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Putin visits Serbia for Belgrade liberation military parade

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183628Russian President Vladimir Putin has flown into Belgrade where he is to be guest of honour at a Serbian military parade loaded with symbolism, BBC News reported.

It marks 70 years since Soviet troops helped liberate the city from Nazi occupation and is the first to be held in nearly 30 years.

Serbia’s historic ties with Russia sit awkwardly with its EU ambitions, especially since the Ukraine crisis, BBC News said.

On the eve of his arrival, Putin accused the U.S. of “hostility”. In an interview with Serbian newspaper Politika, he accused America of trying to blackmail Russia with sanctions over Ukraine but warned that would be futile.

He is due to meet a number of foreign leaders at an Asia-Europe summit in the Italian city of Milan later on Thursday, Oct 16.

They include Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, amid pressure on Russia to implement a peace plan for eastern Ukraine.

One of the key issues that Putin is set to discuss with his Ukrainian counterpart is a possible deal for Ukraine to pay its gas debts in return for a resumption of Russian gas supplies.

British MPs visit Armenian Genocide Memorial

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February 18, 2014 | 14:33

194791YEREVAN. – Along the lines of their visit to Armenia, members from the British Group Inter-Parliamentary Union, led by Head of Group John Whittingdale, on Tuesday paid a visit to the Armenian Genocide Memorial in capital city Yerevan.

The British guests placed flowers to the Genocide Monument, and paid respects to the innocent victims of the genocide, informs the Armenian National Assembly press service.

The British Group Inter-Parliamentary Union members also met with director Hayk Demoyan of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute. Demoyan gave the guests information about the Armenian Genocide, and showed them documentaries and documents on this tragedy.

Subsequently, the British MPs shared their impressions with the members of the media.

“The 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide is drawing near, and we plan to mark it in Great Britain. It is very important that what occurred is never forgotten, and that’s why we are here,” Whittingdale specifically noted.

“The entire civilized world must unite to acknowledge the terrible crime that occurred in Western Armenia. [But] I am filled with pride to the fact that the Armenians have never been defeated,” UK House of Commons member Stephen Pound said, in particular, for his part.

On the issue of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Pound noted that he delivered a respective report in the House of Commons, earlier this month. In his view, the activities of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group are progressing at a slow pace, and the British government needs to do lot more on this matter. Stephen Pound also stated that the Nagorno-Karabakh issue must be raised at the UK parliament time and again.