Armenian FM: European Union remains a key partner for Armenia
News.am, October 22, 2014, https://news.am/eng/news/
The European Union remains a key partner for Armenia, bilateral relations are developing in a number of areas, and meetings between institutional structures are held. This is an answer by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian in response to a request by Heritage party member to assess the level of Armenia-EU ties.
Armenia participates in multilateral platforms and is included in over dozen of commissions on such issues as democracy, justice, education, energy, Nalbandian added.
Speaking about assertion on regress in Armenia-EU relations, the Minister noted that visa facilitation agreement came into force on January 1, 2014. A protocol on Armenia's participation in different projects of the EU agencies took effect from March.
“In the near future we will continue cooperation with new EU leadership in order to form a new background for Armenia-EU relations. In November Economy Minister will discuss trade and economic cooperation opportunities in Brussels. The meeting of Committee on trade issues is scheduled for the second half of November,” he added.
Armenia-EU Relations
EU and EBRD Support SMEs in Armenia to access finance and advise
Armradio.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.armradio.am/en/
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union (EU) issued statements today on the importance of access to finance and access to know-how for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Armenia.
“The development of SMEs is one of the priorities of the European Union and a clear target in our cooperation in partner countries like Armenia,” noted the Head of Cooperation of the EU Delegation to Armenia, Hoa-Binh Adjemian. “Programmes like the EBRD’s, which specifically aim at promoting and improving the work of SMEs here in an integrated way, are very important to achieving this aim. This is only one of several projects and facilities that are available to Eastern Partnership countries thanks to the European Union.”
The EU is currently a core donor to the EBRD’s advisory support activities to support to development of sustainable private sector in Armenia, which bring international best practice and local know-how to benefit of local SMEs.
Armenia to host plenary session of Euronest Parliamentary Assembly next year
Armenpress.am, October 22, 2014, https://armenpress.am/eng/news/
Euronest Parliamentary Assembly of the Eastern Partnership will summon a plenary session March 16-20 in Yerevan, Chairperson of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Foreign Relations Artak Zakaryan said at a press conference in National Assembly.
“We have plenty time till March, but before that one more season will be summoned in Brussels, and thereafter we will host the plenary session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly. I should also inform that Armenia is going to host the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly for the second time,” said Artak Zakaryan.
The MP highlighted the conduction of Euronest session in Armenia in the sense that 2015 marks the Armenian Genocide centenary, within the frameworks of which commemoration events are intended both in Armenia and in different countries of the world.
Armenia’s future is promising – Ambassador
Panorama.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.panorama.am/en/
Armenia underscored its willingness to continue cooperation with the European Union after joining the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), French Ambassador to Armenia Henri Reynaud told reporters in Yerevan.
“Armenia's intention to continue collaboration with the European Union was reflected in the joint statement adopted at the Vilnius summit last year,” the Ambassador said.
As regards the position of France, it was reflected in the statement of President Francois Hollande during his visit to Armenia, the envoy said.
“The European Union should understand that Armenia lives in unique conditions and needs to get involved in a process leading to integration to the European Union,” Hollande said in Yerevan.
According to Henri Reynaud, the EU’s task is to maintain close relations with Armenia.
“I think Armenia's future is promising,” he noted.
Tevan Poghosyan: Armenia should reach signing of political component of EU Association Agreement till late 2014
Mediamax.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.mediamax.am/en/
MP of Armenian National Assembly, member of Standing Committee on Defense, National Security and Internal Affairs Tevan Poghosyan stated today that "the Armenian Foreign Ministry and other responsible bodies should take steps and reach the signing of political component of the EU Association Agreement till late 2014”.
According to him, if the Eurasian Economic Union is only an economic union as it is emphasized we should use it correctly and negotiate on signing of the political component of the EU Association Agreement taking into account Ukraine practice.
“We should realize that when the membership to the EEU comes into force on January 2, 2015 Armenia will obviously undergo more pressures. Today is the best time to ensure the format at least. Besides, there will be new appointments in the EU ruling structures from November 1, so we should use all the levers of holding talks with them till that time”, noted Tevan Poghosyan.
General News on Armenia
Armenian parliament to hold special session on Eurasian Union treaty
News.am, October 22, 2014, https://news.am/eng/news/
A special session of the parliament will be convened on November 17-18 to ratify a treaty on Armenia's joining the Eurasian Economic Union, head of RPA faction Vahram Baghdasaryan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.
The treaty will be submitted by the Constitutional Court that will check the document for compliance with the Constitution.
“The Constitutional Court will work quickly, since the treaty must be ratified on time. In addition, until the end of December it is necessary to amend a number of laws,” said Baghdasaryan.
The treaty on Armenia's accession was signed during the meeting of Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Minsk on October 10.
President pays working visit to Shirak and Lori provinces
Aysor.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.aysor.am/en/news/
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan today paid working visits to Shirak and Lori provinces, the presidential press service said.
In Shirak province, Serzh Sargsyan attended the opening of Varduhi School of Arts in Gyumri. He toured the building of high school-college after Oyunjanians, familiarizing himself with the activities of the educational institution and the programs of the school of arts designed for 300 pupils.
In Lori province, the president visited Spitak’s poultry factory where he became acquainted with investments, the factory’s work and development programs.
The former poultry factory, one of the largest in the region, was completely destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 1988.
A new poultry factory with modern production lines was built over the past year. Its operation will allow increasing local poultry production by 25%. Besides, the factory will employ about 220 families.
No management crisis exists in Armenia: PM
Armenpress.am, October 22, 2014, https://armenpress.am/eng/news/
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Hovik Abrahamyan does not agree with the statements by the opposition that there is management crisis in Armenia. In response to the remarks of one of the journalists that the opposition insists that there is management crisis in Armenia, he stated at the National Assembly that no such thing exists.
“Where is the management crisis? Do you see a problem, which we cannot manage? We manage very efficiently and even try to use our authorities and potential for 100%. And we will work even more efficiently in the future”, - said Hovik Abrahamyan, Armenpress reports.
The Armenian PM stated that today the Government tends to give a solution to the existing problems, because there are many, particularly on social issues, which are derived from migration and poverty. “We should take up poverty and migration reduction processes”, - emphasized Hovik Abrahamyan.
Opposition Leaders Meet Ahead Of Key Rally
Azatutyun.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.azatutyun.am/
Opposition leaders Levon Ter-Petrosian, Gagik Tsarukian and Raffi Hovannisian met again late on Wednesday to discuss preparations for the next anti-government rally that will held by their political parties in Yerevan on Friday.
A spokeswoman for Tsarukian, Iveta Tonoyan, declined to give details of the meeting. She said only that the three leaders discussed “organizational issues” related to the rally.
Tsarukian, who leads the influential Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), held separate talks with Ter-Petrosian on Tuesday.
The talks appear to be part of efforts by the BHK, Ter-Petrosian’s Armenian National Congress (HAK) and Hovannisian’s Zharangutyun (Heritage) party to work out a plan of further joint actions aimed at achieving “regime change.” They hope to do so in time for Friday’s demonstration in Yerevan’s Liberty Square.
Anna Turcotte-Astvatsaturyan refutes disinformation of Azerbaijani media concerning provocation in University of Amsterdam
Panorama.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.panorama.am/en/
Anne Turcotte-Astvatsaturyan, the author of the book "Nowhere: The Story of exile" which tells about the Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan in the Karabakh conflict, has denied the information dissimiated by the Azerbaijani news agency "APA" saying that during the presentation of her book held at the University of Amsterdam the Azerbaijani side had posed her provocative questions.
"The message of the Azerbaijani news agency is an excellent example of a lie which is being spread by the government of this country," wrote Anna Turcotte-Astvatsaturyan on her Facebook page.
She also noted that there is a video of the event, where you can see only the Azerbaijani government lackeys with blunt looks leaving the room without asking a single question.
General News on Karabakh
France Looks Forward To Armenian-Azeri Summit
Azatutyun.am, October 22, 2014, https://www.azatutyun.am/
France’s President Francois Hollande will try to revive the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process when he hosts fresh talks between his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts in Paris early next week, the French ambassador in Yerevan said on Wednesday.
Henri Reynaud said the French government expects the upcoming summit to “give new impetus in the substantive sense” to the long-running search for a compromise solution to the Karabakh conflict. It also hopes that Presidents Serzh Sarkisian and Ilham Aliyev will agree on confidence-building measures that will boost “stability on the frontline” around Karabakh and along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, he told a news conference.
Aliyev and Sarkisian are scheduled to meet for a third time in over two months. They held talks, mediated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, in Sochi on August 10 following an upsurge in deadly truce violations in the conflict zone.
Artsakh doesn’t expect a breakthrough from Sargsyan-Aliyev meeting in Paris
Mediamax.am, October 23, 2014, https://www.mediamax.am/en/
Official Stepanakert attaches importance to the meeting of Armenian and Azerbaijani Presidents Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham Aliyev in Paris upon French President’s initiative but doesn’t think it will mark a breakthrough.
“We attach importance to any meeting. However, taking into account Azerbaijan’s fascist and destructive stance, we don’t consider the Paris meeting as the final or crucial meeting for the conflict settlement. Such meetings are just useful from the viewpoint of maintaining stability and peace in the region”, spokesman for President of Artsakh Davit Babayan said to Mediamax correspondent.
According to him, resumption of the distorted format of talks and ensuring Artsakh’s participation in all the stages of the negotiation process are needed for settling Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict.
“Otherwise, it will just be impossible to reach the final settlement”, said Davit Babayan.
Caballé to support Karabakh talents to perform on international arena
Armenpress.am, October 23, 2014, https://armenpress.am/eng/news/
The second visit of the world famous soprano Montserrat Caballé to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic laid a base for a new cooperation, the aim of which is not only to develop the opera art in Karabakh but also to make a path for the Artsakh talents to perform in the international arena. The Minister of Culture of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic Narine Aghabalyan told Armenpress about the details on the visit of Caballé and the new cooperation programs.
- Mrs. Aghabalyan, the first visit of Montserrat Caballé caused a big noise especially in Azerbaijan. It seemed that the noise will hinder the further cooperation with Caballé, but we have quite the contrary thing now.
- Yes, you are right. During the first visit, when Montserrat Caballé came to Artsakh and got acquainted with it, she promised that the cooperation will continue and she is ready to support the Artsakh youth with master classes. We talked on this issue but we could not even imagine that she will come to Karabakh again. It is very difficult in that age, with such health condition, to overcome such a long way. This visit is important also for the reason that knowing where she comes and what difficulties she will have to overcome, Caballé, nevertheless, has come to Artsakh again.
News from International Sources
No Country for Human Rights
New York Times, October 22, 2014, https://www.nytimes.com/2014/
As human rights defenders, we must report that our own situation in Azerbaijan has been deteriorating fast.
Two years ago, human rights groups across Europe worried that holding theEurovision Song Contest in our country would only prop up Azerbaijan’s increasingly intolerant regime. Now their fears have been confirmed. Just in the past year, we have seen a cascading series of arrests of human rights defenders on trumped-up charges.
So imagine our dismay on hearing about Europe’s latest approach to our country: The Council of Europe itself is holding a conference this Saturday and Sunday in Baku, on how to implement the European Convention on Human Rights. Those attending reportedly will include Judge Dean Spielmann, the president of the European Court of Human Rights, the very institution that is supposed to be the bulwark of our cause in Europe.
Azerbaijan: Letter to President Hollande Ahead of OSCE Summit
Human Rights Watch, October 22, 2014, https://www.hrw.org/node/130091
Dear President Hollande,
On October 27 you will meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for the Paris OSCE summit on Nagorno Karabakh. We are writing to urge you to use this crucial opportunity to demand the immediate release of prominent human rights defenders whom the Azerbaijani authorities have thrown behind bars in recent months amid an escalating and comprehensive crackdown on civil society. The charges against them are blatantly politically motivated, and your voice is badly needed to secure their freedom.
Among them is Leyla Yunus, who had the opportunity to meet you and Mr. Fabius during your visit to Baku in May. Leyla is a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honour and founder and director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy (IPD), a nongovernmental organization that, among other things, carried out public diplomacy and sought to improve people-to-people dialogue between people in Azerbaijan and Armenia against the background of the unresolved conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Leyla’s husband, Arif, a prominent historian, was also active in these projects and is also among those now in pretrial custody. The IPD has also focused on combating politically motivated prosecutions, corruption, violence against women, and unlawful evictions.
First meeting of Joint Working Group on Human Rights Issues in Azerbaijan
Council of Europe, October 22, 2014, https://www.coe.int/en/web/
Following an agreement between Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland and Azerbaijan's President Aliyev last August, a Joint Working Group on Human Rights Issues composed of some 18 human rights defenders, Members of Parliament and officials of the Presidential Administration met for the first time since 2008 in Baku on Wednesday, 22 October.
The purpose of the Joint Working Group, which was also attended by a representative of the Council of Europe, is to revive the dialogue between civil society and the Azerbaijani authorities.
Secretary General Jagland acknowledged the meeting as a step toward improving the current human rights situation in the country:
"The release of four human rights defenders among the 80 prisoners pardoned by presidential decree last week was a first positive step. I sincerely hope the Joint Working Group will lead to tangible results and the release of more human rights defenders. In particular, I look forward to the release of Ilgar Mammadov, whose case before the European Court of Human Rights was declared final last week”, he said.
Is The Clock Ticking For Azerbaijan's Leadership?
Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty, October 22, 2014, https://www.rferl.org/content/
One year after the presidential ballot in which incumbent Ilham Aliyev was reelected for a third term, Azerbaijan's opposition National Council of Democratic Forces (NSDS) convened a mass meeting in Baku on October 12 to protest the unprecedentedly harsh crackdown launched by the authorities in the wake of that vote.
Human Rights Watch calculates that since Azerbaijan assumed the rotating chairmanship of the Council of Europe on May 1, the government has "dramatically escalated its attack on activists, with [the] authorities arresting at least 11 people" and jailing at least nine others on politically motivated charges following "flawed trials."
That wave of arrests has elicited criticism not just from human rights watchdogs such as Human Rights Watch, but also from the European parliament and U.S. President Barack Obama. Former U.S. Ambassador to Baku Richard Kauzlarich called earlier this month for the U.S. to impose sanctions in the form of a law modelled on the 2012 Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law and Accountability Act.
News on Turkey
9 public officials face investigation for negligence in Dink murder
Todayszaman.com, October 22, 2014, https://www.todayszaman.com/
Nine public officials, including former İstanbul Deputy Governor Ergun Güngör and former İstanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah, are facing an investigation on a charge of negligence in the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was assassinated in broad daylight outside the office of his Agos newspaper on Jan. 17, 2007.
The lawyers of Hrant Dink's family had filed a complaint in 2011 with the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office against Güngör; Cerrah; the former chief of the İstanbul Police Department's intelligence unit, Ahmet İlhan Güngör; and six other police officers on the grounds that those public officials were negligent in preventing Dink's murder.
After the complaint, the chief public prosecutor's office applied to the İstanbul Governor's Office to ask for permission to investigate those listed public officials. However, the governor's office did not give this permission to the prosecutor's office. After the governor's office's decision, the prosecutors decided not to prosecute.
However, the Dink family filed an appeal with the Bakırköy 8th High Criminal Court to annul the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's decision not to prosecute.
On May 21 of this year, the Bakırköy court decided to cancel the prosecutor's office's decision not to prosecute.
New security bill may result in draconian social media measures
Harriyetdailynews.com, October 23, 2014, https://www.hurriyetdailynews.
The “domestic security package” that the government is expected to submit to Parliament in the coming days may introduce unprecedented new measures on social media, including special prison sentences for Internet users who call for protests, government sources have told Hürriyet.
The bill, which is still yet to be finalized, is expected to add “calls to action” on social media as a crime to the Turkish Penal Law (TCK) for the first time.
If the bill is approved in its current form, not only “calls for violence, terror or hate speech” but also calls to “close businesses in protest” will carry heavier sentences.
The new legislation is also expected to reintroduce a controversial law that was overturned by the Constitutional Court on Oct. 2. The law gave Turkey’s Telecommunications Directorate’s (TİB) the authority to close websites within four hours on the basis of national security, protecting public order, or preventing crime.
The government says the latest bill is necessary to improve domestic security in line with the European Union norms, following recent violent protests against jihadist attacks on the Kurdish-populated Syrian town of Kobane near the Turkish border.
News from Azerbaijani Sources
Germany looking forward to results of upcoming meeting of Azerbaijani, Armenian presidents
Trend.az, October 23, 2014, https://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/
Germany is looking forward to the results of the upcoming meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Paris in late October, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said at a briefing in Baku on Oct.23.
The minister said he held meetings with the leaders and representatives of Azerbaijan’s civil society and discussed the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
“Germany is extremely concerned about the tension on the contact line of the armies and closely watches the situation, wishing the speedy settlement of the conflict,” Steinmeier added.