Armenia: Iskander missiles impossible to be down by any Azerbaijani weapon – defense ministry spox

July 15, 2017 By administrator

Iskander missiles are impossible to be shot down by any Azerbaijani weapon, Armenian Defense Ministry’s spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan said in an interview with Panorama.am, commenting on the recent statement by Azerbaijan’s Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov, claiming that the Azerbaijani armed forces possess anti-missile weapons capable of shooting down Armenia’s Iskander missile systems.

“Zakir Hasanov stands out with his low level of knowledge, which is at lower level than the one of a platoon commander. He has shown it in multiple occasions. To put it mildly, it is impossible to shoot down Iskander missiles by any system of Azerbaijan. That country’s arsenal features Israeli Barak 8 missile system, which they have put on display. The claims also referred to the purchase of a weaker Iron Dome Weapon System. None of these systems is capable of downing the Iskander Missile,” the spokesman noted, adding that the U.S. Army officers having the most powerful missile defense systems like Standard, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and Patriot, do not confidently claim about downing Iskander missiles even after those weapons undergo multiple modifications.

“They (the U.S. military) openly point out the great danger and invulnerability of this weapon, however Zakir Hasanov has already overcome that weapon. On the other hand, there is nothing surprising when this is stated by a person with a very low level of professional knowledge and known for his empty talks,” Mr. Hovhannisyan added.

Armenia speaks at the UN racism in Turkey and Azerbaijan

July 3, 2016 By administrator

Armenia un turkey Armenian diplomats have spoken of violations of human rights in Azerbaijan and Turkey to the UN. Mher Margaryan, representing Armenia, made a speech at the 32nd session of the Council of Human Rights of the UN.

He recalled the obvious manifestations of xenophobia and racism in Azerbaijan, who have recently been documented by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance and the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

The speech of Mr. Margaryan is presented below:

In response to Azerbaijan

We have already drawn attention to this advice on the scandalous practices of Azerbaijan regarding racism and xenophobia, these are well documented and reported more recently by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance ( ECRI) and the UN Committee on the elimination of racial discrimination. The Azerbaijani authorities regularly cite 30,000 Armenians living in Azerbaijan, which is the same contradiction with their own census data quoted in the current report. This production was also noted by the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention of the Council of Europe for protection of national minorities in its third opinion on Azerbaijan adopted in October 2012, indicating that only 306 people, not 30,000, indicate an Armenian ethnicity in the census of 2009. We are not aware of a movement of people with Armenian origin from Azerbaijan. If the Azerbaijani government has such information why not share it with the international institutions as well? There are many facts of third country citizens who carry an Armenian surname who are denied entry into the country, which are held at checkpoints and airports that are returned. Is it not a contemporary form of discrimination and racism in flagrant violation of the Durban Declaration and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. We urge the Azerbaijani delegation not to air a new wave of hatred and intolerance manifestation within this Council.

In response to Turkey

It is not our intention to raise the issue of the Armenian Genocide recognition or refusal by Turkey. Instead, we will address the manifestations of racism and racial discrimination and xenophobia that accompanies active campaign of denial by the Turkish authorities. Free hateful threats and insults, spread hatred and intolerance towards Armenians and Turks who publicly acknowledge the genocide and to appeal to the government to do the same has become a norm in the political discourse of the Turkish authorities. The situation has reached a point where politicians with Turkish origin in other countries who dare to certify the fact of genocide or vote for their wider recognition are stigmatized, subjected to derogatory labeling, are pushed by blood tests laboratories by the highest authorities of Turkey. Define people by their blood is nothing less than a total manifestation of racism and xenophobia. We believe that these comments should not continue and must be properly addressed by the mechanisms of the Council and of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Thank you.”

No Turkey-Armenia rapprochement as long as Nagorno-Karabakh conflict unsettled – Turkish FM

January 16, 2016 By administrator

Turkey time again prove itself is behind the problem between Armenia and azerbaijan .

The relations between Turkey and Armenia will not improve as long as the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict remains unsettled, Turkish FM Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, stated at an international conference in Gaziantep, Turkey, APA reports citing Haberler.com.

Answering a question about relations with the neighboring countries, the Turkish FM said that Armenia occupied 20% of Azerbaijani territory.

“Without the liberation of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, we cannot speak about normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations. Azerbaijan’s problem is the direct problem of Turkey,” Çavuşoğlu said.

Azerbaijani troops fire at Armenian civilians, 17 homes damaged in Chinari village

September 9, 2015 By administrator

It has been calm since the morning in the village of Chinari in Armenia’s Tavush province bordering Azerbaijan. Shots were fired last evening, but there was no damage, Chinari village administrator Samvel Saghoyan said today at a discussion about the situation on the border.

“The situation escalated in early September. Arms of various calibers, including mortars, were used to open fire at the village. Luckily, there were no victims or large-scale destruction,” he noted.

A commission was set up to assess the amount of damage caused by the Azerbaijani side, Saghoyan said. The commission found that 17 homes were damaged, and residents of Chinari suffered material damage of 500,000 drams.

“We expect the Armenian government and the regional administration to pay compensation. In the past years, the damage was redressed in full,” the village administrator said.

He stressed that over that period the school and kindergarten of Chinari operated as usual.

Source: Panorama.am

Azerbaijan shows symptoms of stress behavior amid military exercises in Armenia

September 7, 2015 By administrator

As soon as the large-scale ‘Shant-2015’ strategic command and staff exercises came to a successful end in Armenia, Azerbaijan also urgently started its own military drills. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a statement that war games are underway to check the fighting efficiency and combat readiness of all kinds of troops in the Azerbaijani army. Under the command of Azerbaijani defense minister Zakir Hasanov, the drills are being held by a scenario approved by Ilham Aliyev. The drills will last until September 13.

It is noteworthy that by official information, 65,000 troops, i.e. over half of the Azerbaijani armed forces are participating in the drills.
The question is: Who protects the borders if the majority of troops are involved in war games? Another remarkable fact is that Azerbaijan managed to involve only 6,000 servicemen of the reserve forces in the urgent military exercises.

President Ilham Aliyev, meanwhile, visited Ship Repair and Building Center of Azerbaijan’s State Border Service to take a look at a ship under construction, watched a film about patrol ships, and gave instructions.

Source: Panorama.am

Political scientist on reason of Azerbaijani troops’ increased activity on the border

September 7, 2015 By administrator

Fire opened by Azerbaijani troops on Armenian border villages, and systematic violations of the ceasefire are due to the policy conducted by Azerbaijani and the desire of official Baku to maintain its influence more or less in the region, political scientist Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan told Panorama.am.

In particular, he explained Azerbaijani troops’s increased activity in recent days by the joint Turkish-Azerbaijani military drills currently underway in Azerbaijan.

“I am sure the tension is conditioned by Turkish-Azerbaijani drills and the presence of the Turkish army in the territory of Azerbaijan. In the present situation when Ilham Aliyev does not assist Turkey with the fight against the Kurds, he has to show his own problems by playing with the country’s security,” Melik-Shahnazaryan noted.

In his words, through this policy Azerbaijan is trying to demonstrate its own importance in the region in order to solve both domestic and external problems. “Attempts are made so that superpowers could hold negotiations with Azerbaijan to try to persuade it. In fact, it is blackmail, and it should be noted that in the past few years this method has worked,” Melik-Shahnazaryan said.

As regards Azerbaijan’s policy aimed at marinating the tension, the political scientist said: “Azerbaijan lacks potential for taking new steps. That country fails to understand that this could lead to serious consequences. Nevertheless, it is evident from Azerbaijani media reports that society in Azerbaijan is seriously concerned over the situation on the border and does not share the tactics of the authorities in Baku”.

Referring to the Shant-2015 (Lightning -2015) command and staff exercises launched in Armenia, H. Melik-Shahnazaryan considered the drills an ‘extra stimulus’ to deter Azerbaijan.

Source: Panorama.am

Armenian armed forces retaliate, cause losses to enemy – Artsrun Hovhannisyan

July 25, 2015 By administrator

Spokesman for Armenia’s Ministry of Defense Artsrun Hovhannisyan, in a Facebook message, reports that the Armenian side had to retaliate against the Azerbaijani armed forces, causing losses to them.

“On July 24 evening, from 7:00pm, the enemy resumed intense ceasefire violations, particularly on the border of Artsakh and of the Tavush region. Shooting continued throughout the night. Both arms of different calibers and 60mm and 82mm mortars were used. In all, more than 160 ceasefire violations were recorded. The Artsakh military units retaliated when necessary and the enemy suffered losses. The Armenian side did not suffer any losses. The situation is relatively calm on the border,” Mr Hovhannisyan wrote.

Azerbaijan has been disseminating disinformation on the situation on the border for several days.

Mr Hovhannisyan is urging the people not to succumb to such provocations and trust only the official information by the Armenian side.