21:08,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government plans to allocate around 557 billion drams to the defense sector in 2024, which is 6% more than the amount envisioned by the revised 2023 budget, the Ministry of Finance reported.
Defense spending in 2024 is to increase by 81% as compared to 2020.
In 2024, more than 17% of the budget expenditures will be allocated to the defense sector.
19:14,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin met with Turkish Ambassador to Moscow Tanju Bilgic on Monday to discuss the current situation in the South Caucasus, Central Asia and Ukraine, Tass reports, citing the Russian Foreign Ministry.
"We exchanged views on the current situation in Transcaucasia, Central Asia and Ukraine. We have confirmed the mutual willingness to further coordinate efforts for ensuring peace and stability, especially in the South Caucasus," the ministry reported.
Both parties recognized the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation on regional and international issues, the ministry added.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko met with the Turkish ambassador on the same day. The diplomats exchanged views regarding the bilateral and regional agenda of shared interest. "We have confirmed the mutual commitment to further coordinating our efforts in the interests of promoting global security and stability," the ministry said.
10:09,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 19, ARMENPRESS. Armenian tourism experts have been enabled to participate in special training courses at the renowned Les Roches Global Hospitality educational institution in Switzerland.
First Vice President of the Tourism Committee Susanna Hakobyan told Armenpress that the trainings are part of an MoU signed with Les Roches Global Hospitality.
Similar other programs will be launched in the future.
Hakobyan described Les Roches Global Hospitality as "one of the top 5 tourism and hospitality schools" in the world. She said that the committee will cover all expenses of the training for the selected applicants.
Two candidates have already been chosen after passing several selection procedures and the trainings will start in March 2024.
The committee had been looking for candidates who are 23-37 years old, have at least a BA in tourism or a related field, and at least 2 years of working experience.
“We want to further elevate experienced specialists,” Hakobyan said, adding that the program is not for beginners.
She attached importance to education and training programs.
21:49,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union (EU) has concluded in Brussels.
Among various topics, the meeting also addressed issues related to Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.
According to the Armenpress Brussels correspondent, at the end of the session, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, stated at the press conference that EU member states agree with the idea that Azerbaijan should engage in substantive peace and relationship settlement negotiations with Armenia.
“President Aliyev's recent territorial demands are very concerning. Any violation of Armenia's territorial integrity will be unacceptable and will have serious consequences for our relations with Azerbaijan," Josep Borrell said.
Lilit Gasparyan
21:52,
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Markus Ritter, Head of Mission of the European Union Mission in Armenia hosted the Austrian ambassador to Armenia, Thomas Mühlmann, during his patrol on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, the EU Mission in Armenia said in a post on X.
“Regardless of the weather conditions, the Mission continues its patrolling activities on the ground,” reads the post.
Senator Anthony Portantino with representatives of the Friends of ANCA-WR and supporters at a fundraiser reception held in support of run for Congress
Friends of ANCA Western Region held a fundraiser reception on January 21 in support of Senator Anthony Portantino’s bid to continue his journey of public service at the U.S. Congress. The event was hosted by Mr. & Mrs. Levon and Silva Kirakosian and attended by friends of ANCA-WR, ANCA-WR board members, and representatives of the Armenian American community in California.
In February of 2023, ANCA-WR announced its endorsement of Senator Portantino’s campaign to succeed Rep. Adam Schiff of the 30th Congressional District of California, which is home to the largest Armenian-American population in the United States.
“The ANCA Western Region enthusiastically supports Senator Anthony Portantino’s campaign for Congress. We have full confidence that Senator Portantino will maintain and enhance his impressive record of supporting Armenia, Artsakh, and our broader community when he steps into his role in Washington DC,” said Nora Hovsepian Esq., Chair of the ANCA Western Region.
Senator Anthony Portantino addressing attendees at the fundraiser reception
Senator Portantino has been a formidable force in championing the causes of the Armenian community, demonstrating an unwavering commitment that resonates deeply with his constituents. During his visit to Artsakh as the first elected official from the United States since the end of the 44-day war, Senator Portantino observed the impact of Azerbaijan’s acts of aggression and also engaged with local leaders and heroes, solidifying his resolve to advocate for the recognition of Artsakh and to support the rights and dignity of its people.
Building on Senator Portantino’s record of achievements and recognition, Portantino has been honored twice with the “Legislator of the Year” award by the ANCA-WR at its Annual Awards Gala Banquets. The first recognition came in 2011, during his tenure as a State Assemblymember for California’s 44th Assembly District, and the second in 2017, a year after he was elected to his current role as State Senator for California’s 25th Senatorial District.
In 2018, Senator Portantino and other state and local leaders visited Armenia as part of an ANCA-WR-led delegation focused on deepening economic ties between California and Armenia. In his still-standing tenure as the Senate Appropriations Committee Chair, Senator Portantino secured a $10 million allocation for the Armenian American Museum in Governor Newsom’s budget, and during his time as Chair of the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education (2018-2019), he successfully earmarked $500,000 for Armenian Genocide education in California’s State Budget.
Executive Chairman of the Armenian American Museum Berdj Karapetian addressing attendees at the event
In 2021, he led the charge with Senate Bill 457, co-introduced with Senator Scott Wilk, to halt California’s funding to the Turkish Government, a move aimed at protesting Turkey’s denial of the Armenian Genocide. This legislation led to California’s largest state-employee pension funds, CalPERS and CalSTRS, ceasing investments in Turkish government-backed securities. Furthermore, in April of 2023, Senator Portantino co-authored Senate Resolution 28, which seeks to annually reaffirm California’s recognition of the 1915 Armenian Genocide.
More recently, Senator Portantino and 21 other California legislators penned a letter to President Biden, addressing and condemning Azerbaijan’s blockade of Artsakh, and following Azerbaijan’s full-scale assault and ethnic cleansing of Artsakh in September of 2023, the Senator called upon the United States to “hold Azerbaijan accountable and immediately cut military aid.”
Senator Portantino with representatives of the Armenian American community
“On behalf of the friends of the ANCA Western Region, we were delighted to host this fundraiser for Senator Portantino’s Congressional campaign. Having worked closely with the Senator for numerous years, we are certain that he will continue to champion the Armenian cause and advocate for the interests of the Armenian American community once his bid for congress is successful,” said Levon Kirakosian, Esq., who hosted the fundraiser at his home in California.
Senator Portantino’s leadership has also been instrumental in his founding of the Senate Select Committee on California, Armenia, and Artsakh Mutual Trade, Art, and Cultural Exchange. This committee, the first of its kind, aims to enhance business opportunities, cultural awareness, and education between California, Armenia, and Artsakh, promising a brighter future for mutual economic and cultural prosperity.
“We are in the home stretch of the campaign and I was very grateful to Silva and Levon Kirakosian for hosting my campaign along with friends of the ANCA WR. Winning campaigns are about collaboration and grassroots support. The ANCA is the largest Armenian American grassroots organization in the US and I’m honored to be the preferred candidate of ANCA Western Region. Ballots will shortly be available and we are charging toward a positive outcome. I appreciate Western Regions’ strong, early and continued support,” said Senator Anthony Portantino at the fundraiser hosted at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Levon and Silva Kirakosian.
The Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, ANCA WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Monday challenged Azerbaijan’s credentials to the body on which called “substantive grounds.”
In making the challenge, Frank Schwabe (Germany) cited political prisoners in the country, the violent displacement of people from Nagorno-Karabakh, the fact that Assembly rapporteurs were unable to visit Azerbaijan at least three times during 2023, and the lack of an invitation to the Assembly to observe the country’s February 7 presidential election in Azerbaijan, a press statement from PACE said.
At least 30 other members from five delegations supported Schwabe’s motion.
“The challenge was immediately referred to the Assembly’s Monitoring Committee for report and to its Rules Committee for opinion, and will be debated by the Assembly on the evening of Wednesday January 24,” the statement added.
It is noted that under the PACE rules, the body must vote for one of three options: to ratify the credentials, not to ratify them, or to ratify them “together with depriving or suspending the exercise of some of the rights of participation or representation of members of the delegation concerned in the activities of the Assembly and its bodies.
“The members of Azerbaijan’s delegation may sit provisionally with the same rights as other Assembly members until the Assembly has reached a decision, but shall not vote in any proceedings relating to the examination of their credentials,” the statement explained.
WASHINGTON–Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) leaders rallied congressional support to reverse Azerbaijan’s genocide of Artsakh Armenians and defend Armenia’s security during policy-level consultations this week on Capitol Hill.
House Foreign Affairs Committee member Mike Lawler (R-NY) with ANCA Board member Ani Tchaghlasian, ANC Artsakh’s Gev Iskajyan and ANCA’s Tereza Yerimyan and Alex Galitsky during a Capitol Hill meeting focusing on Artsakh justice and Armenia security
ANCA National Board members Aida Dimejian, Dzovinar Hamakorzian and Ani Tchaghlasian were joined by ANC Artsakh Executive Director Gev Iskajyan and ANCA staff members Tereza Yerimyan and Alex Galitsky in meetings with congressional leaders throughout the week, with additional district meetings scheduled during upcoming weeks. This first Capitol Hill fly-in of 2024 was timed as Congress begins writing the Fiscal Year 2025 Foreign Aid Bill and Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The ANCA is calling for support for Artsakh genocide survivors, enforcing Section 907 restrictions on U.S. security assistance to Azerbaijan and exploring additional Azerbaijan sanctions opportunities through White House and congressional action.
ANC Artsakh’s Gev Iskajyan shares the harrowing realities of Azerbaijan’s blockade and genocide of Artsakh’s population with Congressional Armenian Caucus founding co-chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ)
In each of the meetings, ANC Artsakh’s Gev Iskajyan shared the harrowing realities of Azerbaijan’s genocidal ethnic cleansing of the over 120,000 Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) indigenous Armenians, forced from their homes in September 2023 following a brutal 10-month blockade and September 19 attack that devastated the civilian population. Throughout the Artsakh blockade and its aftermath, Iskajyan served as a trusted Capitol Hill news source, participating in dozens of briefings with congressional leaders, arranged by national, regional and local ANCA advocates.
Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) with ANCA National Board members Ani Tchaghlasian and Dzovinar Hamakorzian, ANC Artsakh’s Gev Iskajyan and ANCA’s Alex Galitsky
The ANCA praised Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) for their leadership on the unanimous passage of S.3000, blocking U.S. security aid to Azerbaijan, and called for immediate U.S. House consideration of its companion measures. ANCA leaders also hailed Sen. Robert Menendez’s (D-NJ) efforts to press the State Department on a flawed U.S. policy of Azerbaijani appeasement, which aided and abetted President Aliyev’s genocidal actions against Artsakh.
ANCA National Board member Dzovinar Hamakorzian and ANCA’s Tereza Yerimyan discuss Azerbaijan’s ongoing threats against Armenia following their genocidal ethnic cleansing of Artsakh’s Armenian population with S.3000 champion Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI)
In meetings with Congressional Armenian Caucus co-chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Adam Schiff (D-CA), and House Foreign Affairs Committee member Mike Lawler (R-NY), ANCA leaders discussed Azerbaijan’s ongoing occupation of the Republic of Armenia’s territory and threats of renewed attacks against Armenia. Congressional Armenian Caucus leaders Pallone, Schiff, Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and David Valadao (R-CA) issued a statement this week condemning January 10 remarks by President Aliyev laying claim to sovereign Armenian territory and urging U.S. and international action. “It is past time we hold his regime accountable for the belligerent rhetoric and actions it has taken against Armenians in the South Caucasus. The United States and our regional partners should use every diplomatic tool, including sanctions, to help guarantee the territorial integrity of Armenia and push back against Aliyev’s blatant threats against it. We call on the State Department and our international partners to take immediate action to halt any further Azeri aggression and ensure Armenia’s safety and security,” stated the Armenian Caucus co-chairs.
ANCA National Board member Aida Dimejian and ANC Artsakh’s Gev Iskajyan share community concerns about failed Biden administration policies on Artsakh and urge stronger congressional action, during a meeting with Congressional Armenian Caucus co-chair Adam Schiff (D-CA)
ANCA National Board members thanked retiring Armenian-Assyrian Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (D-CA) for her decades of leadership to end Turkey’s gag-rule on proper U.S. affirmation of the Armenian Genocide and for spearheading current efforts to secure congressional funding for Armenian Genocide education. Since Turkey and Azerbaijan’s 2020 war against Armenia and Artsakh and the September 2023 Artsakh genocide, Rep. Eshoo has repeatedly led initiatives calling on the Biden administration to demand accountability from the Aliyev regime.
ANCA leaders thank Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) for being the voice of Armenian Genocide recognition during her decades of service in Congress and for her ongoing work to secure justice for victims of the Artsakh genocide
During their meetings, ANCA National Board members called for expanded U.S. aid to assist Artsakh refugees with emergency food, as well as longer-term housing and job placement needs. The delegation also explored the role of the U.S. and international community in enforcing Artsakh Armenian property rights and ensuring the population’s safe return to their ancestral homes, under clear, long-term security guarantees. ANCA leaders called for U.S. action to secure Azerbaijan’s immediate release of Republic of Artsakh leaders and over 80 Armenian prisoners of war illegally imprisoned by Azerbaijan in the aftermath of the 2020 war and 2023 Artsakh genocide.
EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell speaks to reporters on Jan. 22
The European Union expressed serious concern over Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s latest territorial claims from Armenia when he doubled down on his scheme to have a land “corridor” through Armenia to Nakhichevan.
“The latest territorial claims by President Aliyev are very concerning, and any violation of Armenia’s territorial integrity would be unacceptable and will have severe consequences for our relations with Azerbaijan,” the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Monday after a meeting of EU foreign ministers, which discussed the Armenia and Azerbaijan normalization process.
The EU foreign ministers reportedly called for ongoing peace talks between Yerevan and Baku, which have stalled because Azerbaijan has canceled previous-scheduled talks mediated by Brussels.
“We agreed that Azerbaijan needs to return to substantive peace and normalization talks with Armenia,” Borrell added.
Citing the November 9, 2020 agreement, Aliyev, earlier this month, renewed his claims for a so-called “corridor” through Armenia, saying that without such a route he would not open Azerbaijan’s borders with Armenia.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov last week said that the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan never discussed a corridor, adding that it is not part of the November 9, 2020 agreement.
When making his “corridor” remarks, Aliyev also renewed his demand for Armenia’s withdrawal from “eight Azerbaijani villages,” which he claims Armenia is occupying.
Individual artists, ranging from musicians to graphic designers, from painters to fashion designers, and beyond, will boost their creative careers through the Artbox Entrepreneur program and receive up to a total grant of €60,000 to activate their entrepreneurial plans.
Creative Armenia is excited to present the 24 individual artists who entered the Artbox Entrepreneur program and started their career acceleration journeys towards becoming creative entrepreneurs. Artbox Entrepreneur provides artists an unparalleled opportunity to jumpstart their creative careers, elevate their personal branding and maximize their revenue.
From mid-January to the end of February 2024, these 24 artists will participate in a six-week program, during which they will receive weekly workshops, targeted assignments and guidance from top-notch mentors in business and entrepreneurship and renowned cultural leaders from Armenia, France, Malta and Switzerland. Artbox Entrepreneur will guide artists to enhance their self-branding, promotion and sales, boost their careers and more. As the program concludes, up to 24 artists will be selected to receive up to a total grant of €60,000 to execute their entrepreneurial plans, developed during Artbox.
“Artbox Entrepreneur has its unique place in the development of creative industries in Armenia, its focal point being the development of personalized business models for individual artists and advancement of entrepreneurial skills. We can already measure how the program has impacted our previous cohort of artists, resulting in a drastic raise in their creative production, profitability and market success,” said Anush Ter-Khachatryan, director of programs at Creative Armenia. “We are happy to welcome a new wave of 24 artists who will begin their career acceleration and make the creative industries ever more powerful.”
The 24 individual artists selected for Artbox Entrepreneur are:
Inspired by innovative models in business and tech, Artbox is a reinvention of the incubator and accelerator models for the art world – a dynamic entrepreneurial system that supports individuals, projects and institutions across disciplines with potential for success. Through a set of signature cutting-edge programs, Artbox develops commercial viability, audience growth and investable creative products.
Creative Armenia is a global arts foundation for the Armenian people that discovers, develops and champions innovative talent across the arts. Artbox has been developed by Creative Armenia, funded by the European Union in Armenia and launched in partnership with AGBU Armenia in the framework of the KATAPULT Creative Accelerator Program.