The Constitutional Court of Armenia on July 18 made a decision to suspend proceedings of the cases for determining the compliance of Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code with the Constitution based on the applications of the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction and 2nd President Robert Kocharyan, the Constitutional Court told Armenpress.

“On July 18 the Constitutional Court of Armenia made a decision to apply to the European Court of Human Rights and the Venice Commission aimed at receiving an advisory opinion over the cases on “determining the compliance of Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code with the Constitution of Armenia, based on the applications of the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction and Robert Kocharyan. The Court also made a decision to suspend the proceedings of these cases until receiving responses based on the point 5 part 1 of Article 56 of the constitutional law on the Constitutional Court”, the statement says.

by Joanna Bailey,

The tiny nation of Armenia, with a population of just three million, are ready to make their mark on the world. With plans for low-cost airlines to include them on their routes, a strategy to reduce airfares and a fiercely strong woman at the helm, we take a look at how Armenia’s aviation industry is set to explode.

On July 3^rd, the Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, held a consultation on the development of Armenia’s civil aviation sector. Here, he made it clear that the nation was making the improvement of Armenia’s air transport industry a priority. But how does he plan to do it?

A brand new Armenia

Armenia is striving to put itself on the map, and there are some major changes taking place already. The revolution saw the previous prime minister ousted, with forward-thinking Pashinyan taking his place. The stagnant, inwards looking sector has been rejuvenated, thanks in part to the appointment of the ambitious, tenacious Tatevik Revazian.

Giving up a Silicon Valley salary to lead the future of aviation development in Armenia, Revazian was appointed as the Chair of the Armenian Civil Aviation Committee just 10 months ago. Already she’s started to make a difference, identifying both the challenges and the opportunities facing the nation’s future development.

n an interview with AviaDev, Revazian noted that her attempts to attract low-cost carriers to the country were initially dismissed by others. The consensus was that Armenia is not an interesting market for low-cost airlines, but Revazian believes otherwise.

She sees the issues of the past being a lack of flexibility in terms of airport pricing and conditions, as well as poor proactivity in terms of attracting airlines. Since her appointment, Revazian has made it her mission to talk to decision-makers, to listen to their needs, and to come up with solutions that will fit for everyone. Speaking to Evenreport, she said,

“I have a huge network of airlines that I have worked with, I know how to speak to them, I know how to prepare the business cases and want to proactively attract new flights to Armenia,”

Challenges on the inside

Revazian’s ambition is not without its challenges. In the AviaDev interview, Revazian noted that many of the hurdles she has to overcome are on the inside, rather than the outside of Armenia. Many of the people in Armenian aviation were there when the nation had a national carrier, and still harbor resistance to bringing any outside airlines in.

The story of Armavia, Armenia’s former flag-carrying airline, was not one of success. Despite being granted exclusive rights to both domestic and international routes, it went bankrupt in 2013. This reflected badly on Armenia as a whole and gives the nation a good reason to be cautious in developing the sector.

Of course, Armenia does have its own airlines, although none are particularly big. Armenia Airways has two aircraft and flies only between Yerevan and Tehran. Armenia Aircompany also has two aircraft and flies to destinations in Russia and Israel. Atlantis Armenian Airlines has a few more planes, with three A320s, one 737 and a Let L-140 in their fleet. And then there’s Taron Avia, who temporarily ceased operations in 2018 but now appear to have resumed.

The majority of these carriers, you might remember, stepped up to help passengers navigate around the Russia-Georgia flight ban. Although key services in Armenia itself, none really have the clout to be nominated a national airline. As such, Armenia, at least for now, needs to open the door to outside airlines if it wants to achieve its tourism goals.

Low-cost airlines interested

Revazian has worked with the government to develop an incentive arrangement for new airlines flying into Yerevan. Currently, the high airport tariffs have scared off some of the carriers who may otherwise have flown there, but Revazian’s committee has a plan.

They told reporters at a press conference this week that they had prepared legislation to remove taxes for airlines beginning new routes to Yerevan. Revazian stated at the conference that they had secured the interest of both Ryanair and Wizz Air if they made flying there more affordable.

Since 2009, all passengers departing from Armenia have had to pay a tax, equal to 10,000 drams, which is around $21. For a nation with typically low incomes, this served to drive up the price of airline tickets to unaffordable levels. For operators like Ryanair, this additional cost would put the overall fare at a level they’d find uncomfortable to cope with.

Revazian is confident that the low-cost carriers will arrive, telling the press that,

“If all the obstacles with the purchase of new aircraft are solved, the low-cost airlines are ready to come to the Armenian market as soon as the summer of 2020,”

If that does come to fruition, a whole lot of Europeans could have some exciting travel plans for next summer. Armenia remains a tantalizing and unspoiled destination; I for one am certainly hoping for direct affordable connections from more western cities, and look forward to seeing what the future holds.

Source: https://simpleflying.com/inside-armenian-aviation/?fbclid=IwAR08mdIVQ_PCEUSnMf9KcsSL7clqVyb0ykjD8B4pIkrWgwwS6PpL1CQxaMM

Commissioner for Diaspora affairs Zareh Sinanyan has left for Moscow, Russia on a working visit.

This is his first trip to a foreign country to meet with an Armenian Diaspora community abroad. The Commissioner’s press service reports that the five-day visit agenda includes meetings with different community organizations and institutions, individuals, representatives of cultural and business circles, as well as church organizations.

Russia’s Rostec state corporation is ready to supply Su-35 fighter jets to Turkey if Ankara expresses an interest in their purchase, Rostec chief Sergei Chemezov stated on Thursday, according to TASS.

“If our Turkish colleagues express an interest, we are ready to discuss the deliveries of Su-35,” the Rostec press service quoted Chemezov as saying.

During interactions at the political level, both the Council of Europe and the European Union have expressed full support to the Government of Armenia in regard to judicial and legal reforms. This is what Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared in an interview with Azatutyun Radio today, touching upon the stance of the Venice Commission on the upcoming judicial and legal reforms in Armenia and the stance of Europe in general.

“The Venice Commission expressed an official position that was posted on the Commission’s website, and according to that, the Venice Commission considers its cooperation with the Government of Armenia productive, and we agreed that we must talk about the mechanisms and legislative amendments. It is safe to say that, during interactions at the political level, both the Council of Europe and the European Union have expressed full support to the Government of Armenia in regard to judicial and legal reforms,” Nikol Pashinyan said.

As a result of Wednesday’s clashes between police and demonstrators in Ijevan, 11 people—8 of them policemen—were brought to the Ijevan medical center. The surgeon on duty at this hospital informed about this to Armenian News-NEWS.am.

In his words, all of them were later discharged according to their places of residence.

“The [injured] police officers were from the internal troops,” he added. “First aid was administered to the police, they will undergo a KT examination in

Yerevan, and the doctors will decide whether or not to transfer [them] to the [military] hospital.”

Some of the persons who were injured in the aforesaid clashes have sent their respective photos to Armenian News-NEWS.am.

A clash broke out Wednesday evening in Ijevan between the police and the demonstrator who closed off the road and who are engaged in logging. The demonstrators are complaining about the authorities’ new harsh stance on unlawful logging.

Tavush Province Governor Hayk Chobanyan, Armenia Police Chief Valeriy Osipyan, as well as Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Minister Suren Papikyan had arrived at the scene.

The demonstrators blocked the motorway leading to Georgia for several hours, causing a 5km-long traffic jam. Later, however, the road was reopened. 

Governor Chobanyan said there will be no concession and no unlawful demands will be met.

The Investigative Committee informed Armenian News-NEWS.am that a criminal case has been initiated into this incident.

Lentils and Stones, which explores the concepts of labour and time, takes inspiration from a poem by Zahrad

As an old woman goes about her daily chore of sorting lentils, her mind wanders. Her memory revisits instances from her past, and poignantly she realises the passage of time. Woman Cleaning Lentils — a poem by Armenian poet Zahrad, is what inspired Lentils and Stones, a collusion of theatre, puppetry and dance, which will take to stage this weekend at Adishakti Theatre, Puducherry. Conceived by Vijay Ravikumar as part of the Take Flight support and mentorship programme by Perch Collective, Chennai, the play focusses on the natural concept of ageing.

Vijay, who has been part of Perch Collective as an actor, says that the production, being staged for the second time, is “still evolving”. Each time it is performed, a new dimension takes shape. “In the story, the woman realises that unseen domestic work that swallowed her adult life, scooped her up as a child and deposited her off in the present, as a lonely old woman,” he says. As the storyline goes forward, her television watches on, “in a curious reversal of roles”. The television wishes to understand this woman’s paradoxical relationship to her past. While Vijay plays the protagonist’s role, manifested through puppetry, the television too comes alive as a puppet. “The play uses the poem to explore memory and labour, and the general theme of ageing,” says the director.

How did the idea of using puppetry come about? “I have been working with puppets since 2001, on and off. In this production particularly, the characters do not speak as they would in real life. It’s a very evocative character trait that makes you read between the lines and puppets, I thought, will work well in that setting,” concludes Vijay who plans to bring the play to Chennai and Bengaluru soon.

Lentils and Stones will be staged on July 20, 7 pm at Adishakti Theatre, Edayanchavadi Road, Near Auroville Post, Puducherry. Entry is free for all.

Kadri Gursel,

In his long political career, Abdullah Gul, Turkey’s former president and co-founder of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), has been widely perceived — deservedly or not — as a politician averse to taking risks. Beyond any perceptions and opinions, however, the fact today is that Gul has assumed the role of a “guide” in a long-rumored plan to set up a new party that threatens to split the AKP. In the first tangible indication of a breakup, Ali Babacan, the AKP’s former economic czar, quit the party July 8.

In his resignation, Babacan — who served in several AKP governments under the now-defunct parliamentary system, most recently as deputy premier in charge of the economy — said that he had grown “mentally and emotionally estranged” from his party and that Turkey needed “a brand new vision for the future.” In two brief sentences heralding the new party, he said, “It has become inevitable to start a new effort for Turkey’s present and future. Many of my colleagues and I feel a great and historic responsibility toward this effort.”

Sources close to the work on the new party told Al-Monitor that it was Gul’s desire to have Babacan at the forefront of the move. Gul’s role is described as that of an “ağabey” — a Turkish word that means “elder brother,” but also denotes senior and experienced men whose views are taken into account and whose advice is heeded. In modern-day language, Gul’s role could be translated as “mentor” or “guide.”

Gul might have declined a founding leadership position on the grounds of his age — he turns 69 in less than four months — or because he already retired from the presidency in 2014. Nevertheless, by helping as an “elder brother,” he has still taken on an active role. So, given his reputation for shying away from risky political moves, is it fair to assume that the new movement stands a high chance of success?

That Gul is finally intervening in politics is, no doubt, a meaningful sign. But even more telling, perhaps, is the reaction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is also the chairman of the AKP and had met with Babacan ahead of the June 23 do-over of the mayoral election in Istanbul.

In remarks to journalists on a flight back from Bosnia July 10, Erdogan sounded rather uneasy as he recounted his meeting with Babacan. He said he told Babacan, “You can go your own way, that’s fine. But keep in mind, you don’t have the right to fracture the ummah. That’s what you are doing. You can’t get anywhere by fracturing the ummah.”

Erdogan’s use of the term “ummah,” which means the entirety of the Muslim world, to describe his party and its voter base is a perfect illustration of the extremes that mixing politics with religion has reached in Turkey. By going so far as to equate the AKP with the ummah and, by implication, elevate himself to the status of its leader, Erdogan has a political purpose. He wants to ensure that any looming political development detrimental to the AKP is perceived as anti-Islam in the party’s grassroots. Yet his use of the word “fracturing” reflects a very realistic apprehension over the consequences the AKP could face.

Before any fracturing, however, Babacan’s defection points to a current unraveling in the government ranks. The timing of his resignation — two weeks after the AKP’s historic rout at the Istanbul mayoral polls — is hardly a coincidence. And before this unraveling, there was certainly an in-house rift, dating back many years, when Gul and Babacan became an axis of rising dissent against Erdogan.
Read more: https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2019/07/turkey-former-akp-figures-plan-to-establish-a-new-party.html#ixzz5tx71Zuav

Turkey led among countries receiving weapons shipments from Germany, Deutsche Welle Turkish service reported on Tuesday.

In the first four months of the year, Turkey received weapons worth some €184 million from Germany, accounting for nearly 60 percent of all German deliveries.

The figures were released by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) in response to a parliamentary question directed by Die Linke deputy Sevim Dagdelen.