2021 November 24

Daily news wrap-up

Nov/24/2021: $500M metro revamp: bridge, station(s) __ €60M new reservoir __ €25M new buses __ $50 flights __ Parliament bites back after Russian journalist confront Speaker; Donbas __ Pegasus spyware __ North-South's Gyumri road __ Education & science events __ COVID & trade stats __ Lira :((
by ar_david_hh

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This is your 12-minute Wednesday briefing in 3035 words.

section of North-South is complete, faster travel to Gyumri, but ... there is one huge problem

Public TV: you can reach Gyumri faster now that the North-South's Transh-3 Talin-Horom section is done. One side of the road has a new infrastructure.

The road used to travel through Talin village. This is a new "bypass" road with a junction. 50km has been asphalted. Transh-2 construction begins next year. //

Ordered by Armenians, built by Chinese with British standards, QC by Italians, to be used by tourists.

Construction workers complain that local residents regularly steal the STOP signs to use them as a lid for tonir. The most Armenianest problem.

https://youtu.be/5Dxk-YpQkyQ https://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/296962/

Parliament dismisses "media manipulations" and releases transcripts after a Russian Pravda journalist's attempts to defend Russia's perceived inaction during the 2020 war

Russian Komsomolskaya Pravda journalist defended the country's stance during the war. He confronted Parliament Speaker Alen Simonian during a meeting two weeks ago. The Parliament says the journalist's words were taken out of context by Armenian media, and that the journalist himself was manipulative.

The Parliament released the transcript of the conversation.

Reporter: you gave away Karabakh.

Simonyan: do you really think we handed over Karabakh?

Reporter: I think it was done to push Armenia's foreign policy direction away from Russia.

Simonyan: such "giveaway" ideas exist in Armenia, too. Part of the public believes that Russia gave Karabakh to Azerbaijan.

Reporter: do you agree with them?

Simonyan: what makes you think anyone gave away Karabakh? You are offending soldiers who fought and died in the war, and their families. Our people fought hard.

If we wanted to give away the lands, there were several options, including Lavrov's plan [ooooooooooof???]. So, to claim that someone has handed over something means not knowing what is happening in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh, and even Russia.

Reporter: in early October [2020] I was at Donbas volunteer meeting. Several thousand people were ready to help you but the leader told them not to travel because several of them had gone there and returned. Armenia adopted a law against foreign mercenaries which would apply to these volunteers. You knowingly prevented them from helping you. //

I'll have to stop here to give you the context. Putin's ex-aide Vladislav Surkov decided to form a new nationalist party consisting of Donbas war veterans, so he gathered a meeting with vets around October 31 of 2020. Among several topics, Donbas rebels had also discussed the possibility of sending aid to Armenia, but it appeared more like a show of support against Turkey rather than an actual plan to send substantial help to Armenia. This was at the time when it was clear that the war was lost.

The rebel leader [Alexander Borodai?] delivered a Margarita Simonyan-style rant about Western Nikol [not his actual words] and said they can't send help.

Armenians were scrambling to find anti-drone weapons. Many Russian nationalist circles truly wanted Armenia to succeed; some of them openly wished that Russia would provide more anti-drone help. There was a general consensus that Armenia would soon lose unless it could "close" the air.

At one point Armenia began downing Bayraktars. There were rumors that Russia provided new weapons. But after the war, one of the officials/generals [don't remember] claimed that foggy weather in the final days of the war forced Bayraktars to temporarily fly at a lower altitude, which made them vulnerable to Armenian missiles.

As for the Armenian law against mercenaries, the government ratified an international convention amid Azerbaijan's and Turkey's use of terrorist mercenaries. It went into effect on October 29. It's unclear if this law would even apply to Donbas veterans if they joined as volunteers (like many Armenians did). It is also unclear how the mercenary law would apply to Donbas veterans if, according to the journalist, the original meeting was held in early October, while the law went into effect in late October.

https://t.me/wargonzo/3884 https://t.me/wargonzo/3891

Simonyan responds: it wasn't a problem with the number of soldiers. We had a "Bayraktar" problem. We couldn't down them with the weapons in our possession.

We withdrew 25,000 soldiers from areas that went under Azeri control. Do you believe we lost because of human shortage? Do you believe this war was won by humans? //

Parliament released the footage to show that the conversation was respectful "despite the way it was presented by the reporter". Parliament urged the Russian reporter not to become a tool "for those who want to damage Armenia-Russia relations".

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069023.html https://youtu.be/PZDhGVty-bw

MOD's peacekeeping brigade commander visited Kosovo

... to meet the Armenian contingent. KFOR thanked Armenian troops for "dedicated and excellent service".

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069024.html

Russian peacekeepers cleared 2 hectares from landmines near Shushi

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068972.html

Russia and Europe discussed the Artsakh conflict and the tripartite meeting planned for November 26 in Sochi

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069046.html

Russia's deputy premier separately met Aliyev and Pashinyan to discuss regional communication unblocking

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068991.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069028.html

MFA Mirzoyan spoke with foreign officials about the conflict

Mirzoyan and his Iranian counterpart discussed the Gulf-to-Sea trade route and Armenia's territorial integrity.

Mirzoyan discussed CSTO cooperation with his Tajik counterpart.

Mirzoyan discussed the Karabakh conflict and communication unblocking with Lavrov.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069054.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069038.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069035.html

MFA Mirzoyan hosted the newly appointed German ambassador Richter

They discussed cooperation in the areas of energy, education, and culture. Post-war events were discussed.

Richter: Germany will continue to aid Armenia in the ongoing democratic reforms, especially when it comes to strengthening civil society institutes. //

https://factor.am/445523.html

Justice Minister met the French ambassador

The French ambassador emphasized the importance to continue the ongoing reforms in the police, ACC institute, Patrol Service, and the proposed creation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which will oversee various law enforcement activities.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069047.html

US Chamber of Commerce and "American Councils" organized a Workforce Development and Improvement event

Education Ministry official: this was the final event of the round table series. We value such events because we're currently in the active phase of education reforms. We need to take into account the labor market demand.

We want your [Chamber] opinion because your union includes many structures. We want to hear reform opinions from businesses and civil society groups.

The Economy, Labor, and Education Ministries are working synchronously to address the discrepancy between the workforce and the labor market. //

Students met Chamber and business representatives to discuss career opportunities in Armenia.

https://factor.am/445552.html

EURAXESS - Researchers in Motion

Armenia recently joined the next phase of the "Horizon Europe" program. A meeting was held in Matenadaran today.

Education Ministry: this is an important membership because it allows Armenian scientists, universities, and small/medium businesses to participate in European grant programs, as a full member. The program can be a great tool for integrating Armenia's scientific-research system with Europe's.

Armenian scientists had received €4M in grants during the previous "Horizon 2020" phase. Armenia already has 44 participants in the EU research programs. //

Full: https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/226034

Armenia-Belarus trade stats

The volume has increased by 2.5x in the past five years. Armenia is in Belarus's top-50 list.

2016: $32M

2020: $82M

Armenia exported alcohol, copper, and scrap.

Belarus exported dairy products, furniture, medicine, and automated processing computers.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069040.html

Yerevan State College of Culture and Arts will be named after Charles Aznavour

Aznavour Foundation signed a cooperation memorandum with Education Ministry today. There will be a program to develop the college and retrain the staff.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069022.html

Armavir governor Hambardzum Matevosyan becomes a deputy Premier

He will replace Suren Papikyan, who is the MOD now.

https://factor.am/445588.html

Russian MetroGiproTrans wins auction to develop Yerevan metro's new station / $500M investments / new bridge, station, revamp of old infrastructure

Yerevan held an auction to choose the company, after 1.5 years of preparations. The winner is the Russian transport company MetroGiproTrans. Mayor Marukyan met director Valeri Abramson to discuss the Ajapnyak metro development project.

MetroGiproTrans offered the government a $500M program to revamp the entire metro infrastructure and to design new routes. Russian Agency for Export Credit and Investment is ready to offer favorable terms.

Mayor Marutyan: the project will be financed through the federal government within six months to begin the works. //

According to the initial design, a new bridge would be built over the Hrazdan River and would serve as a train station.

The parties came to the conclusion that it's best for the train station to be underground, instead of on the bridge. It's more convenient and allows for infrastructure expansion. They decided that the bridge should have a second level for cars and pedestrians.

An agreement was signed to launch the work. The bridge and station design can be seen in the video: https://youtu.be/57im-1cG6H0

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068977.html

auction is launched to choose a company that will build the €60M Kaps reservoir

It's a half-built reservoir 22km from Gyumri, on the banks of Akhuryan. They will build a 25 million m^3 reservoir with plans to expand it to 60 million m^3. Co-financed by the Armenian government and German KfW bank.

Several Chinese firms have submitted a bid. Their representatives were accompanied to the planned construction site on Monday to discuss the terrain and nearby infrastructure.

Akhuryan's hydrological observatories will be revamped and new ones will be built.

Dozens of thousands of hectares of land are expected to receive regular irrigation. Some of it will be through a gravity-based system, which will net 1.3 million KWh in savings each year.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068995.html

€25M to buy more buses for Yerevan transport revamp

Today the government signed an agreement with the European EBRD bank to finance the project. €20M in loans, €5M in eco-grants.

This is for additional 100 buses that will join the recently-purchased 311 units. They will be 12-meter disability-friendly buses.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068996.html https://armeniasputnik.am/20211124/erevani-nor-transportajin-cancy-khamalrvi-evs-100-avtobusov-35683386.html

anti-corruption: Artsakh authorities bust a ֏116M hydro-fraud

Investigators report: in 2017-2019, the HEK Shin CJSC forged documents to conceal financial information from authorities, leading to ֏116M in unpaid taxes. One individual is charged as a suspect. The court has authorized the arrest in absentia. //

https://factor.am/445511.html

at least eight Armenians were wiretapped with the Israeli-made NSO Pegasus smartphone spyware

Apple began sending notifications to users around the world. Some of the targets were ranking European officials.

At least eight Armenians received the notifications. One of them is the former National Security Services chief Arthur Vanetsyan. It is unknown who used the spyware against him, but he believes it was the Armenian government. The Armenian government has not [yet] been listed as a known Pegasus customer, however.

Ruling party MP Vahagn Aleksanyan claimed that ruling party members were also targeted (no screenshots). He mocked former spook Vanetsyan for "taking it too hard", while reminding Vanetsyan about his involvement in other spying incidents. The ruling MP also claimed that Apple's message about "state sponsored attack" doesn't mean it's the government of that state that ordered the spying, and that the use of the spyware by any third party would trigger the same "state sponsored attack" message.

Davit Sanasaryan, Pashinyan's former ally and the former head of State Control Service, claimed that he also received a letter from Apple, but did not share screenshots.

It was revealed months earlier that leaders of 14 countries were wiretapped presumably by foreign agents. One of them was France's Macron.

A July report by OCCRP alleges that the Azerbaijani government spied on hundreds of activists and civil society figures.

https://factor.am/445511.html https://www.rferl.org/a/azerbaijan-pegasus-spying-nso/31365076.html https://factor.am/445585.html https://www.npr.org/2021/08/25/1027397544/nso-group-pegasus-spyware-mobile-israel https://factor.am/445746.html https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/226033

today in history

1920: ARF and Turkey launch peace negotiations in Gyumri

1940: Yerevan zoo opens

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068961.html

COVID stats

8.3k tested. 0.9k infected. 0.9k healed. 23 deaths.

Artsakh declares a strict quarantine for a month

Everyone is expected to follow safety rules.

Visits to nursing homes will be restricted if COVID is discovered or safety rules are ignored.

Schools will be allowed to operate only if they follow safety rules. They will switch to distance learning until next week.

No more than 100 people in open-air gatherings, or 40 indoors, or 20 in children's events.

Must carry ID outside the home.

If possible, employers should allow remote work for high-risk workers.

Public workers must submit a negative PCR test every two weeks unless they have received at least one vaccine shot. (other exceptions apply)

EU donates modern screening device to St. Gregory Illuminator hospital to help treat COVID patients

WHO and UN representatives joined the Healthcare Minister for a hospital trip. (they are fine, they just LOOK)

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1068979.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069037.html https://factor.am/445680.html

new Armenian low-coster "FlyOne Armenia" launches $40-$50 flights

... to cities in Russia, Iran, France, Israel, Georgia, and Turkey. It includes barebones when it comes to luggage and services.

The first flight is scheduled for December 15 to Moscow's Vnukovo.

https://flyone.eu/am/Destinations/YEREVAN-MOSCOW?from=Yerevan+(EVN)&to=Moscow+(VKO) https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069005.html

are the airport taxi fees too damn high?

Travelers complain about airport taxi overcharging. ֏4,000 to Charbakh, which would normally be ֏1,300, said one traveler. A driver responded with a LOL, "the fuel alone would cost ֏2,000".

You can either use a private taxi or white Yandex Taxi cars. Yandex charges ֏3,000 for the first 15km, then ֏100 per km, said a driver.

In 2011, Zvartnots announced an auction and chose two winners: Taxi Tour and Aero. Only one company operates today, but there are many individual drivers with their cars.

Yandex cars park near the pickup area and pay a fee, while individual cars park further away and do not pay.

The government recently approved a law to require type-A license for airport pickups, and some visual and functional requirements to improve service and safety. It will also regulate taxi advertisement, which includes drivers approaching travelers and offering a ride.

The new law allows individual drivers who currently operate "illegally" in the airport area to get an "A" license and compete legally.

https://youtu.be/vpOjqQDStlM https://factor.am/445485.html

Thessaloniki municipality removes Azeri ads from public buses after pressure from the Armenian community

The ads claimed Shushi is Azerbaijan.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069020.html

Best Korean citizen faces execution for smuggling USB with "Squid Game"

The student returned from a China trip and was searched by border agents.

One other person is sentenced to life for buying the copy. Six others are sent to a gulag for watching it.

https://factor.am/445586.html

Apple temporarily halts sales in Turkey after currency crash

>The lira dropped 15 percent after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan staunchly defended recent rate cuts

https://www.macrumors.com/2021/11/23/apple-store-turkey-sales-halted/

article by Natasha Turak about Turkey's lira devaluation:

Turkish lira crashes to an ‘insane’ historic low after President Erdogan sparks sell-off. Inflation is now near 20%. Basic goods for 85 million Turks have soared in price.

Lira crashed to a record low of 13.44 to the dollar. Last week the "psychological" barrier was 11.

>“Insane where the lira is, but it’s a reflection of the insane monetary policy settings Turkey is currently operating under,” Tim Ash, senior emerging markets strategist at Bluebay Asset Management

Erdogan labeled the moves as part of an “economic war of independence”.

Lira was 5.6 at this time in 2019, and that was already "news" after a drop from 2017's 3.5.

Why and How?

>Turkey’s currency has been in a downward slide since early 2018, thanks to a combination of geopolitical tensions with the West, current account deficits, shrinking currency reserves, and mounting debt — but most importantly, a refusal to raise interest rates to cool inflation.

Central bank's former governor Tumen sharply criticized Erdogan's moves: "We need to abandon this irrational experiment, which has no chance of success, and return to quality policies [...]."

More in the article: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/23/turkish-lira-plummets-to-historic-low-after-erdogan-sparks-selloff-.html

economist Desmond Lachman explains Turkey's currency devaluation:

Erdogan has adopted a rare controlled macroeconomic policy. He might help us better understand how macroeconomics works in general, and how currency crises play out in particular. This will likely be at the cost of the Turkish economy and his presidency.

One good thing that might come out of lira's crisis is the lesson on how not to conduct exchange rate policy, especially now that the US Federal Reserve seems to be about to tighten its policies. Any such tightening could create a challenging global liquidity environment for economically vulnerable emerging markets.

For years, Turkey enjoyed currency stability despite the mismanagement of its economy. The markets, however, eventually lost patience due to policy mistakes, and the currency plunged 30% since the start of 2021, making it the world’s worst-performing currency. There has been a 10% plunge in the past two weeks alone.

It is not a good idea for the government to undermine central bank independence and cut interest rates amid rising inflation.

If ever a president has waved a red flag at the markets, it has to be Erdogan. Over the past two years, he has fired at least three central bank governors and any board member who questioned his interest rate ideas.

Worse yet, he pressured the central bank to cut interest rates from 19% to 15% in the past few months, even as inflation accelerated to 20% and while the currency crisis is deepening.

>Another lesson to draw from Turkey’s sorry currency experience is that it is not a good idea for any country to burn through its international reserves in support of the currency while its macroeconomic policies are anything but supportive of currency stability

Continue reading the article...

https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/opinion/2021-11-23-desmond-lachman-turkish-currency-crisis-raises-red-flags-for-sa-government-and-reserve-bank/

Erdogan's ruling party MP urged the Turkish public to eat less amid the economic crisis

There is always that one guy. This time it's AKP's Zülfü Demirbağ.

>We can buy two tomatoes instead of buying two kilograms. It's not that healthy to eat forced crops during winter anyways

>If we were eating two kilograms of meat a month under normal circumstances, we can now eat half a kilo

>we may experience economic hardships, but the homeland comes first. We have nowhere else to go

The MP was slammed by the main opposition CHP party. The latter will try to "do everything possible" to force the govt to hold snap elections.

Residents took to the streets of Istanbul to protest the economic hardships and the government's handling. "Tayyip istifa!"

https://www.duvarenglish.com/turkish-ruling-party-mp-suggests-eating-less-in-the-face-of-economic-crisis-news-59623 https://factor.am/445295.html https://factor.am/445332.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1069053.html

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/r1f6yj/nov242021_500m_metro_revamp_bridge_stations_60m/