2021 December 27

Daily news wrap-up

Dec/27/2021: Pashinyan wants Artsakh IDPs to return to occupied territories & live under Armenian jurisdiction, and for Artsakh authorities to join negotiation table; Discusses AM-AZ population ratio & proposed Karabakh referendum flaws; Reveals more Serj-era negotiation details; Kocharyan chimes in
by ar_david_hh

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This is your 18-minute Monday report in 4627 words.

public discussions after Pashinyan's interview in which he presented details from 2011-2016 Karabakh negotiation process

In case you missed the Q&A: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/rnvx18/dec242021_pashinyan_reveals_details_from_karabakh/

Interview TLDR: in January 2016 the OSCE pressured Armenia to give up on the idea of interim status for Artsakh, but president Serj rejected it and "did not show enough diplomatic flexibility" to de-escalate. Azerbaijan attacked in April. OSCE made a similar offer in July, but Serj rejected it again.

Then came the "catastrophic" and much-worse document in August, in which OSCE decided that not only will Artsakh not get an interim status, but the UN Security Council would handle the issue.

The post-August 2016 document is highly unfavorable for Armenia because the UN Security Council had already officially recognized Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, and letting them handle the process would mean one thing. Pashinyan said that he made unsuccessful attempts to change these unfavorable terms after taking office in 2018, and Azerbaijan decided to attack in 2020. //

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Artsakh president & parliament respond: touching upon the recent statements by Premier Pashinyan and concerns about it, I would like to highlight some main provisions:

Artsakh has a right to self-determination.

Artsakh authorities' opinion must be taken into account before expressing a position.

Artsakh's international recognition is the goal.

Artsakh won't accept any status within Azerbaijan.

Artsakh won't accept the return of ethnic Azeris because of the Armenophobic rhetoric and policies by the Azeri government.

Azerbaijan should return Hadrut and Shushi regions.

Russian peacekeepers should stay indefinitely. //

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In recent months, the Pashinyan administration has repeatedly spoken in favor of Artsakh's right to self-determination 1, 2, 3. One of Pashinyan's main concerns was relating to the return of ethnic Azeris to Nagorno-Karabakh (not just adjacent territories).

Pashinyan said the negotiation papers on the table didn't describe the referendum process clearly enough, and would allow Azeris to eventually "hijack" part or all of Nagorno-Karabakh in the future.

Pashinyan responds to the response to his December 24 interview: some of the responses are puzzling. I did not create or support these post-2016 negotiation processes.

I responded to a statement made by Serj Sargsyan and denied his assertion that his negotiation legacy would have guaranteed Nagorno-Karabakh to remain Armenian.

I denied his assertion because the right of Azeris living in Nagorno-Karabakh to participate in the referendum status was part of the negotiations, and since according to the negotiation documents the referendum could take place 100 years later, it is predictable what demographic picture Nagorno-Karabakh would have by then.

As for Nagorno-Karabakh's status before the referendum (interim status), I said that OSCE presented one offer in January, and two after the April war. And unlike in the 2011 Kazan document, Nagorno-Karabakh would not have an interim status. The last document [in August] contains a provision stating that the decision on the legal and practical mechanisms for the organization of life in Nagorno-Karabakh will be made by the UN Security Council.

This is what I considered to be a catastrophe in the negotiation process because it is obvious that the UN Security Council would make all the decisions following the logic of its own resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, where Nagorno-Karabakh was recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

Taking into account these and several other important negotiation issues, I have insisted that under the negotiation content and realities [since 2016], Artsakh had lost both theoretical and practical opportunities not to be part of Azerbaijan. As a Premier, I did not accept this, and that's one of the reasons why the 2020 war started.

People saying that I should not negotiate on behalf of Nagorno-Karabakh have been criticizing me since 2018 for saying that I did not have a mandate to negotiate on behalf of Nagorno-Karabakh. [He wanted Karabakh to join the negation table.]

I understand that many respectable people are now protesting against the negotiation content that is the cause and consequence of the 2016 war.

At that time they either did not know or did not have the right to complain. I also complain against that content and I did everything possible to neutralize that content. I am sorry I can not hide the truth. //

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During his December 24 interview, Pashinyan recalled an episode with General Arkadiy Ter-Tadevosyan (Komandos). The latter believed that the April 2016 war was not a "real" war but a "test" ahead of a bigger one.

Artsakh's former Parliament president Ashot Ghulyan disagreed with that theory, saying it wouldn't make sense to start a war 4 years after a "test". "The situation is sad, gentlemen," he added in his critique.

Pashinyan's office staff responded to Ghulyan saying he is only now learning about the extent of Armenia's problems after 2016.

Staff: The situation was "sad" in April 2018 when Serj Sargsyan revealed that the negotiation process was suspended because of Azerbaijan's unrealistic and unacceptable expectations. It is unfortunate that Ashot Ghulyan was not "sad" after Serj's statements. //

Ruling party MP Gevorg Papoyan: Dirty lies are being circulated claiming that Premier Pashinyan "has given up" on Artsakh. He made two statements to address every issue regarding the negotiation process. What he revealed were the facts from the prior negotiations, and not his "desires". Either people didn't know these facts even though they should have, or they know it very well. //

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Robert Kocharyan said it's possible to fix the negotiation process but it's necessary to replace the government first. Kocharyan "knows politicians who can handle the negotiations process". Kocharyan said there aren't enough mass protests to remove the government. He believes hundreds of thousands should take to the streets.

"We are ready, and we are preparing that mass uprising," said Kocharyan. He admitted that the opposition's rating is too low but hopes it will recover, while the government's rating will fall.

Kocharyan supports transitioning to a semi-presidential system. He complained that the current Constitution [drafted under Serj, written by his friend Hrayr Tovmasyan] made the Premier more powerful than the Presidents in the past.

Robert Kocharyan about the "Meghri Corridor" that he negotiated with Heydar Aliyev

Read this to learn about the leaked details of the Meghri Corridor document. According to it, Armenia's Meghri region and Karabakh's 7 adjacent regions would be given to Azerbaijan. Armenians living in Meghri would be relocated to other parts of Armenia. The remaining parts of Karabakh would join Armenia. Kocharyan said he rejected the version of the document about removing the Armenian population and only wanted to give a road corridor for Azerbaijan.

Reporter: what's the difference between your Meghri Corridor and the process today?

Kocharyan: Karabakh would join Armenia via a corridor that would have the same status as Karabakh. The corridor would be wide enough against GRAD missiles. That would be better than what we have today.

Reporter: why were you unable to reach a deal?

Kocharyan: at the last minute the president of Azerbaijan refused to sign it. He was unable to convince even his family members. We could have had the Key West solution today, which would be much better for us. Azerbaijan would gain a transport corridor.

Pashinyan: my December 24 interview has led to the exposure of a series of lies about the Karabakh negotiation process (gives more details about Serj's decisions and his similar attempts to return Artsakh to negotiation table, addresses the claims about referendum ethnic Armenian-Azeri population proportions):

1) Madrid Principles enshrine the ethnic Azeri population's right to participate in the Nagorno-Karabakh referendum. Armenia accepted this in 2007. Every Armenian politician was aware of this. No efforts were made to prevent that.

2) Do you remember when opinion was raised after November 9 that we had an opportunity to stop the war in exchange for returning the ethnic Azeris and their families - who were once Shushi residents - to Shushi?

My critics say it was a chance to keep Shushi Armenian, to which I responded by saying how could Shushi remain Armenian if 90% of the population became Azeri. They then twisted my words, claiming that I said "Shushi isn't Armenian".

So why are the same people offended today when I bring up the details from the negotiation process that took place before me? In the Autumn of 2020, they supported the return of Azeris to Shushi, but now they claim to be against it? Did they support their return in 2007, and are against it today?

3) Today they repeat that only the Artsakh government can represent Artsakh on the negotiation table. Who is arguing against that? This was one of my main points since 2018.

The question is, why did the same people remain silent when Kocharyan removed Artsakh from the negotiation table in 1998? Don't have the illusion that they want to return Artsakh to the negotiation table today. Their goal is to remove Armenia from the negotiation table.

It's an opportunity for me to reveal a secret. Serj Sargsyan and HHK accuse me of damaging the negotiation process by asking OSCE co-chairs to return Artsakh to the negotiation table. Serj Sargsyan himself also asked the Co-chairs to return Artsakh to the table, in 2016. Is that how he worsened our position in negotiations?

By the way, at that time Serj Sargsyan tried to substantiate that during the future referendum, ethnic Azeris would have to participate in the same proportion as they lived in Nagorno-Karabakh in 1988. Why did he try to advocate for this? Because he, too, understood that according to the negotiation documents on the table, the referendum could take place 100 years later with ethnic Azeris already being a majority.

But was he able to come to an agreement? Of course not, and that is the reason why he raised the alarm in April 2018 about the negotiation process being suspended and an impending war.

4) The former regime's propaganda injected a false notion that the phrases "Nagano-Karabakh's final status" and "self-determination" in the negotiation documents would certainly mean independence for Nagorno-Karabakh. This is of course false, because an autonomous province could also be interpreted as a "status".

Did I inherit negotiation documents that clarify what a "status" is? Of course not. The Armenian politicians always took pride in the provision stating that the question asked during the referendum would not be limited in any way, and could mean any status.

Any status can mean independence, but can also mean a status within de jure Azerbaijan.

If we add to this the fact that the content of the negotiations does not specify where the referendum would be held, doesn't specify who would form the referendum question, it becomes apparent that Karabakh could be forced to become an Azeri province.

The negotiation content also doesn't clarify what would happen if the residents voted "no" during the referendum. Would they receive no status?

You may wonder why I'm talking about the provisions concerning the Azeri population in Nagorno-Karabakh. The goal is to protect the right of the Artsakh IDPs to live in Artsakh under Armenian jurisdiction. This is a matter of negotiation tactics and a matter of further discussion. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071719.html https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=477292897086331&id=100044168752604 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071724.html https://en.armradio.am/2021/12/26/pm-nikol-pashinyan-says-reactions-to-his-interview-are-at-least-puzzling/ https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228259 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071727.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071762.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071771.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071778.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071814.html https://factor.am/458783.html https://factor.am/458528.html

Pashinyan held a meeting with non-parliamentary opposition parties to discuss various topics

Republic's Aram Sargsyan, Azatakan's Samvel Babayan, and others were present. They discussed the recent Brussels meeting.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071708.html

singer-turned-protester-turned-politician-turned-singer-again "Mher Armenia" wants to meet Pashinyan; Disagrees with claims about "secret documents"

The opposition recently circulated reports about Pashinyan's alleged plans to sign "disastrous" documents during a meeting on November 9. We later learned that a meeting was held on November 26 in Sochi, during which the leaders of three states reiterated their earlier agreements over lifting communication blockade, starting border delimitation, etc.

Singer Mher Mesropyan (Mher Armenia) had launched a protest march from Shurnukh to Yerevan ahead of the reported November 9 tripartite meeting. He wanted Pashinyan to resign and not sign any "painful documents". Mher held a hunger strike in front of Matenadaran but apparently not many paid attention, so he stopped.

Mher: The hunger strike didn't lead to health problems but I lost a couple of kilos [thanks, Nikol]. I ended it because I'm waiting for Pashinyan's response to meet and talk. I haven't received a response yet. I don't know if he has seen my request. I have many questions to ask.

Reporter: Do you still believe that Pashinyan plans to sign a "secret document"?

Mher: I never said it would be secret documents. I just have questions. But by judging from the events, no secret documents are being signed today.

Reporter: Did you reach your goal with the protest march?

Mher: Somewhat, yes. Pashinyan's original trip was canceled, after which he became more open and shared more information about the plans. We did have some influence.

Reporter: Aren't you afraid that people will forget your name after you become a politician? [He launched a party "Nation's Voice".]

Mher: No. We'll be more active after the holidays. Besides that, I'm still a musician.

Reporter: Any plans for 2022?

Mher: A few solo concerts. I'm recording new music. Maybe some duets with Russian pop artists.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228098 https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/223841

update: artist reveals details from a recent meeting between Armenian and Azeri civil society members

[2021 December 24|Context in Friday post.] Kremlin official organized an AM-AZ meeting.

Puppet Theater director Ruben Babayan: with me were Medical University rector Muradyan, Russian Drama Theater director Mkhitaryan, head of Union of Cinematographers Khachatryan. We met [Azeri arts and university representatives].

[Kremlin official] Shvydkoy had organized similar meetings in 2004, 2006, and 2008. There was no specific agenda. Shvydkoy said it wouldn't be political. We introduced ourselves to each other. The conversation was around humanitarian topics, to build trust, to return POWs. Azeris spoke about minefields.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071695.html

George Bush Sr. recognized Armenia's independence 30 years ago on December 25

Bush read a statement about the collapse of the USSR and announced that the US recognizes independent Armenia.

One month earlier, 14 November 1991: today Armenian president LTP will be able to make his case for the US recognition of his republic's independence directly to President Bush. The Armenian leader, who easily won the election last month, is in the first days of a visit to the US and Canada, the first overseas tour since Armenians overwhelmingly approved a declaration of independence.

Russian President Boris Yeltsin and Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev recently initiated a tentative process of talks to end the [Karabakh] conflict, which has claimed hundreds of lives over the past three years. But fighting continues, and Azerbaijan recently triggered a severe economic crisis by cutting the pipeline carrying gas from Russia to Armenia. Armenian concerns about isolation may have been heightened by Turkey's decision last week to recognize the independence of Azerbaijan. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071703.html https://www.csmonitor.com/1991/1114/14051.html

update: Armenia and Turkey will meet to discuss the normalization of relations

Armenia suggested the meeting be held in Moscow. No specific date yet. Turkish MFA hopes the special envoy will form a roadmap that will be the basis for the normalization process.

as Armenia and Turkey prepare to launch regular direct flights to/from Turkey, former Civil Aviation chief recalls similar efforts after Armenia's independence

Shahen Petrosian: after my appointment in 1993 I asked aviation experts why AM-TR air borders were closed, and they said that after Armenian independence, the experts did not take the necessary steps.

Armenia was already under land blockade but the "air blockade" was illegal. Turkey had justified it by saying they recognized the USSR border but USSR no longer existed.

Armenia contacted European ECAC. The latter pressured Turkey to open the air border. My Turkish colleague called me one day and said "Efendi Petrosian, the documents are ready. When can you come?".

Our envoy took a small Yak-40 from Yerevan to Ankara. We signed to open the air in 1995. As a result, Armenia began earning $1M a year from aeronavigation. It connected Europe to the Middle East.

Armenia Airways launched the Yerevan-Istanbul flights the same year. There were also plans to hold Gyumri-Kars flights but that wasn't implemented.

In 2000-2016, Turkish Pegasus conducted Istanbul-Yerevan flights. They suspended it in 2016 after the Karabakh conflict got worse. I support the ongoing efforts to resume the flights. We need to build relations with our neighbors. //

Turkish Pegasus wants to launch regular flights to Armenia again, while Armenian/Moldovan FlyOne wants to fly to Turkey.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071746.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071745.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071734.html

what is behind Turkish lira's recent strengthening against the dollar?

Lira is back to mid-November levels. It's still bad, but not bad bad.

Ahval: Turkey may have spent billions of its foreign currency reserves to help defend the lira, according to a top economist and the opposition CHP party.

Uğur Gürses, a former central bank official, said the sales totaled $7 billion on Dec. 20 and Dec. 21. The central bank sold the reserves via a backdoor method involving state-run banks.

The central bank’s reserves, net of liabilities such as foreign currency swaps, stood at minus $50 billion, the CHP said.

Turkey’s net foreign assets fell by $5.9 billion in the first two days of this week to minus $5.1 billion, the Financial Times reported. A London-based analyst had calculated an intervention of $6.9bn on the same two days.

https://ahvalnews.com/turkish-lira/turkey-may-have-spent-135-billion-its-foreign-currency-reserves-month

Turkish polls: Do you approve of the way Erdogan is handling his job as president?

39% yes, 57% no.

94% of his party voters support him, but only 68% of his main MHP ally voters do.

https://twitter.com/metropoll/status/1474701999459508224

Armenian sappers have cleared 70,000 m^2 area near Damascus, Syria

The goal is to clear 2,000,000 m^2. The efforts began on December 6 as part of the United Nations demining program. Two Armenian teams have cleared an area size of 10 soccer fields.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228249

Iran will close its borders with all neighboring countries for 15 days due to the Omicron virus

Armenia, Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, and Pakistan.

https://factor.am/458291.html

COVID stats

4.7k tested. 59 infected. 258 healed. 7 deaths.

CDC: here is what happens when you take the vaccine

3.8x less likely to get infected

7.5x less likely to be hospitalized

6.8x less likely to end up in ICU

CDC: third of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated

Or 41% if you count those who have taken at least one dose.

Mid-November: 12% fully

Mid-December: 32% fully

CDC: 1.5 million vaccinations caused only 6 cases of a severe allergic reaction

None of them had to be hospitalized because there is a medication that's used instantly and can solve the problem within an hour.

Anaphylaxis can occur within 40 minutes of the vaccination. It can lead to low blood pressure of difficulty with breathing. It is life-threatening if first aid is not administered. That's why patients are asked to stay with doctors immediately after getting the shot. All clinics have the drug that neutralizes anaphylaxis, said CDC.

91% of healthcare workers have been vaccinated

7.4k doctors and nurses have been infected since March 2020. Hospitalization among healthcare workers is very rare. Those who do need medical help are usually unvaccinated.

More stats: https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071687.html https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-12-24/armenian-american-vaccine-hesitancy https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071692.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071681.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071735.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071732.html

the church sacks a priest over his political activities & foul language

Priest Ghazar Petrosyan decided to join the Christian Armenia political party (as a spiritual consultant) against the "satanic" government. The church gave him time to stop, as it is apparently against the church's rules. The priest didn't stop, so he was "fired" after "political activities that included inappropriate posture and vocabulary."

You may have seen Priest Ghazar Petrosyan before. In 2019 he joined a radical group "Kamq" to protest a transgender activist's speech in Parliament.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071819.html https://www.azatutyun.am/a/31592690.html https://www.civilnet.am/news/190493/տեր-ղազար-քահանա-պետրոսյանը-հայտարարվել-է-փիլոնազուրկ/

anti-corruption: State Property Management officials are charged with aiding ֏790M embezzlement in 2016-2020

Prosecutors investigated records and believe that several officials had aided private firms to embezzle state property through purchases below the market value.

20 separate criminal cases are launched. The investigation continues.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071776.html

Hrachya Sargsyan is officially the new mayor of Yerevan

The city Council fired Hayk Marutyan after problems that reportedly began 1-2 years ago and got worse after Marutyan left the party after the war. His colleagues accused him of lack of cooperation, mishandling contracts, and inflating his role in reforms. Marutyan called his firing a political move.

Pashinyan congratulated new mayor Hrachya Sargsyan (no party) and wished him success. Pashinyan said the ongoing reform programs are partly based on his 2017 reform package, with which he ran for Yerevan mayor against Taron Margaryan. "During this period [2018-2021], the [federal] Government has provided significant and effective support to the Municipality of Yerevan, allocating about ֏50 billion drams through various financial instruments."

Pashinyan: we didn't invest that sum because the mayor of Yerevan was part of our team. If you pay attention to who won in the December municipal elections across Armenia, it's mostly the incumbent mayors.

That isn't a coincidence. Why do you think political analysts have been saying that "Pashinyan is working against himself"? Because since 2018 we've invested $350M in Armenia's settlements and boosted the rating of [non-QP] mayors. It's them who meet the locals and present the new projects.

Today citizens know two things: we don't rig federal and local elections, and we will invest in any settlement that presents a project to develop the settlement. We have and will stay true to this principle.

We must continue to develop the state institutes for sustainable development. We will continue to help Yerevan municipality to complete the reforms drafted in 2017 and 2018. //

Hrachya Sargsyan vowed to continue with transport, traffic, park, and road reforms. He said he is familiar with transport reforms because he led the efforts since 2018. "We will purchase 100 12-meter buses next year. The competition is already underway."

Hrachya's first deputy will be My Step faction secretary and Yerevan budget office chief Levon Hovhannisyan. "We need to manage the traffic properly. It isn't just about buying buses."

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071683.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071685.html https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228207 https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228204

>!հաստագլուխ news!<

Actor Hrant Tokhatyan's $3.5 million "Kanaz" culture house project is dead unless Yerevan Council intervenes.

In 2017 Yerevan Council gave a culture center to famous actor Hrant Tokhatyan's foundation free of charge for 10 years. At the time, some opposition figures called it a corrupt deal by the Serj administration to "buy Hrant Tokhatyan", a claim denied by Tokhatyan.

The building has to be renovated first. Some efforts were made in 2019.

Hrant in 2020: we realized how badly damaged the building was after launching the repairs. Additional roof problems arose recently. We can't wait for help from others. We're using our resources. $60,000 has been spent out of the planned $3.5 million that we will need. It'll be ready in 1.5 years.

We'll have two new big/small stages in Yerevan. There will be a school on the first floor.

We're negotiating with the Yerevan municipality to extend the 10-year lease but sadly no results have been achieved yet.

Hrant in 2021: we've suspended the repairs. If we find another building, we will immediately abandon this one. This has turned into one of the most difficult tasks in the whole world. There is no solution because we can not find a common language with the municipality.

10 years are not enough for a project and investments of this size. We need another $2 million and we need more time from the Council. We can't invest all this to then receive a notification to leave the facility within a month. //

The news comes amid complaints by some Council members that the building has been left unused for too long.

[Money would be better spent on hookers and poker. At least you'd have some return of investment.]

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228157 https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/180602 https://armtimes.com/hy/article/129622

11-month economic growth was 5.2%

Construction +6.9%

Industrial production +2.7%

Trade +7.9%

Services +7.3%

Electricity production -2%

Exports +19.4%

Imports 15.1%

Consumer price index +7.1% (+9.6% YoY)

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071751.html https://factor.am/458714.html

governnment will help the discharged conscripts to find work

Labor Ministry will launch a new skill and retraining program for ex-conscripts who need help.

Ministry: as for helping the disabled veterans, we approved a new program this year to help anyone who received a disability since the 1990s. It's for improving disability access in their workplace and certain salary tax waivers. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071763.html

more students will qualify for free university education in natural and tech sciences

The government decided to increase the number of state-subsidized slots by 100, for 2022-2024 years. It's specifically for բնագիտատեխնիկական professions.

They plan to make some changes to ensure that applicants have the necessary base knowledge before applying for university.

This year 34 university top-students will receive ֏12M from the Education Ministry.

More details: https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228310 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071779.html https://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/297618/

Education Ministry analyzed 2013-2020 records to understand education and job market trends

They found that university students in Armenia are a lot more likely to finish the process and get a bachelor's degree than the global average from Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

81% of Bachelor and 76% of Master students get their diplomas.

Education Ministry official: contrary to global trends, certain professions were in high demand in Armenia for many years. A large number of students were trained. One example is հաշվապահական հաշվառում, which has globally suffered due to replacement by technologies.

29% of applicants are in the fields of pedagogy, economics, governance, and jurisprudence. It's due to "low costs" associated with these fields. In comparison, fields that are more relevant in developed economies account for only 3.7% of bachelor graduates in Armenia. These are statisticians, information systems, information technologies, material science, and biology experts.

[Goes on to discuss how retraining organizations are ignoring the global trends.]

The professor-student ratio is 1/14, which is in line with international standards. //

More: https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071786.html

STATS: foreign nationals in Armenian universities

2019-2020: 6.4k foreigners (2.9k were diasporans)

2020-2021: 7.1k foreigners (3.5k were diasporans)

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071798.html

Russian online sales giant Wildberries met the government & Haypost to sign logistics memorandum

Pashinyan and the Wildberries online sales platform discussed investment programs on Monday. Haypost and Wildberries are cooperating. The latter plans to build new logistics centers in Armenia next year.

Annual sales of Armenian products have reached $8 million amid double-digit growth. Wildberries will cooperate with 60 Haypost offices next year. They signed a memorandum today to boost exports from Armenia. Haypost will have հանձնման կետ for Wildberry clients.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071787.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071769.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071760.html

efforts continue to build more slaughterhouses in provinces

Farmers have long complained about having to travel long and expensive distances to turn their cattle into a stake. Efforts are underway to build more.

Ani settlement has a new slaughterhouse that "meets food safety & storage standards".

It's a joint project by the government and Ֆրանս Ltd. The latter invested ֏150M to import equipment from Italy as part of a state subsidy program.

The construction of 3 other slaughterhouses is underway.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1071684.html

World Rapid 2021: Armenia's Samvel-Ter-Sahakyan ties with world champion Magnus Carlsen

He was playing with whites. He had earlier defeated the Polish player while playing with blacks. Men and women are playing.

https://youtu.be/FVz1j5m2iZk

VIDEO: Armenian figure skater does the first-ever two quadruple jumps in women's competition

>Young women are turning the quadruple jump into a key element of singles skating, pushing the technical side of their discipline forward at a pace that seemed unimaginable only three years ago.

Adelia Petrosyan, playing under the Russian flag, and did two of those jumps during the Russian championship on Saturday. She was close to finishing 3rd. The freestyle dance was under Ara Gevorgyan's "Artsakh" song.

https://youtu.be/sbrnwEuTtkk?t=64 https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228239 https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2019/09/19/alysa-liu-figure-skating-quad-revolution/ https://factor.am/458770.html

PHOTO: Kapan's Christmas Tree is ready

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/228229

end of report

The accused are innocent unless proven guilty in the court of law, even if they "appear" guilty.

News archive: http://www.armeniapedia.org/wiki/Daily_Anti-Corruption_Reports

Donations: soldiers' families, humanitarian aid, US tax-deductible donation.

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Link to original report and comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/rpwqzs/dec272021_pashinyan_wants_artsakh_idps_to_return/