Category: 2019

Armenian wounded in explosion at Christmas fair in Lviv deceased

Karlen Baghdasarian
112 International
Jan 2 2019


The 50-year-old man had 50 percent of his skin burned; he suffered kidney failure and strong intoxication after the explosion on December 22
08:04, 2 January 2019

The 50-year-old citizen of Armenia passed away at the 8th city clinical hospital in Lviv; as one of the victims of the explosion on Christmas fair in Lviv, he's been in the hospital's intensive care unit since December 22. Lviv city hall's press office reported that on late Tuesday.

The man's condition was grave, so he spent all the time in the intensive care. 

'We managed to cope with the burn shock, but the next stage, which starts at the skin burn rate exceeding 20 percent, is the intoxication. His lab tests results worsened since yesterday, and he developed kidney failure. Unfortunately, due to the heavy massive burns, he suffered a strong intoxication. The man had 50 percent of his body burned', Ihor Stoyanovsky, the hospital's Deputy Chief Medical Doctor for Surgical Assistance said.

Lviv city hall expressed condolences to the family and relatives of the deceased citizen.

Armenian citizen injured in Lviv Christmas Fair blast dies in hospital

Arsine Chaltikian
UNIAN, Ukraine
Jan 2 2019
 
Armenian citizen injured in Lviv Christmas Fair blast dies in hospital
16:20,
UKRAINE: The man's condition was very serious, as burns covered 50% of his body's surface area. Varta 1 NGO An Armenian citizen, 50, one of the victims of the December 22 explosion at the Christmas Fair in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, has died in the intensive care ward of the city's 8th Clinical Hospital. Read also Gas blast in residential building near Kyiv: Two bodies found under rubble "Despite medical assistance, the doctors failed to save the life of a man injured in an explosion at the fair. The man was in the intensive care unit and his condition was serious. Yesterday [December 31], his health check results worsened. The man died today," Lviv City Council said in a statement on its website on January 1.
Ihor Stoyanovskyi, a deputy chief physician for the surgical care department at the 8th Clinical Hospital, said that the victim's condition was constantly serious, as burns covered 50% of his body's surface area. As UNIAN reported earlier, at 13:15 Kyiv time on December 22, 2018, a gas cylinder exploded at a booth amid the Christmas Fair near Lviv's Opera Theater building. As a result, three wooden pavilions were destroyed by fire and five people were injured. Four victims were in stable but serious condition.
 
 

Kazakhstan national charged with illegally crossing Armenia border was amnestied

Garnik Zakarian
News.am, Armenia
Jan 2 2019
Kazakhstan national charged with illegally crossing Armenia border was amnestied Kazakhstan national charged with illegally crossing Armenia border was amnestied

20:46, 02.01.2019                   


A 25-year-old Kazakhstan national who was charged with illegally crossing the border of Armenia has been amnestied.


The indictment said the young man had bought a fake passport of Ukrainian citizen when being in Turkey back in 2016. He arrived in Yerevan after taking Mombasa-Dubai-Yerevan flight and crossed the border without necessary documents in February 2018. However, he was detained by security officials.

St. Vartan Cathedral Marks 60 Years of Gomidas Choir in Joyous Christmas Concert

Kanayan Tamar

ST. VARTAN CATHEDRAL MARKS 60 YEARS OF GOMIDAS CHOIR IN JOYOUS CHRISTMAS CONCERT


Armenian News Network / Armenian News

January 2, 2019


BY FLORENCE AVAKIAN


 

 

Close to 500 people crowded into a festively-adorned St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral on Saturday evening, December 15, to celebrate the blessings of Christmas—and to honor a milestone in the history for New York’s great Gomidas Choir.

The evening went forward under the auspices of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America, with its Primate, the Very Reverend Fr. Daniel Findikyan, presiding. Also present were a number of priests from Diocesan parishes.

The concert of Christmas music—mixed with selections by the choir’s namesake, Gomidas Vartabed—was beautifully rendered by the singers of the Gomidas Choir, under the direction of its musical director Kris D. Kalfayan, to mark the 60th anniversary of the distinguished vocal ensemble.

The youngest member of the choir, 22-year-old Andrew Varujan Yenicag, warmly welcomed the enthusiastic crowd, paying tribute to the glorious history of the choir and “our forefathers who had the vision to preserve our identity and pass it on to future generations.”

He recalled the legacies of such dedicated founders as Isahag Aprahamian, Dr. Ara Bohcalian, and Onnig Hepshen—former members of the Gomidas Choir in Istanbul who “planted the seed of our choir in March 1948, by singing the Gomidas arrangement of the Divine Liturgy on Holy Thursday at the Holy Cross Church in upper Manhattan.”

As the choir grew in numbers, female voices were added to the original all-male chorus. In 1958, it was formally named the “Gomidas Choir,” and was brought under the auspices of the Diocese by then-Primate Archbishop Mampre Calfayan. In his welcoming remarks, Mr. Yenicag asked two of the 60-year members who were present to stand, Dikran Cherchian and his grandfather Varoujan Arslanian—both of whom were greeted with thunderous applause.

Gomidas Revered Internationally

The music of Gomidas Vartabed is not only revered by Armenians, but acclaimed by the most renowned musicians internationally. Two of the greatest Armenian composers, Aram Khachaturian and Alan Hovhaness, have stated that the foundation of Armenian music rests in the genius of Gomidas.

Among the concert highlights sung by the 36-voice choir was one of Gomidas’ most sacred works, the “Lord’s Prayer,” and his beautifully melodic “Wondrously Marvelous Flower.”

The program also included Christmas carols and festive classics by international and Armenian composers—Ara Bartevian, Khoren Mekanejian, and Wardan Sarxian. Soloists included Anoosh Barclay, Alyne Corrigan, Anoush Givelekian, Alvard Mayilyan, and Solange Merdinian. James Hopkins was the guest organist.

To Sing and Speak With Angels

“The beauty of Christmas songs symbolizes the miracle and beauty of the birth of Christ,” said Diocesan Primate Fr. Daniel Findikyan, in remarks following the concert.

He stated that in his new role as Primate, “I am privileged to be the beneficiary of so many wonderful accomplishments, including the 60-year legacy of the Gomidas Choir.” He revealed that his grandfather Hagop Findikyan directed the Gomidas Choir in Bolis in the 1950s.

“One of the greatest gifts God gives us is to sing and speak with angels—something we do every Sunday during our Badarak,” the Primate continued.

In paying tribute to the 60-year history of the Gomidas Choir, which includes more than 65 departed members, he “thanked all the singers, Maestro Kris Kalfayan, and especially Gomidas Vartabed.”

“We have felt the grace of the music which you will continue to give for many decades to come,” the Primate said. “May the New Year be filled with the sacred music that we have heard in this cathedral.”

The concert concluded with the beautiful benediction hymn, “The Lord Bless You and Keep You,” by Peter Lutkin, garnering a standing ovation, and a bouquet of flowers for the artists.

During the reception that followed in the Diocesan Center’s Haik and Alice Kavookjian Auditorium, Kris Kalfayan—who has directed the choir for 37 years—said that the concert was dedicated to the memory of “those who sang and no longer are with us.” He recalled that the 70-strong, all-male Gomidas Choir sang for the consecration of St. Vartan Cathedral 50 years ago.

“Gomidas means Armenian music,” Kalfayan said with passionate emphasis. “Without him, we would have nothing preserved from the past.”

For classical guitarist Robert Kinoian, “the choir sounded beautiful in a beautiful setting. The music put us in the spirit of the true meaning of Christmas.”

Singer Maria P. Ruiz called the performance “peaceful and prayerful. There was a good blending of the dynamics.”

And proud, 60-year choir member Varoujan Arslanian said he felt “so happy tonight.” He nostalgically remembered devoted founder Issahag Abrahamian, who “taught with pleasure, and sang melodically.” Expressing the emotions of many, he said: “I am flying to the moon tonight.”

What will 2018 be remembered for in Armenia?

Vanyan Gary
Vestnik Kavkaza
Dec 31 2018
31 Dec 2018 in 16:47

2018 will enter the history of Armenia as the year of the change of the elites, the bloodless revolution, due to which the Karabakh clan headed by Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan lost power in the republic. The ex-mayor of Yerevan Vahagn Khachatryan, the director of the Armenian branch of the Institute of CIS countries, Alexander Markarov and the former head of the Central Bank of Armenia, Bagrat Asatryan spoke about the ongoing year with the correspondents of Vestnik Kavkaza. 

Vahagn Khachatryan stressed that the revolution was a most important event of this year. ”Due to the April events, the 20-year rule of the regime associated with the names of Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sargsyan ended, the rule of the Republican Party was terminated. Young people, led by Nikol Pashinyan, came to power, and, in my opinion, all the citizens of Armenia are very pleased with what happened in April. Everything else in the year, both good and bad, eclipsed this event, "he said, adding that nothing else had changed in the life of Armenia.

"In foreign policy, the current government officially stated clearly that it was following the policy of the previous government, including relations with Russia, that is, the foreign policy changes in Armenia did not happen. As for the economy, then, of course, after the revolution, everyone expects rapid changes, but unfortunately, it is not yet possible,’’ the ex-mayor of Yerevan said.

Alexander Markarov agreed with him. "The outgoing year was primarily remembered by the change of elites. The process, which was launched in April-May and marked by the election of the Yelk opposition bloc’s leader, Nikol Pashinyan, as Prime Minister. The political process of Armenia’s re-branding lasted until December of this year, ending with the parliamentary elections in which the political force supported by Pashinyan gained an absolute majority of votes and an absolute majority of seats in the parliament, "he said.

"In general, for Armenia, the year was, although not fatal, but rather difficult from the point of view of reformatting the political field and the need for political players to understand the rules of the game that they follow in the future," the director of the Armenian branch of the CIS Institute concluded.

Bagrat Asatryan expressed confidence that the outgoing year would stay in the history of modern Armenia. "We really had a revolution. Our former political system led to the death of the country as such. Over the past decade, by most indicators in Armenia, there was only negative dynamics, starting with the state of the economy and ending with the most significant indicator of mass migration for any country. During 10 years of Serzh Sargsyan’s rule, the difference between departures and arrivals exceeded 400 thousand people, and for a republic with a population of fewer than 3 million people, this is a huge figure, 15% of citizens left Armenia forever. Before the revolution, we had thieves’ oligarchic system, where the first person in the state controls absolutely everything, regulates everything, up to the actions of people. The laws worked as far as it was necessary for people in power. Thus, what happened was really a historic event, " he stressed.

“The most important thing in the post-revolutionary period is stabilization. The oligarchic system, which at the very least ensured stability before, no longer exists today. That is, we were liberated, but now the freedom should be properly managed. The time is needed to resolve many problems that have not yet been solved. In general, both politically and economically, one of the most impressive results of the year is the parliamentary elections, the first elections, when the population was deciding, but not the crime structures and the police. By February, we will have the new government, and I hope that new programs and documents will be adopted that will determine the future of our country," the former chairman of the Central Bank of Armenia concluded.

What will 2018 be remembered for in Azerbaijan?

Garnik Zakarian
Vestnik Kavkaza
Dec 31 2018
31 Dec 2018 in 13:00

2018 was the year of stability and execution of global economic projects for Azerbaijan, the deputy of the Milli Mejlis, Asim Mollazade, the deputy director of the Trend international agency Arzu Nagiyev and the economist Rovshan Ibrahimov told in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.

The succession of development of Azerbaijan in 2018 was primarily indicated by Asim Mollazade. "It is important that stability is maintained in Azerbaijan, the economy grows. The republic implements a significant number of strategic programs that will further enlarge the country's welfare. At the same time, the main thing for us is still the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the liberation of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. We hope that the international organizations will help Azerbaijan to ensure peace, stability in the region, and the conflict will be resolved, "he said.

"The main result of both domestic and foreign policy of Azerbaijan is its stability. Azerbaijan’s foreign policy strategy is to maintain the mutually beneficial relations at the partnership level. Azerbaijan seeks to achieve similar relations not only with its neighbors but also with all major centers of power," the deputy of Milli Majlis said.

"In 2018, all strategic economic programs were executed according to plans – this is the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars transport corridor, which Azerbaijan created to link the East and the West, and the launch of the TANAP pipeline in Turkey, an essential part of the important Azerbaijani project ‘Southern Gas Corridor’. The work on the final part of the SGC -TAP pipeline continues. We hope that the next year the project of the International Transport Corridor ‘North-South’ will be completed. In general,  this year was successful for the strategic Azerbaijani projects, and we look forward to the development of these achievements in the near future",  Asim Mollazade concluded.

Arzu Nagiyev agreed that 2018 was a good year for Azerbaijan. “Undoubtedly, the biggest problem – the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict – has not gone away, and yet, diplomatically, Azerbaijan has achieved certain results in this direction. Azerbaijan also managed to eliminate all the slightest security threats during the year, despite the interference of external forces to the internal affairs of the republic. In general, in all directions, 2018 was a good year for Azerbaijan, and now we expect 2019 to be the culmination of the process of solving the Nagorno-Karabakh problem when both the OSCE Minsk Group and the occupiers finally move from the declarative statements to the concrete actions. These are the expectations of the Azerbaijani people, and what was started in 2018 will be the basis for the further implementation of the state reforms, "he said.

"With regard to the foreign policy agenda, the 6th Global Forum, a meeting of the NATO and Russian generals were held in Azerbaijan, which demonstrates Baku’s perception as an effective platform for the international dialogue at the world level. A very important event is the adoption of the Convention on the Status of the Caspian Sea, "the deputy director general of the Trend International Agency said.

"Our non-oil sector began to develop actively, including tourism. Many reforms were carried out in agriculture, long-term business contracts were concluded with many foreign countries, including European ones. Finally, we completed several mega-projects – the Trans-Anatolian TANAP pipeline was launched,’’ Arzu Nagiyev added.

Rovshan Ibragimov specified exactly what reforms of the non-oil sector were especially important. "The greatest importance was given to such sectors as agricultural, transport and petrochemical. It is worth noting that in all these sectors, the new enterprises were initiated and projects were started, some of them have already been completed. We will see the results of these investments in the coming years. The new tax code was approved at the end of 2018, which will also contribute to the development of the non-oil sector of the economy. These two factors are very significant in order to have a completely stable economic situation in the country, "he said.

"Azerbaijan also hosted a number of major international conferences, including the Baku Humanitarian Forum. The year was quite intensive at the bilateral level – for the first time Azerbaijan was visited by German chancellor and Italian president with official visits, which shows an increase in the importance of Azerbaijan in the international arena. Azerbaijan became a platform for negotiations between the highest command of NATO and Russia, which has become a tradition and once again confirmed the status of Azerbaijan as a neutral state and a country that can be trusted ",  Rovshan Ibrahimov added.

President Sarkissian’s New Year message

Garnik Zakarian
Public Radio of Armenia
Dec 31 2018
President Sarkissian's New Year message

2018-12-31 21:03:06

President Armen Sarkissian sent a congratulatory message on the occasion of New Year and Holy Christmas holidays.

“Dear Citizens of the Republic of Armenia,

Dear Compatriots all over the world,

Year 2018 has been a year of great changes, challenges, expectations, and anticipations. 

We have witnessed the best qualities of our nation – unity, togetherness, high moral and civic spirit. 

Very soon, we will have a new parliament and a new government. 

Their success will depend greatly on the citizens of Armenia. Their success will be conditioned by the support of the citizens, as well as by your active participation in the social, political, economic, and cultural life.

Armenia can truly become one of the brightest spots on earth in the areas of innovative ideas, culture, science, economy, and others.

However, the path will not be easy.

There will be difficulties, often conditioned by the factors beyond our control, including the geopolitical realities. 

I wish you all alertness, composure, reasonable thinking, responsibility, and tolerance. 
These are the keys for success. 

Security and sovereignty of Armenia and Artsakh, just and fair resolution of the Artsakh problem will continue to occupy the pivotal place in our lives. 

We are living with a deep understanding that regardless of the place we were born, we all have one Homeland. 

The Homeland should be made prosperous through our joint efforts – through the united efforts of Armenia, Artsakh, and Spyurk.

We need to take care of the pillars of our national identity – our culture, education, spiritual, and familial values. 

The role of our Holy Church in this is critical. 

We need to be more considerate towards our historical and national heritage, our nature, rural areas, towns and cities, our country in general. 

Fellow citizens,

At this moment, I am with all of you in spirit and my mind, I am standing by you, by the troops and officers on the border, by the ambulances and doctors on call in hospitals, policemen carrying out their duties, firemen, bakers, taxi drivers, villagers and workers, scientists, and artists, all of you. 

I am especially concerned with the families which hardly make ends meet. With those who have no housing yet, those who live in border areas, I am concerned with wounded and sick. I wish you all relief and respite. 

Let the new year open doors of success for all of you. 

Let every citizen of Armenia feel the positive spirit of changes. 

We all ought to be guided by this motto: “If others can, we can too, if no one succeeded yet, we will be the first.” 

I wish our Fatherland peace, our families – health, success, prosperity, and happiness, to children I wish laughter and vigor, to eldertly – dignified rest. 

Let in the new year all of you, your families and friends, every citizen of Armenia, every Armenian anywhere in the world be able to dream and see it come true.
Happy New Year!”

Gazprom increases gas price for Armenia

Emil Lazarian
Vestnik Kavkaza
Dec 31 2018
31 Dec 2018 in 15:10

Starting from January 1, 2019, the cost of Russian gas at the Georgian-Armenian border will be $ 165 per 1 thousand cubic meters. The relevant information is given in the message of Gazprom.

Today, in Moscow, Gazprom Chairman Alexey Miller held a working meeting with the acting deputy prime minister of Armenia in Moscow today. Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia Mger Grigoryan.

As a result of the negotiations, the parties signed an additional agreement to the contract between Gazprom Export PAO and Gazprom Armenia CJSC, which determines the price of gas supplies to Armenia in 2019. "The price of Russian gas on the border of Georgia and Armenia from January 1, 2019, will be $ 165 per 1 thousand cubic meters," the Gazprom’s statement reads.

Armenian actor Rafael Kotanjyan robbed in Yerevan

Vicken Chmshkian
News.am, Armenia
Dec 31 2018
Armenian actor Rafael Kotanjyan robbed in Yerevan Armenian actor Rafael Kotanjyan robbed in Yerevan

14:29, 31.12.2018
                  

YEREVAN.-Famous Armenian theater and cinema actor Rafael Kotanjyan  became the victim of a robbery in the center of Yerevan, Shamshyan.com reported.

It was noted that Rafael Kotanjyan has filed a complaint with the police saying in the center of Yerevan unknown snatched bag from his hand.

An investigation is underway.