Category: News

Armenia’s acting Foreign Minister Edwrad Nalbandian will visit Brussels May 22-23, Press Service of the Ministry of Foreign affairs reports.

Edward Nalbandian will participate in the 17^th sitting of the Armenia-EU Cooperation Council.

US President Donald Trump visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Monday.

Representatives of the Catholic, Armenian and Greek-Orthodox church met the president.

Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem Nourhan Manougian, Custos of the Holy Land Fr. Francesco Patton, and Greek-Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III greeted President Trump.

President Donald Trump also paid his respects at the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews can pray, AP reports.

Trump is on his first visit to Israel as president.

World number two Novak Djokovic has confirmed that former world number one Amdre Agassi will be his new coach, Eurosport .

Photo:  Sputnik/Grigory Sisoev

Speaking to Russian media about the work being done to enhance and strengthen the Joint CIS Air Defense System, Russian Aerospace Forces Commander Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said that the creation of a united regional air defense system in the post-Soviet space serves as an excellent opportunity to strengthen the common air defense of Eurasia, Sputnik .

Charles Aznavour will be present at a concert in his honor to be held in Yerevan on June 1.  Representatives of Armenia opera and pop music will welcome Aznavour with his own songs.

Actor and director Hayk Petrosyan, one of the organizers of the concert, who calls himself Aznavour’s representative in Armenia, will not only perform some of the world-known singer’s works, but also host the show.

“The past 60 years have seen a number of stars appear and fade away in France, but Charles Aznavour, 93, is still on the peak. He can serve a brilliant example of fighting and persistence not only for individuals, but also for the nation as a whole,” Hayk Petrosyan, a great fan of Aznavour, told Public Radio of Armenia.

Turan Information Agency, Azerbaijani Opposition
 Friday


Expected escalation

by Turan Analytical Service


The 25th anniversary of the seizure by the Armed Forces of Armenia of
the Lachin region of Azerbaijan was marked by a military-diplomatic
escalation in the zone of the Karabakh conflict.

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (MG) made a statement on this
issue on May 18, the tone of which speaks of excessive tension not
only on both sides of the contact of the fire, but also in the camp of
the mediating countries wedged between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

We condemn the recent violations of the ceasefire agreement and call
on the parties to take all necessary measures to prevent further
escalation in the conflict zone, the joint statement of the
representatives of the United States, Russia and France says.

According to the MG"s information gathered from several reliable
sources, on May 15, the Azerbaijani armed forces fired a missile at
the contact line, destroying the military equipment of the Armenian
side. In the evening of May 16 and May 17, the Armenian armed forces
struck back with mortar fire of various calibers. These actions
constitute significant violations of the ceasefire on both sides and
are a cause for concern, the statement said.

On May 15 the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan promptly reported that
the antiaircraft missile system "OCA" of the Armenian antiaircraft
forces on the same day was taken to a new position in the
Fuzuli-Khojevend direction of the front, and an attempt was made to
take control of Azerbaijan's airspace. "In order to prevent the threat
to Azerbaijani aircraft and suppress enemy activity, the anti-aircraft
missile system" OSA "and the transport-loading machine were completely
put out of action by fire, the personnel was destroyed."

The question arises as to what purpose the Armenian command put
forward to the advanced positions of the Antiaircraft missile complex
(AMC), which, according to Turan, actually took place. It is possible
that these actions pursued the goal of seizing the position,
convenient destruction of Azerbaijani unmanned vehicles, which until
now have not been reached for Armenian air defense. It is possible
that the Armenian side checked the ability of the Azerbaijani army to
fight against closed, closed targets.

In any case, the moving of the missile launcher to the line of contact
was provocative and resulted in unnecessary casualties among Armenian
Armed Forces personnel, which official Yerevan does not recognize.

This event shows that the parties to the conflict have not changed
their military-political approach to the conflict settlement 25 years
after the occupation of Lachin, which initiated the occupation of the
entire Karabakh region, a bloody war and the long-standing destructive
confrontation between the two South Caucasian states.

The military escalation that took place on May 15-17 was expected in
the light of the March official and unofficial statements of the sides
about the readiness to strike at the infrastructure facilities in the
depths for hundreds of kilometers. They sounded on the eve of the
first anniversary of the April battles, which marked the beginning of
another round of the arms race and mutual threats.

In the article "The April war - the tendency to escalate" of the
analytical service of Turan on April 2, 2017, conclusions were drawn
about strengthening the force line of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the
context of the conflict settlement, the military component of the
Karabakh settlement and the development of much larger events of
military significance.

A tough assessment of the reaction of the co-chairs of the MG by the
Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan and the principled position regarding
the incident, which was expressed in this quote: "The armed forces of
the Azerbaijan Republic are in the sovereign territories of Azerbaijan
and against the backdrop of the occupation of Azerbaijani territories
by Armenia, they provide defense of our country and the security of
the civilian population," testify coming new escalations of a military
nature with the observer position of international observers.

Turan Information Agency, Azerbaijani Opposition
 Friday


International organizations are outraged by the court ruling on the
forced transfer of the spouses Yunus



Baku/19.05.17/Turan:The Observatory has been informed by reliable
sources about a decision issued yesterday by the Appeals Court of
Baku, Azerbaijan, ordering Ms. Leyla Yunus, Director of the Institute
for Peace and Democracy (IPD) and a member of OMCT General Assembly,
and her husband Mr. ArifYunusov, Head of IPD Conflictology Department,
to be forcibly returned to Azerbaijan from the Netherlands in order to
participate in new hearings in their case.

The Observatory strongly deplores the May-17 decision of the Baku
Court of Appeals, which puts Ms. Leyla Yunus and Mr. ArifYunusov"s
physical integrity at serious risk as there are strong reasons to
believe that they would be arbitrarily re-arrested upon arrival in
Azerbaijan.

The Observatory recalls that Mr. ArifYunusov suffers from
hypertension, and Ms. Leyla Yunus from hepatitis, diabetes,
pancreatitis and gallstone disease, which were aggravated after her
arrest, and during their detention in Azerbaijan. Both are still in
need of medical care.

The Observatory calls on the Azeri authorities to immediately and
unconditionally put an end to all forms or attempts of judicial
harassment against Ms. Leyla Yunus and Mr. ArifYunusov, and calls on
the authorities of the Netherlands to ensure their physical integrity
and their personal freedoms by refusing any cooperation with a
judicial system that grossly disregards international standards and
that sentenced the couple to arbitrary and heavy prison terms under
trumped-up charges as a means to sanction their legitimate human
rights activities.

The organization also calls for sending messages to the President of
Azerbaijan with a demand to stop the persecution of the couple Yunus.

The Yunus were arrested in 2014, and convicted on a contrived charge
of spying for Armenia in 2015. They spent about a year and a half in
prison. They were released on parole, but charges were not lifted.
Later they were allowed to go abroad for treatment. -02D-

APA, Azerbaijan



Baku criticises mediators' comments on ceasefire violations

[Armenian News note: the below is translated from the Russian edition of APA]

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman has accused the OSCE Minsk
Group co-chairmen of demonstrating unfair and non-objective approach
in their recent statement concerning the latest ceasefire violation
incidents in the Karabakh conflict zone.

He also described as "symptomatic" that the co-chairs' "standard
statement" spoke only about ceasefire violations but did not mentioned
that 18 May marked the 25th anniversary of Azerbaijan's Lacin District
coming under control of Armenian troops.

"Some 80,000 residents of Lacin became refugees and IDPs, just like
residents of other occupied districts of Azerbaijan. Although on that
day [18 May when the co-chairs' statement was issued] 25 years turned
since the occupation of Lacin District, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs
did not mention that in their statement which is unfair and
non-objective approach," APA news agency quoted Hikmat Haciyev as
saying on 19 May.

Haciyev said that the Minsk Group co-chairs did not mention that
Armenian troops are present on Azerbaijan's territory and that
Armenian troops recently shelled Azeri residential areas in the
vicinity of the frontline.

"Unfortunately, being concerned about ceasefire violations, in their
statement the Minsk Group co-chairs turned a blind eye to the fact
that hardware and troops of Armenia's armed forces are present
illegally on the sovereign territories of Azerbaijan," Haciyev said.

"The Armenian armed forces's illegal presence in the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan is the major reason for escalation of
tension on the frontline and violations of ceasefire," he said.

"The armed forces of the Azerbaijan Republic are present on the
sovereign territory of Azerbaijan and are defending the country and
ensuring the safety of its civilian population in circumstances when
the Azerbaijani territories are occupied by Armenia," he added.

Haciyev said that the Minsk Group co-chairs should have called for the
withdrawal of Armenian troops of Azerbaijani soil and should have
urged the conflicting parties to continue talks to find a political
solution to the Karabakh conflict.

In their 18 May statement, the Minsk Group co-chairs criticised both
the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides for "significant violations of the
ceasefire" in mid-May. They said that "there are contradictory reports
regarding the targets of these recent strikes, as well as about
casualties sustained and damages inflicted". The co-chairs urged the
sides "to take all necessary measures to prevent any further
escalation in the conflict zone".

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
May 19 2019


Azerbaijani Defense Ministry comments on video spread by Armenians

AzerTAg.az



Baku, May 19, AZERTAC

The Armenian side has disseminated a video footage claiming that the
Azerbaijani armed forces are shelling positions of their own military
units, said Azerbaijani defense ministry.

The ministry said the Armenian side that was defeated on the
battlefield is making unsuccessful attempts to avenge in the virtual
space.

“According to the combat readiness plan, the Azerbaijani military
units on the frontline are currently conducting live-fire exercises in
various directions of the frontline, including Tartar-Aghdara
direction. The explosions reflected in the video was caused by hand
grenades, but not by 60-mm mortars as the Armenians claimed. Even
non-specialists knowing a little about weapons can easily comprehend
that these explosions were not caused by mortars,” said the ministry.