Category: 2023

 01:28,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his wife Anna Hakobyan have arrived in Russia.

They were welcomed at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and other officials.

The Armenian Prime Minister will participate in the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council meeting on May 25, the Prime Minister’s Office reported.

During the visit PM Pashinyan will have a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A separate trilateral meeting with Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is also scheduled.

 10:40,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has sent congratulatory messages to King Abdullah II Bin Al-Hussein Al-Hashimi of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and Prime Minister, Minister of Defense Bisher Al-Khasawneh on the occasion of Independence Day.

The congratulatory message addressed to the King of Jordan states:

"Your Royal Highness,

On the occasion of the national holiday of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Independence Day, I convey to you my sincere congratulations and best wishes.

Armenia highly values the traditionally friendly relations with Jordan and is highly interested in further expanding the mutually beneficial Armenian-Jordanian cooperation on both bilateral and multilateral platforms for the benefit of both peoples.

I warmly recall your historic visit to Armenia and the meeting with you, during which a number of important agreements were reached.

Taking this opportunity, I wish you good health and new success, and peace and permanent progress to the friendly people of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan."

The message addressed to the Prime Minister of Jordan reads as follows,

"Your Excellency,

I convey to you my sincere congratulations and best wishes on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

The centuries-old friendly ties between the Armenian and Jordanian peoples create a solid foundation for developing Armenian-Jordanian relations and moving them to a new qualitative level. I am confident that with joint efforts we will be able to further expand our mutually beneficial cooperation for the benefit of both peoples.

Taking this opportunity, I wish you good health and success, and continued development and all the best to the friendly people of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan."

 11:16,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Vahe Gevorgyan has met with International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger in New York City.

The humanitarian crisis situation in Nagorno Karabakh resulting from the blockade of the Lachin Corridor and details on the ICRC efforts were discussed, the foreign ministry said in a readout.

Gevorgyan spoke about Azerbaijan’s disregard for its international obligations and international humanitarian law and human rights norms, including the illegal installation of a checkpoint on Lachin Corridor in gross violation of the International Court of Justice February 22 ruling. In this context, the Deputy FM attached importance to the ICRC’s active involvement in addressing the existing humanitarian challenges in Nagorno Karabakh and the need for ensuring unimpeded humanitarian access.

Emphasizing the imperative for speedy release and repatriation of the Armenian prisoners of war and civilians held captive in Azerbaijan, Deputy FM Gevorgyan appreciated the activities of the ICRC, among others, in the direction of ensuring the implementation of norms of international humanitarian law.

Lachin Corridor – the only road linking Nagorno Karabakh with Armenia and the rest of the world – has been blocked by Azerbaijan since 12 December 2022. The United Nations’ highest court – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – ordered Azerbaijan on 22 February 2023 to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions. Azerbaijan has so far ignored the order.

 12:35,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. The economic activity index grew 12,2% in January-April of 2023 compared to the same period of 2022, according to official data released by the Statistical Committee.

Industrial production index grew 2,4%.

Construction grew 16,8%.

Trade turnover and services grew 23,2% and 22,2% respectively.

The consumer price index grew 6,2%.

The industrial producer price index dropped 1,1%. Electrical energy production dropped 3,3%.

Foreign trade grew 99,4%. Exports grew more than twice while imports grew 93,6%.

 11:51,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. The 2023 European Connectivity Summit – Connecting the Unconnected: Europe & Beyond will take place on June 6-7 in Yerevan.

The purpose of the summit is to bring together experts and stakeholder organizations from around the world to find solutions to ensure internet access in remote areas.

Details on the event are available in the preliminary agenda.

Community network practitioners in Europe will be coming together for the first time since 2019 to exchange experiences and share discussions.

Registration for participants is .

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 12:53,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. The State Legislature of the U.S. state of Arizona has affirmed the Republic of Artsakh’s (Nagorno Karabakh) right to self-determination in a proclamation issued by Arizona State House Speaker Ben Toma, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

“We welcome the proclamation from the Speaker of Arizona’s State Assembly recognizing Artsakh’s right to self-determination – an important step towards justice for the Armenians of Artsakh,” remarked ANCA National Board Member Zanku Armenian. “Amid Azerbaijan’s blockade of Artsakh, this demonstration of solidarity is a crucial part of our community’s ongoing efforts to raise awareness of this unfolding humanitarian catastrophe and ensure Azerbaijan is held accountable for its unabated aggression against the Armenian people. This proclamation is a testament to the tireless advocacy of Arizona’s Armenian-American community, and the ANCA looks forward to continuing to work alongside local activists in the state to ensure our community’s voice is heard at every level of government.”

Arizona Armenian community leaders Artur Artenyan and Vartan Arabyan, working in conjunction with the ANCA, spearheaded the legislative effort. The proclamation cites Artsakh as “the indigenous homeland of the Armenian people, and has been a center of Armenian cultural, political and religious life for several millennia.”

It goes on to document Soviet Azerbaijan’s decades of Artsakh oppression and post-independence aggression, “culminating in an assault on Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020 that saw Azerbaijan perpetrate war crimes against the region’s Armenian population, and resulted in Azerbaijan seizing control of 70% of Karabakh’s territory.”

The proclamation salutes the Artsakh Armenians “efforts to exercise the right to self-determination and live free from violence and repression, and by recognizing the government of Artsakh, the international community can help put to rest this century-old conflict.”

Arizona House Speaker Toma then affirms support for the “Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh’s right to self-determination, and its continuing efforts to develop as a free and independent nation, in order to guarantee its citizens those rights inherent in a free and independent society; and be it further, I encourage the United States government to strengthen and solidify our country’s economic and cultural relationship with the Artsakh Republic and its citizens and continue to promote the humanitarian and economic rehabilitation of the region.”

The full text of the Arizona legislative proclamation is provided below.

#####

STATE OF ARIZONA SUPPORTS ARTSAKH RIGHT TO SELF DETERMINATION

Whereas, The Republic of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) is the indigenous homeland of the Armenian people, and has been a center of Armenian cultural, political, and religious life for several millennia; and

Whereas, despite its historical and cultural ties to Armenia, in 1921, Joseph Stalin arbitrarily severed Artsakh from Armenia, and placed it under the administration of Soviet Azerbaijan in violation of the national, territorial and human rights of the Armenian people; and

Whereas, following decades of oppression under Soviet Azerbaijani rule, the Armenians of Artsakh in a popular referendum voted overwhelmingly in support of exerting their right to self-determination and declared independence from the Soviet Union; and

Whereas, Azerbaijan responded to these calls for independence by force, plunging the region into a bloody conflict that ended with a ceasefire agreement that secured Nagorno-Karabakh’s self-governance; and

Whereas, in defiance of the ceasefire agreement and conflict resolution efforts, Azerbaijan continued to threaten the security and sovereignty of Artsakh in the decades following the war, culminating in an assault on Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020 that saw Azerbaijan perpetrate war crimes against the region’s Armenian population, and resulted in Azerbaijan seizing control of 70% of Karabakh’s territory; and

Whereas, The Armenians of Artsakh remain resolute in their efforts to exercise the right to self-determination and live free from violence and repression, and by recognizing the government of Artsakh, the international community can help put to rest this century-old conflict.

Therefore, I, Representative Ben Toma, Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, do hereby recognize and support the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh’s right to self-determination, and its continuing efforts to develop as a free and independent nation, in order to guarantee its citizens those rights inherent in a free and independent society; and be it further, I encourage the United States government to strengthen and solidify our country’s economic and cultural relationship with the Artsakh Republic and its citizens and continue to promote the humanitarian and economic rehabilitation of the region.

#####

 12:47,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. 630,000 tourists visited Armenia in the first four month of 2023, Tourism Committee Chairperson Sisian Boghossian said on May 25.

The figure is a 35% growth compared to the same period of 2019, she added.

“Most of the tourists, around 52%, come from Russia, followed by Georgia and Iran. We are seeing a rather active dynamics of visits from the Emirates. April stood out in terms of many tourist visits. We had 180,000 tourists in April alone,” Boghossian said.

The Tourism Committee chief added that they are actively working to promote Armenia in the international market, focusing on European countries and the Emirates.

 13:10,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. Russian Minister of Defense Sergey Shoigu has said that Armenia’s participation in the joint tactical and combat training events as part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is important.

“Armenia is a member of our organization, our ally. We are interested in establishment of peace and we are doing everything possible to stabilize the situation in Transcaucasia. At the same time I’d like to specifically mention the importance of the Armenian side’s participation in the joint tactical and combat readiness events as part of the CSTO,” the Russian Defense Minister said in his speech at the CSTO Defense Ministerial Council session in Minsk, Belarus.

 13:10,

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. The Development and Preservation of Armenian Culinary Traditions organization, with support from the Tourism Committee, is organizing the first ever Armenian-Georgian cultural-culinary festival.

The event will take place on 17 June in Dilijan, Development and Preservation of Armenian Culinary Traditions President Sedrak Mamulyan said on May 25.

The festival will feature Armenian and Georgian culture and cuisine.

“We’ve been working on this since 2019. We wanted to create a platform where we would talk with our neighboring Georgians about cultural heritage and present each other our culture and cuisine, thus create a regional product. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed our plans, but this year, with support from the Tourism Committee, we will launch this project,” Mamulyan said.

The festival will be themed around Mimino, the 1977 comedy film by Soviet director Georgiy Daneliya starring Vakhtang Kikabidze and Frunzik Mkrtchyan. The event will be dedicated to the memory of Kikabidze, who died in early 2023.

The second festival is expected to be held in Georgia, and it will be dedicated to Mkrtchyan.

 18:01,

YEREVAN, MAY 24, ARMENPRESS.  Armenia reaffirms the agreement recorded in Brussels, according to which it recognizes 86.6 thousand square kilometers of Azerbaijan and expects that Azerbaijan will also reaffirm that it recognizes 29.8 thousand square kilometers of Armenia, ARMENPRESS reports, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced during the parliament-Cabinet Q&A session.

Hripsime Grigoryan from Civil Contract Party asked why Armenia recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and specifies the territorial dimensions.

"Why 86.6 thousand and 29.8 thousand, because from here the next question arises: what is that territorial integrity that we recognize? Azerbaijan has a very clear narrative, it says that Armenia does not recognize its territorial integrity, that is, if it does not recognize that Azerbaijan is 86.6 thousand square kilometers, then they do not recognize that Armenia is 29 thousand 800 square kilometers. And that conversation is happening in front of the international community. And when Azerbaijan continuously attacks Armenia, and, of course, we are in contact with the international community, they say that Armenia does not recognize their territorial integrity either, attacked or is attacking them. Suppose, Armenia does not recognize the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and if Azerbaijan attacks, the CSTO will come and stand by Armenia. CSTO said during and as a result of these attacks: "I will come and stand by your side, but I will just send 30 very strong observers," said the Prime Minister.

Pashinyan emphasized that a decision must be made. "We can say that we do not recognize Azerbaijan's 86.6 thousand square kilometers, and in our opinion, Azerbaijan is not 86.6 thousand square kilometers, but 45.7 thousand square kilometers. They will say that in their opinion, Armenia is not 29.8 thousand square kilometers, but 8700 square kilometers. And yes, I reaffirm from this podium that Armenia reaffirms the agreement recorded in Brussels, that Armenia recognizes 86.6 thousand square kilometers of Azerbaijan, and I expect that Azerbaijan will also reaffirm that it recognizes 29.8 thousand square kilometers of Armenia", said the Prime Minister.