Category: 2023

 14:36,

YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has held a meeting with the United States Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations and United States Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Louis Bono.

The Prime Minister attached importance to the US government’s efforts in the direction of ensuring stability and peace in the region and presented the Armenian side’s approaches in the resolution of existing key issues, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a readout.

PM Pashinyan said that the aggressive policy and belligerent rhetoric against the people of Nagorno Karabakh and the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia are inadmissible.

Issues relating to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, the formation of an international mechanism for dialogue between Stepanakert and Baku, the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno Karabakh resulting from the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan, the normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and unblocking of regional transport infrastructures were also discussed.

 14:18,

YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Denmark and the Netherlands will jointly donate 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, the two countries said on Thursday.

The Leopard 2A4 tanks, which will be bought from a third party and refurbished, are expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2024, Reuters reported citing a joint statement from the two countries.

"It is absolutely crucial for the hope of a peaceful and secure Europe that we do not let the Ukrainians fight the battle alone," Denmark's acting Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said.

In February, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands also announced they will pool resources to restore at least 100 old Leopard 1 tanks from industry stocks and supply them to Ukraine this year and next.

Russia earlier warned that it will treat arms shipments to Ukraine from NATO countries as “legitimate targets” for military action.

 15:25,

YEREVAN, APRIL 20, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani troops opened fire at several Armenian farmers working in the agricultural fields in Nagorno Karabakh around 12:00, April 18, the Nagorno Karabakh authorities announced.

The shooting happened in the Aknaghbyur village.

The Azerbaijani troops used various caliber small arms in the shooting.

The farmers stopped the agricultural work.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Nagorno Karabakh said they notified the Russian peacekeepers on the shooting.

No injuries were reported.

 09:47,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. Athletes in the 81kg women’s category and 96kg men’s category will take the stage today at the 2023 EWF European Weightlifting Championships in Yerevan.

Armenia’s Liana Gyurjyan’s (81kg) performance is scheduled for 17:30 while Davit Hovhannisyan (96kg) will take the stage at 20:00.

So far Team Armenia won 1 gold, 2 bronze and 2 silver medals at the championships. 

 

 10:32,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. The Cabinet approved on Friday the Defense Ministry’s bill on introducing a new voluntary military service option for women.

If the bill gets final approval in parliament, women will be enabled to join the military for a 6-month service.

The recruits will serve in the training military bases.

Servicemembers will receive a 1,000,000 AMD remuneration upon completion of the 6-month service.

Furthermore, after completing the 6-month term, recruits will have the chance to sign up for contractual military service for 5 years under the Homeland Defender option, Defense Minister Suren Papikyan explained at the Cabinet meeting.

In turn, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that this move is part of his administration’s concept of having a professional army.

“At first glance it may seem otherwise but this is actually a step for having a professional army, because we are enabling women to voluntarily join the military and serve for 6 months. This isn’t going to be a walk in the military base, this will be a normal military service. As a result, there’ll be citizens who will go back to their civilian lives after being discharged and will be listed in the reserve of our military. Some of them will want to enlist into professional service, and they will join the army and will start serving contractually. I am speaking about active duty combat service,” Pashinyan said.

The bill is expected to enter parliament during the current session, thus, if passed, the service option will be available during the upcoming winter conscription.

 10:27,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) Sergey Ghazaryan held an online meeting with Russian political analysts and experts.

During the discussion, FM Ghazaryan presented the situation resulting from Azerbaijan’s ongoing blockade of Artsakh, the foreign ministry of Nagorno Karabakh said in a press release.

Various issues related to the blockade, as well as regional and geopolitical developments were discussed at the meeting.

 10:41,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. Cessation of hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan, specifically in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, continues to be of great importance to United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, State Department Principal Deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said at a press briefing on April 20.

Patel was asked to comment on the recent unannounced trips of United States Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations, United States Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Louis Bono and U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Erika Olson to Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“I don’t have any specific readout to offer,” Patel said. “You’ve heard me say this again – that ensuring a cessation of hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan, specifically in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, continues to be of great importance to Secretary Blinken. He had the opportunity to meet with the leaders of these countries a number of weeks ago on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. It’s something that we continue to be deeply engaged on. It’s something that Mr. Bono continues to be engaged on in addition to others in this department as well. But I just don’t have any specific updates to offer," he added. 

“I’m just not going to get ahead of any scheduling, but I’m sure we’ll have more to share soon,” the State Department spokesperson said when asked whether or not to expect a new ministerial meeting anytime soon.

 10:40,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has congratulated leaders of several Arab states on Eid Al-Fitr, the Prime Minister’s Office said Friday.

“On the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, a Muslim holiday, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan sent congratulatory messages to the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, the President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and Vice President, Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, President Bashar al-Assad of the Syrian Arab Republic and Prime Minister Hussein Arnous, King Abdullah II Bin Al-Hussein Al-Hashimi of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman Al-Saud, King of Bahrain Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa, Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq Bin Taimur Al-Said In of the Sultanate of Oman, Amir of the State of Kuwait Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, President of the Republic of Tunisia Kais Saied, Emir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani and Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Lebanon Najib Mikati, the Prime Minister of Kurdistan Region of Iraq Masrour Barzani.

The Prime Minister wished the leaders of the mentioned countries good health and happiness, and long-lasting peace and well-being to their peoples,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a press release.

 12:36,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. United States President Joe Biden could announce his bid for a second term as early as next week, according to US media reports.

According to reports in outlets including The Washington Post and CNN, citing unnamed sources, Biden is set to launch his re-election campaign with a video release.

The Post reported that this could be on Tuesday, the anniversary of the day in 2019 when Biden joined the race to take on then incumbent Donald Trump in 2020. However, the report underlined that the plans were not finalized and could be postponed.

Already the oldest US president in history at 80, Biden would be 86 by the time he completed a second term. The current frontrunner for the Republicans is Donald Trump.

 13:11,

YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. The Finanser and SPRING PR have entered into a long-term agreement to showcase the latest digital transformation trends and best practices in the region. By promoting innovation and technology across various sectors of the digital economy, the companies aim to foster a competitive environment and support its growth.

Chris Skinner's second visit to the region is scheduled for this autumn. As per the agreements, SPRING PR will fully coordinate these efforts. In Yerevan and various countries across the region, Skinner will lead closed-format masterclasses for medium and large enterprises, as well as for government institutions involved in digital transformation initiatives.

 "Observing SPRING PR's expertise, we opted to expand our collaboration by signing an exclusive, long-term contract. Soon, we'll be hosting a workshop in Georgia, where there is significant interest. Together with SPRING PR, we plan to hold numerous events in the region, including masterclasses," said Fintech and Digital Transformation Expert Chris Skinner.

The inaugural Doing Digital Forum in Yerevan on April 5 attracted over 1,000 attendees from numerous countries, featuring specialists from Georgia, the USA, Brazil, France, the UAE, the UK, Singapore, and more. Chris Skinner deemed his visit to Armenia a success.

In recognition of Chris Skinner's influence in the digital transformation field and the global popularity of his books, SPRING PR will translate and publish one of his works.

Tatevik Simonyan emphasized that the Doing Digital Platform will introduce new formats throughout the year. The annual Doing Digital Forum is expected to grow even larger. Simonyan highlighted SPRING PR's continued efforts to position Armenia as an innovative hub, thereby contributing to the nation's digital economy development and enhancing its global competitiveness.