Week to Week / ՇԱԲԱԹԷ ՇԱԲԱԹ

Villages in Lachin in Limbo

The residents of Aghavno, Berdzor, and Nerkin Sus were informed, on the 5th of August, by the authorities to evacuate their village by a little before the end of the month.

Who informed them? The Minister of Territorial Admniistration & Infrastructure of Artsakh, Hayk Khanumyan. The evacuation order has solely been given by him and not by Azerbaijan or the Russian peacekeepers.

Where are Aghavno, Berdzor, and Nerkin Sus? They’re villages on the Lachin/Berdzor corridor, the only passageway connecting Armenia and Artsakh in the post-war reality. The corridor is controlled by Russian peacekeepers.

Azerbaijan claims to have captured areas close to the corridor earlier this month, making it the riskiest incident since the 2020 war.

The 2020 ceasefire agreement includes a new route that connects Artsakh to Armenia. Upon completion, the ceasefire agreement indicates that the older route would be handed over to Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan claims to have completed 30km of the new road from their side, while the first news of the route from the Armenian side was confirmed only 10 days ago. The Minister of Infrastructure of Armenia, Gnel Sanosyan, confirmed to journalists that the route has begun construction and will be completed by spring 2023.

According to various journalists on the ground in Aghavno and Berdzor, residents are against the handover. The handover would also include electric grids, internet and power cables, gas pipelines, and other crucial infrastructure for the livelihood of the residents of all of Artsakh.

The Newest Azerbaijani Incursions Against Karabakh

Image caption: The newest escalations by Azerbaijan against Armenians have been fatal, resulting in two deaths.

On the 3rd of August, military escalation was observed around the northwestern line of contact, resulting in two deaths and 19 injuries on the Armenian side. Azerbaijan claims that the Armenian side killed an Azerbaijani soldier and started the dispute, which prompted them to launch “Operation Retribution” using UAVs.

Artsakh President Arayik Harutyunyan called for partial military mobilization.

A day later, RA PM Pashinyan, during a cabinet session, called on Azerbaijan to abide by the ceasefire agreement and cease military escalations immediately. He additionally called Russian peacekeepers a “key factor” for the safety of the Armenians in Karabakh, but doubted their ability and willingness to stop Azerbaijani incursions since the 2020 war. He also questioned the purpose and presence of the Russian peacekeepers.

A day later, Russian MFA Sergey Lavorv responded to the statements made by PM Pashinyan, saying that Russia has not received any specific proposals from the Armenian government in regards to Russian peacekeepers’ involvement with certain operations.

The Armenian MFA responded to Lavrov’s response, saying that the Armenian side has voiced its concerns in written form in February 2021, indicating that the Russian peacekeepers’ effectiveness should be under top Russian leadership.

Notable News:

Image caption: Inventor of the MRI, Dr. Raymond Damadian, passed away last week.

• The 11th Pan Homenetmen Games concluded on the 30th of July.

• Military deferment to be granted to professional champion boxers and UFC fighters.

• Armenia to establish local satellite construction and to launch a second satellite within the upcoming two years.

• RA Minister of Economy says 8,000 job opportunities were created during the month of June, totaling to 681,050, up by 37,000 from June 2021.

• The first Armenian church to open in Spain.

• UN General Assembly President visits Tsitsernakaberd, the Armenian Genocide Memorial, tweets about it, then deletes the tweet after a statement was released by the Turkish MFA condemning it.

• Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports, Arthur Martirosyan, says eight tuition-free universities will open by 2030, supporting programs that are in-demand in the job market, with internationally-recognized standards.

• South Korea and Armenia interested in developing economic ties.

• New direct routes from Larnaca, Cyprus, to be launched by Cyprus Airways.

• $412 million USD were transferred from abroad to Armenia in May 2022 alone, a monthly record. Of the total $1.272 billion USD transferred from abroad from January to May, $679 million USD has been from Russia.

• Dr. Raymond Damadian, the inventor of the MRI machine, has passed away.

Multimedia Corner

Image caption: Armenia considered to have one of the best hiking trails in the world, according to CNN Travel.

• Read: Where are the best hiking destinations around the world according to CNN Travel? Well, one of them is Armenia! Read it here.

• Listen: Vanadzor-born and raised Rosa Linn’s song “Snap” has taken music charts by storm after becoming a viral hit on TikTok and Instagram. Listen to the acoustic version of this soothing song here. It’s worth noting that the song found fame because of Eurovision, where Rosa Linn represented Armenia at the contest in 2022. It now receives more daily streams than all the Eurovision entries combined.

• Learn: What are the most known Armenian-owned businesses in California? Learn all about them here.

• Watch: “We Are Our Dances” is an initiative by the Cafesjian Center for the Arts and Karin Folk Group, where an open invitation invites everyone to learn traditional Armenian dances on the premises of the Cascade. Watch their July edition here!