eliminate the Armenian people and their culture. These newspapers reported 'atrocities', 'massacres' and 'decimation' but never used the term 'genocide', simply because we hadn't yet invented a word that could fully encapsulate the myriad cruelties that were inflicted on the Armenian people.
 
In response to this tragedy, Australians from all walks of life banded together to raise funds to assist the orphans and survivors of the Armenian genocide, as well as other Christian minorities such as the Greeks and the Assyrians. The Armenian Relief Fund raised the modern-day equivalent of $1.5 million, and sent supplies on the government steamer Hobson's Bay to aid survivors. This is a proud moment in our history, and more than a century later the Armenian-Australian community is one of the many groups that contribute to the rich cultural tapestry of this nation. But we have not forgotten—indeed, we cannot forget—the special history we share.
 
As a Catholic, I was stirred by the words of Pope Francis in 2015 when he called on the entire human family to heed the warnings of this tragedy to 'protect us from falling into a similar horror'. Pope Francis called the genocide:
 
… the first of the deplorable series of catastrophes of the past century, made possible by twisted racial, ideological or religious aims …
 
And warned that:
 
Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding without bandaging it.
 
As a former member of the New South Wales parliament, and indeed Premier of the great state of New South Wales, I am proud that a motion was passed in 1997 that acknowledged the Armenian genocide and honoured its victims. Today, that historic action is still commemorated with a memorial on the ninth floor of the New South Wales parliament building. Taking the step to recognise this event is so profoundly important to our society. It shows proper respect to survivors and it reinforces our steadfast opposition to any violent crime that seeks to dehumanise and destroy.
 
While I acknowledge that the word 'genocide' invokes sensitivities, I believe our failure to recognise these events undermines our relationships with our friends and allies. Australia plays a crucial role in promoting peace and human rights in the Asia-Pacific and across the globe. The harsh reality of the 21st century is that not all in the international community have learnt from the horrors of the era that preceded it. Ethnic and religious violence continues to plague countries around the world, and it serves only to undermine the fundamental laws of human rights that we hold to be true. We play a crucial role on the international stage in promoting these values but we fall short if we are not willing to acknowledge these acts when they occur, and particularly one that is so intertwined with the legacy of the Anzacs and our emerging nation.
 
If we are to stop the bleeding, we must denounce crimes against humanity whenever and wherever they occur. I am proud that our great nation helped the Armenian people in their time of need and that our actions served a community who today contribute so much to our modern multicultural society. It is important that we recognise our history, both our own and the one we share with the people of Armenia. I join my colleagues who have spoken in this house and in the other, both past and present, in calling on the federal parliament to acknowledge our first humanitarian effort as a country and to recognise the Armenian genocide.
 

Clark Professor Akcam Launches Digital Archive Documenting Armenian Genocide

GoLocal Worcester, MA
Dec 5 2018


 

Taner Akcam

Clark University historian Taner Akcam launched a digital archive to document the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

The archive details the life and survival of Krikor Guerguerian, a priest during the genocide.

“Access to these materials has the potential to change scholarly and political discourse as well as to destroy Turkish denial. It is my duty to make this evidence accessible for the world to see,” said Akcam.

Akcam is the Robert Aram and Marianne Kaloosdian and Stephen and Marian Mugar Professor in Armenian Genocide Studies.

The Archive

The newly launched Krikor Guerguerian Archive comprises thousands of original Ottoman documents and Guerguerian’s extensive, unpublished writings. 

It includes the long-missing handwritten memoirs of Naim Bey, an Ottoman bureaucrat stationed in Aleppo who actively participated in the deportation and massacres of Armenians; documents from the Jerusalem Armenian Patriarchate containing first-hand information about the Armenian genocide; and critical papers from the Istanbul perpetrator trials held from 1919 to 1922 that were long assumed vanished.

Among the most noteworthy materials are ciphered telegrams that the Ottoman Interior Minister Talat Pasha, army commanders, and the chief of the government’s paramilitary sent to governors throughout the Empire. Some of these telegrams, written on government letterhead stamped with the official Ottoman seal, clearly outline the Ottoman government’s planning and execution of the genocide. 

These “killing orders,” considered the “smoking gun” of the Armenian Genocide, formed the basis of Akcam’s groundbreaking book “Killing Orders: Talat Pasha’s Telegrams and the Armenian Genocide,” released earlier this year.

About Akcam

Akcam was one of the first Turkish intellectuals to acknowledge and openly discuss the Armenian Genocide. 

His book “The Young Turks’ Crime Against Humanity: The Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman Empire,” was co-winner of the Middle East Studies Association’s Albert Hourani Book Award and one of ForeignAffairs.com’s “Best Books on the Middle East.”  

Among his many honors, Akçam received the 2018 Outstanding Upstander Award from the World Without Genocide organization; the Hrant Dink Spirit of Freedom and Justice Medal from the Organization of Istanbul Armenians and the Hrant Dink Freedom Award from the Armenian Bar Association (both in 2015); and the Heroes of Justice and Truth award at the Armenian Genocide Centennial commemoration in May 2015.


Another "wiretapping" appeared in the network: a telephone conversation between the head of the NSS of Armenia and Acting PM Pashinyan

Arminfo, Armenia
Dec 5 2018

ArmInfo. Another "interception" appeared in the network, this time of a telephone  conversation between the head of the National Security Service of  Armenia Artur Vanetsyan and Acting Prime Minister Nikol  Pashinyan.According to the "tapping", Vaniecian calls Pashinyan and  reports to him that the head of the Special Investigation Service  Sasun Khachatryan wants to arrest the CSTO Secretary General Yuri  Khachaturov in the case of March 1, 2008. At the same time, he is  concerned that this may arise problems with "Russians".

To this, Pashinyan asks: "When? When exactly does he want to arrest  Khachaturov." Vanetsyan responds: "Now," – adding that for the time  being it is possible to postpone the interrogation of Khachaturov, to  complete the interrogation of the second President of the Republic of  Armenia Robert Kocharyan in the framework of the same case: "Let's  still postpone", asks Vanetzian. To which Pashinyan gives a positive  answer, adding that it is necessary to notify in advance (probably  the CSTO member countries, ed.) So that there are no problems."And  what about the other part?"

Pashinyan asks. "On the other part I have  already spoken with Sasun (head of the SSS, ed.), He says that  everything is accurate. But the judge called me, who said he was  somewhat afraid to make a decision on arrest. I told him that I need  to carefully examine the issue , see where the weaknesses are and  report back to me, "says Vaniecian. "Well, then let them postpone the  first part (the case of Khachaturov, ed.), I'm right here, I will  talk to them," says Pashinyan. Vanetzian says that in this case  Kocharyan will be arrested, and with Khachaturov they will  wait.During Vanetsyan's second conversation with Pashinyan, the  acting premier is at the meeting and you can hardly hear: "I am at  the meeting, Arthur, what happened?" "Mr. Prime Minister" Russian  very "hard" endure the arrest of Khachaturov. Representatives and  intelligence and FSB came, they say do not do it. They say that this  is a big slap in the CSTO, the consequences will be grave, they ask  at least to withdraw it first, and then: ""What about the Kocharyan  case?" Pashinyan wondered.

"As for Kocharyan, the case is going on in  court, but Kocharyan will be there," says Vaniecian.Then it comes  back to Khachaturov and Pashinyan is concerned that he may leave the  country and not return if he is not arrested. But Vaniecian is  encouraging, saying that their countries simply will not let him out.  "Let's give him status within the framework of the case, but we will  not arrest him, this will be a big problem. What to do if it is  possible to keep and not arrest, what to do? Mr. Prime Minister,  well, a very big problem, how, for example, arrest NATO Secretary  General "We are undermining the authority of this organization,"  argues Vanetsyan."Okay, talk to Sasun (head of the SIS), and I'll  call you later," notes Pashinyan.The third conversation takes place  between the heads of the  SIS and the National Security Service.  Vanetsyan again says that the Russians are very "hard" to tolerate  the possible arrest of Khachaturov. "There may be serious problems, I  just told the prime minister about this.  The heads of Russian  intelligence and the FSB have just called me and they say that you  are creating there," says Vanetsyan.Sasun Khachatryan asks what to do  in this case, he can use bail as a preventive measure.

"A pledge or a  written undertaking not to leave the place," suggests Vancian.  Khachatryan thinks that the pledge will be correct: "Let there be a  big pledge, so as not to cast doubt on the basis of the case. And  what to do, talk to the judge?" Khachatryan asks, to which Vanetsyan  replies that everything the judge needs will be said . At the same  time, Vanetsyan doubts that Khachaturov can pay a large bail: "Where  does he have so much money?"

"And what will 20 million drams not be able to  pay?" – asks Khachatryan. Nevertheless, Vanetsyan persuades him to  delay with the decision until he speaks again with the Prime  Minister. "I'll tell the judge to delay the decision, or if you want,  tell me," suggests Vanetsyan, however Khachatryan places this  perspective on the head of the National Security Service.It is  noteworthy that Vanetsyan's telephone conversation was tapped while  he was in Switzerland.It should be noted that on September 11, the  first part of the recording of the wiretap of the telephone  conversation between the Director of the National Security Service of  Armenia Artur Vanetsyan and the Head of the Special Investigation  Service Sasun Khachatryan appeared in the network. During the  8-minute conversation, they are discussing the arrest of ex-President  of Armenia Robert Kocharian, as well as criminal cases initiated  against CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov and former Defense  Minister Mikayel Harutyunyan. During the conversation, Vaniecian  confesses: "It seemed to me that the judge who should give the  sentence of arrest called Hrach: He was scared, he said that he had  to see all the grounds before rendering a verdict.

I told him – look at the whole thing, Armenian with the spirit – Ed.) Look,  but Kocharyan should be arrested anyway. "After that, on Facebook,  Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that, perhaps, the  purpose of the interception was political sabotage. Already in the  evening, Nikol Pashinyan said at a rally within the framework of the  election campaign to the Council of Elders of Yerevan that  interception of the heads of the special services was a conspiracy, a  crime against the Armenian statehood. Judge Vache Margaryan himself  stated that he was not acquainted with Vanetsyan and could not call  him.On September 12, the Investigative Committee (IC) of Armenia  accepted into criminal proceedings a criminal case initiated by the  Office for Supervision over the investigation of particularly  important cases of the RA Prosecutor General's Office regarding the  violation of the secrecy of the telephone conversation, recording and  publication of the audio recording. The case was initiated under Part  1 of Art. 146 of the RA Criminal Code and paragraph 4 of part 3 of  Article 254 of the RA Criminal Code. The preliminary investigation is  entrusted to the General Directorate for Investigation of Especially  Important Cases of the Investigative Body.

An investigation team has  been set up and, together with the investigative bodies, the  necessary actions are taken to clarify all the circumstances of the  case, as well as to establish the circle of persons who have  committed the alleged crime. On September 13, the General  Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Armenia on violation of the  secrecy of the telephone conversation, recording and publicizing the  audio recording between the Director of the National Security Service  (NSS) of Armenia Artur Vanetsyan and the Chairman of the Special  Investigation Service (SSS) of Armenia Sasun Khachatryan launched a  new criminal case – under Part 1 of Article . 309 of the RA Criminal  Code (abuse of power).

On the same day, a decision was made in the  National Assembly of Armenia to establish a temporary commission on  the fact of obstructing the administration of justice, violation of  the right to a fair trial and telephone conversation secrets. 

Sports: UEFA to assist Armenia with construction of new national stadium

MediaMax, Armenia
Dec 5 2018

Photo: FotoPyK

Mr. Vanestyan and FFA Vice President, Secretary General Armen Melikbekyan met in the Irish capital with UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin and Director for National Associations Zoran Lakovic. They discussed a broad range of areas for cooperation, particularly the programs for infrastructure development that FFA plans to carry out in Armenian marzes over the next 4 years.

The Armenian delegation introduced UEFA officials to the plan for construction of a new national stadium. Aleksander Ceferin said UEFA is ready to support the Armenian Football Federation with planning, expert assistance and professional consultations to make the new stadium compliant with UEFA standards, said FFA.

Film: California premiere of Armenia’s Oscar submission set for Laemmle Glendale

Los Angeles Times
Dec 4 2018


Russia to supply Su-30SM fighter jets to Armenia

TASS – Russia's Defense Technologies Newswire
December 4, 2018 Tuesday 1:56 PM GMT
Russia to supply Su-30SM fighter jets to Armenia
 
YEREVAN December 4
 
HIGHLIGHT: Armenia and Russia have almost completed to finalize a contract for delivering Su-30SM fighter jets to Yerevan, Armenia's Acting Defense Minister David Tonoyan said.
 
YEREVAN, December 4. /TASS-DEFENSE/. Armenia and Russia have almost completed to finalize a contract for delivering Su-30SM fighter jets to Yerevan, Armenia's Acting Defense Minister David Tonoyan said.
 
"We are trying to make it quick. We are entering the final stage of signing the contract," he said.
 
According to Tonoyan, the two countries are finishing to implement at an inter-state level an agreement for granting a 100 million-dollar Russian credit to Armenia for purchasing arms, including concrete types of military hardware.
 
"At present the negotiations are nearing completion. Inter-state procedures are underway in Russia and Armenia. We have nearly finished," Tonoyan said.
 
Armenia's acting defense minister noted close military cooperation with Russian colleagues. "We are getting ready for a joint event. We are going to announce the dates as soon as we resolve some issues," Tonoyan said without specifying what event he meant.
 
An agreement for granting a new export credit to Armenia was signed on October 24, 2017. Armenia will use the credit to import Russian-made defense products. Armenia is getting the credit at a 3% annual interest rate with a maturity period of 15 years. Under the contract, Armenia is to use the credit in 2018-2022.
 
The multirole Su-30SM (serial, modernized) (Flanker-H by NATO classification) is designed to win supremacy in the air and for strikes at ground and surface targets. The aircraft has front horizontal fin and steerable thrusters. They make the aircraft super maneuverable. Su-30SM carries multifunctional Bars radar. It has a broad range of weapons, including air-to-air missiles and high-precision air-to-surface armaments. Su-30SM can be used to train pilots for perspective one-seater fighters. The aircraft has been built since 2012. Fighter jets of this class afre taking part in the operation in Syria. Su-30SM was adopted for service in 2018.

Two dead in Armenia warplane crash: ministry

Agence France Presse
December 4, 2018 Tuesday 11:56 AM GMT


Two dead in Armenia warplane crash: ministry

Yerevan, Dec 4 2018

Two crew members died in an Armenian warplane crash on Tuesday, the
ex-Soviet republic's defence ministry said.

Debris of the SU-25 fighter jet "was found in the mountains near the
town of Maralik" in Armenia's western Shirak region, the ministry
spokesman Atrsrun Hovhannisyan said in a Facebook post.

"Two pilots, lieutenant colonel Armen Babayan and major Movses
Manukyan, were killed" in the crash, he said.

The aircraft disappeared from radars on Tuesday morning, minutes after
it took off for a routine training flight, the ministry had reported
earlier.

mkh-im/oc/boc