EuFoA’s Pick of the Day
Armenian nominated Eastern Partnership forum co-chair
News.am, October 03, 2014, https://news.am/eng/news/
Emin Yeritsyan, president of the Union of Communities of Armenia and counselor in the Armenian community of Parakar, was nominated new Conference of the Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP) co–chair representing the EaP (Eastern Partnership) countries.
Yeritsyan was nominated to this post at the annual CORLEAP meeting in Georgia’s capital city of Tbilisi.
The participants in the annual meeting discussed the role of decentralization and territorial cooperation in the Eastern Partnership countries, informed the EU Neighbourhood Info Centre.
EU-Armenia Relations
1.6 million euros allocated for strengthening justice system
Aysor.am, October 02, 2014, https://www.aysor.am/en/news/
The program “Strengthening the Independence, Professionalism and Accountability of the Justice System in Armenia” started today. The program is implemented in cooperation with the European Union and the Council of Europe.
The Head of the EU Delegation to Armenia Traian Hristea said the program aims to assist the Armenian authorities in strengthening the justice system’s independence and professionalism as part of the strategic program of legal and court reforms for 2012-2016.
The program’s budget is 1 million 670 thousand euros.
UK Foreign Ministry publishes Genocide docs ahead of book release
Panarmenian.net, October 02, 2014, https://www.panarmenian.net/
British Foreign Ministry released a collection of 54 documents on The Armenian Massacres and UK Policy. The collection contains letters written to British ministers and MPs from different departments of the Foreign Ministry. The documents have been readied from the period from April 14, 2009 to June 27, 2014, ARF Dashnaktsutyun website reported.
Also, British lawyer Geoffrey Robertson’s book “An Inconvenient Genocide: Who Now Remembers the Armenians?” to be released Oct 1, 7 and 16 in Australia, Canada & the U.S. and Great Britain respectively will dean with the duplicity of Britain and other countries worldwide in non-recognition of the crime against humanity. The book draws on a variety of materials including those published by the British Foreign Ministry.
According to the head of The Armenian National Committee of UK, Sevan Artin, the book couldn’t but affect the British Foreign Ministry which hurried to release the materials, earlier provided to Robertson, in an attempt to justify itself. “We purchased 1000 copies of the book to raise the Genocide awareness in political, media and other circles. We’re also planning a book presentation in British Parliament,” Artin sad.
Paris city council passes resolution on Armenian Genocide
News.am, October 02, 2014, https://news.am/eng/news/232071.html
The Paris City Council unanimously passed a resolution concerning the hundredth anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Nouvelles d'Arménie reports.
The resolution was submitted to the Board by the Deputy Mayor for memory and veterans Catherine Vieu-Charier and Deputy Mayor for international relations and Francophonie Patrick Klyugman.
The resolution calls on the City of Paris, in cooperation with the Republic of Armenia, the Coordination Council of Armenian Organizations in France and Armenian organizations of Paris to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide through projects aimed at raising awareness about the Armenian Genocide and at preventing its denial.
The resolution also calls on the Mayor of Paris to visit Yerevan in the framework of the activities that will be organized by the Republic of Armenia in 2015 on the commemoration of Armenian Genocide.
General News on Armenia
Zohrabyan: Armenia knows what international community’s inaction is
Aysor.am, October 03, 2014, https://www.aysor.am/en/news/
The PACE urgently debated the report “Threats Posed by the ‘Islamic State’ (IS) and Violence against Humanity”.
The member of the Armenian delegation to the PACE, secretary of Prosperous Armenia (BHK) faction of the Armenian parliament Ms. Naira Zohrabyan discussed in her speech the genocide committed by the Islamic State terrorist organization against Yazidis. She urged the international community to stop the new genocide in the 21st century.
Naira Zohrabyan’s said in particular:
“What is going on in Northern Iraq is undoubtedly genocide. It is hard to imagine such barbarities happening in the 21st century, even in most dreadful dreams. The Islamic State radical terrorist organization is committing real genocide in Northern Iraq: homes of Kurds and Yazidis are being leveled to the ground, all Yazidis who refuse to change their religion are being massacred or shot.
Yerevan and Belgrade promote development of Armenian-Serbian relations
Armenpress.am, October 03, 2014, https://armenpress.am/eng/news/778759/yerevan-and-belgrade-promote-development-of-armenian-serbian-relations.html
Foreign Minister’s official visit to Serbia launched on October 2 with the meeting of Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandyan and Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church Iriney, Armenian Foreign Affairs Ministry’s press service informed Armenperss.
The Patriarch said that the centuries-long friendship between Armenian and Serbian people creates a good basis for development of cooperation of the two countries. Both the Minister and the Patriarch highlighted the warm relations established between the Armenian Apostolic Church and Serbian Orthodox Church.
President of Serbia Tomislav Nikolić also received the Armenian FM in Belgrade. Welcoming Edward Nalbandyan, he noted that Serbian and Armenian peoples are tied with historical friendly relations and Belgrade will take all possible steps to strengthen Armenian-Serbian relations. Expressing gratitude to Tomislav Nikolić, Minsiter Nalbandyan conveyed him President Serzh Sargsyan’s good wishes and expressed confidence that the upcoming visit of the Serbian President to Armenia will promote expansion and enhancement of the cooperation between the two countries. Minister Nalbandyan and President Nikolić exchanged views on a number of regional and international issues.
215 homeless families in Gyumri to get apartments
Panorama.am, October 02, 2014, https://www.panorama.am/en/
The Armenian government allocated 1.5bn drams to Shirak regional administration to address the housing problems.
Armenian Urban Development Minister Narek Sargsyan told reporters after the cabinet meeting on Thursday that 450 families are still homeless in Gyumri and the government decided to issue housing certificates to 215 families.
“We have held discussions with the Prime Minister, and we have a plan to completely resolve the housing problems in the disaster zone within the coming two years,” said the Minister.
Traders Keep Up Pressure On Armenian Government
Azatutyun.am, October 02, 2014, https://www.azatutyun.am/
Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamian again met with representatives of market traders in Yerevan on Thursday as hundreds of them continued to demonstrate against recent changes in tax legislation which they say could ruin their businesses.
Other senior officials, meanwhile, defended the new taxation regulations and ruled out any amendments to an Armenian law on a single turnover tax levied from small businesses with annual sales of up to 58 million drams ($140,000).
Earlier this year the Armenian government pushed through the parliament amendments that cut the turnover tax rate from 3.5 percent to 1 percent. At the same time the amendments, effective from October 1, obligate those entities to provide tax authorities with documentary evidence of their transactions with larger suppliers or face for hefty fines.
Opposition about government’s reply: No demand has been met in earnest
Armenianow.com, October 03, 2014, https://www.armenianow.com/
Members of the Armenian opposition remain skeptical about the government’s statement that some of the demands made by four minority parties still in early summer have been addressed. They say that no demand has been complied with and that their struggle will continue.
One day after the deadline of September 30 set to it by the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP), the Armenian National Congress (ANC), Heritage and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) still in June, the government replied by saying that some of the demands of the opposition have already been addressed, others are part of the government’s mid-term program and still others are unrealistic and, in fact, unacceptable as they fall short of the requirements of international standards and the Armenian Constitution.
In their demands the four political parties known as Quartet specifically referred to the country’s social and economic problems – starting from abolishing the mandatory component of the funded pension law till reducing the sales tax and fines for traffic rules violations, including those recorded by many cameras and speed radars in the streets of Yerevan.
Air Armenia chief says bankruptcy ruled out despite financial problems
Tert.am, October 03, 2014, https://www.tert.am/en/news/
In an interview with Tert.am, Air Armenia CEO Arsen Avetisyan agreed that damping policies by Russian airlines may be the reason behind the company’s financial difficulties, but he denied the report about a possible bankruptcy.
“Mr Avetisyan, reports say that the company has debts amounting to 5 million Dollars and may be declared bankrupt soon. Also, problems with the purchase of aircrafts were reported.”
“I don’t know who commissioned [such a report], as this is the second time I hear disinformation. Perhaps they feel happy that we have problems … I don’t know who does it.”
“So you actually confirm that you have problems.”
“We have technical problems; our A320 aircraft has flown to Amsterdam through Paris for a planned technical maintenance checkup. The second plane was due to leave for a shorter period, and it is there at the moment. I don’t have an aircraft in Dubai, as the report said, so the second plane will return after the checkup. The other plane will be there for 21 days. It wasn’t planned, so we are not able to serve the scheduled flight with only one aircraft. Hence we have merged two flights. Yes, we do have problems, and I have to borrow a plane from partner companies to secure the flight till my aircraft returns.”
General News on Karabakh
Karabakh soldier wounded by Azeri fire
News.am, October 03, 2014, https://news.am/eng/news/
Due to the violation of the ceasefire by Azerbaijani side, a soldier of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic was wounded, Armenian News –NEWS.am reports.
According to preliminary information, the incident occurred on Sept. 29 in the neighborhood of Martuni. Karabakh soldier Narek Darbinyan was shot in his back. The wounded soldier was taken to Yerevan, at the moment his condition is good.
News from International Sources
Time for Sanctions on Baku
The American Interest, October 02, 2014, https://www.the-american-
As the West has turned its attention to the Islamic State and the Ukraine crisis, the government of President Ilham Aliyev has expanded its crackdown on dissenting voices in Azerbaijan with harassment, threats, beatings, and arrests. Even American citizens and international NGOs have bet caught up in the widening net of repression. These actions demand a response.
For years, Belarus’s leader Alexander Lukashenka has been called Europe’s last dictator, although Vladimir Putin is giving Lukashenka a run for his money, amidst the worst crackdown on human rights in Russia in decades. And now we might also add another leader in the region to the list: President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan.
After an accelerating series of arrests, Aliyev’s government now holds nearly 100 political prisoners, roughly double the number in Belarus and Russia combined. Beyond the raw numbers, Azerbaijan’s authorities are also getting more thuggish in their handling of critics, journalists, and opposition figures—as well as Westerners.
Baku Hits Back at Award for Jailed Democracy Activist
Eurasianet.org, October 01, 2014, https://www.eurasianet.org/
Authorities in Azerbaijan are seeing red after a democracy-watchdog activist they jailed received an international award from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Granting the Vaclav Havel prize for civil society activism to Anar Mammadli constitutes outside pressure on an independent state, Ali Hasanov, a key aide to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, declared on September 30.
In a familiar line, Hasanov attributed the award to contrivances by Azerbaijan’s enemies. He said that such steps serve to “support the fifth column underwritten by certain foreign forces” [a frequent euphemism for enemy-neighbor Armenia] and that Azerbaijan is free to arrest those who violate the law. “It is quite obvious that certain organizations, acting behind the façade of human-rights advocacy, are not at all independent and follow very concrete instructions,” he declared, the pro-government APA news agency reported.
Azerbaijan, however, currently chairs a committee within one of the "certain organizations," the Council of Europe, the continent ’s main human-rights body, and the award put the CoE in an awkward place. (Azerbaijan holds the seat until November.) Many critics argue that the 47-nation forum is not the place for Azerbaijan, which recently has detained scores of journalists, civil-society leaders and activists who criticize the government.