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Armenia ready to help demine Syria: Russian military official

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Armenia and Serbia are ready to enter an international coalition for demining Syrian territory, the head of the Russian General Staff’s Office for the Development of UAVs, Maj. Gen. Alexander Novikov, said Friday, August 25, according to Sputnik.

He said that the Russian Defense Ministry was working on establishing the coalition.

“Relevant requests were sent to the representatives of defense departments of Iran, Egypt, Serbia, Armenia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. Armenia and Serbia are ready to send their units, the possibility of involving Chinese sappers are being worked through,” Novikov said at the Army-2017 international forum in Moscow Region.

During a Security Council meeting in April, Russia’s Deputy UN Ambassador Vladimir Safronkov called on the international community to create an international coalition for demining Syria, where a civil war had been raging for nearly six years.

Related links:

Sputnik. Armenia, Serbia Ready to Join Coalition for Demining Syria

Germany raises Mosul aid by 100 million euros

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Germany has said it will provide an additional 100 million euros in aid to help rebuild the Iraqi city of Mosul after it was recaptured from Islamist extremists. Much of the city is in ruins after months of fighting.

The German government says it will massively step up its financial aid to the northern Iraqi city of Mosul after its liberation from so-called “Islamic State” (IS) militants, who held the city for three years.

“Now that Mosul has been liberated, we will quickly expand our programs. This year alone we will invest an additional 100 million euros ($117 million) in stabilization and reconstruction,” Development Minister Gerd Müller told newspapers of the Funke media group published on Tuesday.

“We will save lives, ensure school education and create jobs,” Müller said, adding that the focus would be on children, reestablishing the water and electricity supply, building housing, and medical care.

The report said that Germany had up to now invested some 50 million euros in stabilizing areas around Mosul where citizens who have fled the city are being housed, and in reconstructing regions that have been freed from the rule of IS.

Most want to return’

Müller said that German support had already enabled more than 60,000 children in Mosul to go to school again and provided 150,000 people with access to vital drinking water. Most people who had fled from IS have remained in the region and want to return to the city, according to Müller, who has visited a refugee camp in the area.

“It is important that we do not leave people on their own,” he said. He said that IS had caused inconceivable suffering to the people of Mosul, with torture, rape and destruction being the order of

The liberation of Mosul from IS control was officially declared by the Iraqi government in mid-July after a months-long campaign involving the Iraqi army, allied militia, the Kurdistan Regional Government and aerial support from a US-led coalition.

Read more: German jihadi schoolgirl could face jail in Iraq

More than a million people have fled from Mosul and the surrounding area since the government campaign began. Several districts in the city have now been reduced to rubble, and security forces still face the task of removing mines and explosives left by the IS militants.

EU seeks to assist in Armenia’s economic development – Piotr Switalski

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eu-helping-armeniaThe European Union has initiated the EU for Business Week meetings in Armenia in an effort to promote economic growth in the country.
At a news conference on Monday, Head of the EU Delegation to Armenia, Ambassador Piotr Switalski said they seek to make the country a center of EU initiatives.
“For the European Union, this week is one of the most important weeks in our annual activities. The European Union puts in the center of activities support to economic growth in the neighborhood countries. We believe that economic resilience is something which is the most important thing for us, for the European Union, and also for our partners, for countries like Armenia. Therefore, we pay particular attention to supporting economic development, to offering the best possibilities for cooperation, both regionally and also with the European Union,” he said.
The ambassador added that they are planning special events devoted to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the East and West annual partner conference, and the official launch of the project SMEDA (Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authorities). On the 26th and 27th of October, there will be the high-level conference on sustainable development in Eastern Partnership countries, Mr Switalski said.
He expressed his gratitude to the Armenian Government for assisting the EU Delegation in conducting the Business Week. “We, as the European Union, stand ready to support the Armenian Government in its efforts to implement reforms, to conduct successful transformations [to promote] a more efficient, more productive economy in  this country,” he said, noting that SME’s account for 13% of employment and GDP in Armenia (as opposed to the 60%-70% in the European Union).
Ambassador Świtalski noted that more foreign investors could facilitate economic growth in the country. In this respect, he said, a new framework agreement between

Armenia and the European Union (EU) would pave way to more investments.
Mr Świtalski said he is sure Armenia is on the right way to cooperation in SME development.

Tigranuhi Martirosyan

Botched Security: ‘Turkish Passports’ Will Help Terrorists Go to Europe

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Turkish Terrorist visa free EuThe visa-free travel regime may help potential terrorists to enter Europe via Turkey, according to Sergey Goncharov, president of the Association of veterans of the anti-terrorist unit Alpha.

The Russian newspaper Izvestia quoted Sergey Goncharov, president of the Association of Veterans of Anti-Terror Units Alpha, as warning against the EU’s visa-free travel regime with Turkey which he said may help potential terrorists to gain access to Europe through Turkish territory.

His remarks came as the European Commission offered the Turks visa-free Schengen zone travel as part of an EU-Ankara deal which obliges Turkey to contain the flow of refugees to Europe in exchange for accelerating the country’s EU application process.

According to Goncharov, “the visa-free regime will inevitably create problems for the EU given the amount of young unemployed people with jihadist ideas who have gathered in Turkey.”

“As for the European intelligence agencies, they are unable to manage the large flow of people moving across the border, something that was confirmed by the terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels [earlier this year],” he said.

Goncharov was echoed by Middle East expert Vladimir Avatkov who did not rule out that Ankara continuing to exert pressure on the EU to force Brussels to make concessions on the EU-Turkey migrant deal.

He recalled that Turkey had earlier used the Syrian refugees to pile pressure on the EU, with local special services reportedly providing them from other Arab countries with fake Syrian passports. This has led to a situation where both economic migrants as well as those fleeing the horrors of war are attempting to gain entry to Europe, according to Avatkov.

“Now, getting rid of unwanted persons will be even easier – it’s enough to give them citizenship. All illegal immigrants returning from Europe will either become grateful supporters of [Turkish President] Erdogan or they will again go to the EU but this time on Turkish passports. As a result, Europe’s problems will be further exacerbated,” he said.

Meanwhile, a European Commission report has warned that scrapping visa requirements for Turkey as part of the migration deal might raise the possibility of terrorist attacks in the European Union.

The UK newspaper The Telegraph quoted an extract from the report as saying that the proposed visa liberalization for Turkish travelers to the Schengen area could potentially impact the risk of terrorism in the EU as it would lift travel restrictions on terrorists which have Turkish citizenship.

In mid-March, the European Union and Ankara agreed on a deal under which Turkey pledged to take back all undocumented migrants who arrive in the European Union through its territory and exchange them for legal Syrian refugees currently residing in Turkey, on a one-for-one basis.

In return, the 28-member bloc pledged to accelerate Turkey’s EU accession bid and grant Turkish citizens visa-free travel within the Schengen area.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/world/20160518/1039802106/turkey-terrorists-security-europe.html#ixzz490SpqPmV

Christian Armenian #Aleppo plea to president for help; say they’re being exterminated again by #Turkish Terrorist

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Screen Shot 2016-04-25 at 3.45.14 PMChristian Armenian plea to president for help; say they’re being exterminated again by Terrorist

Please Help donate Karabakh need your help tiny Christian Armenian country attacked by Turkish Azerbaijan

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Help KarabakhSTEPANAKERT—The government of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic issued an appeal to all Armenians who have contacted the authorities to offer assistance as Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh intensified.

For more information please visit  http://wp.me/p2E179-cLa

The Government, headed by Prime Minister Arayik Harutunyan, has formed a task force to address these requests, as well as to ensure that the Defense Army’s needs are met. The task force includes:

With US Dollars
Recipient – The Ministry of Finance of Nagorno Karabakh Republic
Аcquiring bank- “Artsakhbank” CJSC
Address- Kievyan St.3, Yerevan, Armenia
SWIFT` ARTSAM22
The account number- 22300110153200

An 82 year old Cyclist on his 17th Mission to Help Armenia

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unnamed-1Vatche Soghomonian, the 82 year old athlete and lifetime member of Homenetmen Scouts, will be riding his bike again for another worthy cause to aid the people of Armenia.

It was 17 years ago, in 1999, when Vatche rode his bike from capital to capital – Stepanakert to Yerevan to help fund the grape nursery that the Armenian Technology Group, Inc. (ATG) was establishing in Karabakh. Since then, every year he devotes two weeks in the summer to travel to Armenia with his own resources to paddle throughout the countryside to raise funds in support of numerous worthy endeavors.

This year, Vatche has committed himself to help deliver the latest innovation, the Mobile Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (MVDL), to Armenia. “This is the most valuable and noble mission that I am undertaking,” said Vatche. In 2004, Vatche, along with his cycling friends, helped deliver four milk collecting-refrigeration tanks for ATG project in Armenia. He will ride his bike on April 2, 2016.
“I was a lab technician during my college years. Now that I see this portable lab, I can only envision how beneficial it will be to the veterinarians and especially to the dairy farmers.” It will enable the vets to do on site testing and diagnosis of food producing animals to ensure that they are free of diseases. After all, the consumers, the children and people in Armenia, will benefit from it.

“My goal is to raise enough funds to supply one portable lab this year,” said Vatche.

This innovation is the latest projects of the ATG. Dr. James Reynolds, President of ATG, devoted three years of his time to testing and assembling the lab and delivered the first prototype to Armenia in 2015. ATG’s objective is to supply 10 MVDLs, one for each region of Armenia and Karabakh. Each of the units costs $15,000, which includes training and follow-up support to develop baseline diagnostic information and clinical data. The MVDL could be rapidly deployed and activated in any rural location. Our mission is simply help increase farm production and income.

More than 25 years ago, ATG started with a simple belief that we can make a difference in the lives of your brothers and sisters in Armenia and Artsakh no matter what the challenges are. We have the collective power to do so.

As Vatche likes to say with a smile on his face, “I will be doing all the hard work, and I will truly appreciate your financial support for this worthy cause.”

U.S. Reps. call for more aid to Armenia, Karabakh

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208683A bipartisan group of over 30 U.S. Representatives joined Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Robert Dold (R-IL) in urging leaders of the House Subcommittee dealing with foreign aid to strengthen the U.S. – Armenia relationship through expanded assistance to Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

“Friends of Armenia from across America thank Representatives Dold and Pallone – Co-Chairs of the Congressional Armenian Caucus – for their leadership in advancing a broad array of foreign aid priorities that advance U.S. interests, promote regional peace and stability, and strengthen the enduring bonds that have long connected the American and Armenian peoples,” said Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the ANCA. “We are particularly encouraged by prospects for progress in supporting the Lady Cox Rehabilitation Center in Stepanakert, in suspending U.S. military aid to Baku, and in securing U.S. funding to help Armenia provide transition support to individuals from Syria who have found safe haven in Armenia.”

The letter, addressed to House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations Chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) and Ranking Democrat Nita Lowey (D-NY) advocated the following foreign aid priorities:

— Allocate at least $5 million in Fiscal Year 2017 for humanitarian and development programs in Nagorno Karabakh.

— Allocate not less than $40 million in overall Fiscal Year 2017 economic aid (including Economic Support Fund, International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement, and Global Health Programs), is appropriated for Armenia.

— Suspend U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan until its government ceases cross-border attacks, ends its threat of renewed war, and agrees to a settlement of regional conflicts through peaceful means.

— Close gaps in the distribution of need-based aid to at-risk minority populations in Syria, including Armenians; and, ensure the allocation to Armenia of a proportional level of U.S. and international aid supporting the efforts to regional states to resettle those fleeing from Syria.

— Target at least 10 percent of aid to Georgia to fund sustainable job-creation programs in the Samtskhe-Javakheti.

— Narrow the President’s waiver authority of Section 907 restrictions on U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan

— Reinstate the Nagorno Karabakh Republic into the OSCE Minsk Group peace process as a full negotiating partner.

In February, President Obama issued his FY 2017 budget proposal, calling for a $22.412 million allocation in economic aid to Armenia – a 22% increase over last year’s request, but far less than the $40 million previously advanced by the ANCA and Congressional Armenian Caucus. The FY2017 request for Azerbaijan is $10,936,000. The White House’s proposal did maintain parity between Armenia and Azerbaijan in terms of appropriated military aid, with International Military Education and Training (IMET) assistance set at $600,000 and Foreign Military Finance (FMF) at $1,000,000. President Obama also requested $1,700,000 for International Narcotics Control and Law enforcement for Armenia.

Flemish region to help Karabakh out of blockade: parliament speaker

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208067Flemish and Nagorno Karabakh schools will cooperate in the framework of a new project, in a move to help Artsakh out of blockade, Belgian MP, Flemish parliament speaker Karl Vanlouwe said Monday, March 14.

Currently in Armenia, the Flemish delegation, headed by Vanlouwe, will visit the Nagorno Karabakh Republic afterwards. At a meeting with Armenia’s deputy parliament speaker Eduard Sharmazanov, Vanlouwe stressed the importance of protection of human rights and, in this context, Karabakh people’s right to self-determination.

Sharmazanov, in turn, thanked the Flemish delegation for their willingness to visit the Karabakh, reiterating Armenia’s resolve to achieve an exclusively peaceful settlement to the conflict.

Also, the Armenian official expressed gratitude to the Flemish delegate for his participation in the events commemorating the Armenian Genocide centennial and the global forum Against the Crime of Genocide. Besides, Sharmazanov hailed the Belgian parliament’s reaffirmation of its stance on the first genocide of the 20th century. Sharmazanov described Turkey’s policy of denial as a threat to the region and humanity in general, citing the developments in the Middle East.

Iraq Army Will Liberate Mosul From Daesh Without any ‘Help’ From Turkey

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1032359360Iraq would not allow any state to send troops to liberate Mosul from the Daesh militants, according to spokesman of Iraq’s joint military alignment Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasul.

DUBAI (Sputnik) — Baghdad does not need the support of Turkish troops in the liberation of the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, captured by the Islamic State (ISIL, or Daesh in Arabic) militant group, spokesman of Iraq’s joint military alignment Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasul said Sunday.

On December 4, Turkey deployed about 150 troops and 25 tanks to northern Iraq reportedly to help national forces to reclaim Mosul, which was captured by Daesh in June 2014.

“The government has announced that it does not want participation of any troops, except the Iraqi ones, in the liberation of Mosul. Participation of the Turkish or any other troops is not the issue, especially taking into consideration the multitude of the Iraqi troops, including the military, tribes and popular militia,” Rasul told Al-Hayat newspaper.

He added that Iraq would not allow any other state to send troops to liberate Mosul.

Earlier in December, Baghdad demanded to withdraw Turkish troops from its territory, while Ankara justified the deployment with the necessity to provide security to Turkish soldiers deployed earlier to train local militias, fighting IS jihadists.

Daesh terrorist organization is prohibited in many countries, including Russia.