2021 September 29

Daily news wrap-up

News - Sep/29/2021: Armenia's energy market will liberalize __ Major anti-corruption in army __ Gen. Babayan back in court __ Iran fed up with Aliyev __ Covid kills singer __ Artsakh's human & infrastructure losses __ Tuition subsidy __ Geopolitics today __ Tourism & immigration stats __ more...
by ar_david_hh

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Your 11-minute Wednesday report in 2780 words.

COVID stats

6402 tested. 896 infected. 461 healed. 22 deaths. 12977 active.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064293.html

Hayko, one of the most famous Armenian singers, has died from COVID

Showman and singer Hayko spent a week in ICU. He was unvaccinated. He was one of the OGs of Armenian showbiz. Today he passed away.

His colleagues and Eurovision music festival organizers paid tribute on social media. Hayko represented Armenia in Eurovision in 2007.

Pashinyan sent condolences: "He was one of the bright representatives of modern Armenian music and earned love and respect through his activities."

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064323.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064304.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064325.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064335.html https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/221934

Being a doctor is not a 9-5 job. This rookie nurse might convince you to get a booster shot:

https://i.imgur.com/cDYOE2O.jpg

Sweden and Norway are returning to normal life thanks to high vaccination rates

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064351.html

music industry had other losses, too

Famed Armenian-Russian singer Nikolai Arutyunov has passed away. His ancestors escaped the genocide and settled in Moscow. Arutyunov began his career with Stas Namin (Mikoyan)'s Tsveti group. He performed blues, rock, hard rock, punk, etc.

Jonik Sargsyan, an honored musician (trumpet) and professor at the Yerevan Komitas Conservatory, has also died.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064294.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064350.html

Artsakh's ambassador to Armenia presented the number of IDPs and war casualties:

742 Artsakh soldiers and 80 civilians were killed. 5 civilians missing.

A fifth of all hydropower plants remain under Artsakh control. 75% of arable lands went under enemy control.

$82M in damages to telecommunication networks.

2,000 historical-cultural monuments are in occupied territories.

7 towns and 85 villages went under enemy control, resulting in 42k IDPs. 15k of them are currently in the capital Stepanakert and 5k in other regions of Artsakh.

As part of efforts to house IDPs, they have already signed 3k lease agreements, another 2k were given shelter in hotels. 300 apartments will be built by the end of this year in Stepanakert alone.

101k Artsakh residents have used various aid packages from the government. It includes one-time payments, monthly payments, subsidies for those who lost property, utility subsidies, children's aid, [2021 September 7|etc.]

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064299.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064300.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064318.html

tuition subsidies were issued to 7,000 students who participated in the war or had a family member who did

The government decree was signed on December 10 to reimburse the semester's tuition. The program continues. Some war participants are yet to be discharged from conscription.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064305.html

TRAILER: Armenian movie to be nominated for Oscars under Best Foreign Language Film

Armenian National Film Academy held a secret-ballot vote to choose the film for nomination. The majority voted for Nora Martirosyan's "Երբ որ քամին հանդարտվի" (Should the Wind Drop). It's an Armenian-Belgian-French drama.

Plot: An auditor is charged with appraising if Stepanakert Airport in the small, breakaway Republic of Artsakh in the Caucasus meets international aviation standards. He finds himself connecting with a young local boy to help the isolated territory open up to the outside world.

https://youtu.be/hVfZg17eKKA https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064295.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Should_the_Wind_Drop

internantional politics

Georgian Premier visited Baku and expressed hope that his country can become a peace platform for AM-AZ. He will visit Yerevan next.

Putin met Erdogan in Russia to discuss the conflicts in Syria, Artsakh, Libya, and Afghanistan. They exchanged nice words and said the joint Turkish-Russian monitoring in South Caucasus is a "serious guarantee of stability".

MFA Mirzoyan met the Red Cross representative and discussed the topic of POWs and humanitarian aid. "Artificial obstacles should not be created for the international organizations in Artsakh, and the issue should not be politicized."

Turkish president's spokesman said the region will see peace when Yerevan and Baku sign a peace agreement. He said there is a ceasefire agreement but no peace agreement yet. "The peace agreement will also benefit the Armenian economy. A peace treaty will bring peace to the whole region. This is the most convenient approach." He said the conflict "should have ended" and "it is over".

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064292.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064307.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064319.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064326.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064359.html https://factor.am/422801.html

PACE resolution was largely pro-Armenian but it could have been better

[2021 September 27|Context here.]] Largely pro-Armenian, but it contained "both sides" language when it came to certain topics, such as failure to resolve the conflict peacefully (it doesn't explicitly say Azerbaijan started it), the use of hired terrorists by Azerbaijan is mentioned but so is the repatriation of ethnic Armenian diasporans who volunteered to defend Artsakh (could result in "both sides" false equivalence). Azerbaijan also lobbied to say the territories were "returned to Azerbaijan", while it should have ideally said "went under Azeri control". The document also said both sides used hateful language towards each other.

Overall, experts say it's pro-Armenian and can be used against Azerbaijan.

https://factor.am/422584.html

Russian Lukoil will purchase part of BP's shares in a geological oil research project in Azerbaijan

Lukoil will purchase 25% of the SWAP project. If approved: SOCAR 50%, Lukoil 25%, BP 25%.

Lukoil president: joining the project with BP and SOCAR is in line with the national interests of Russia and Azerbaijan.

BP: welcome aboard, partner.

https://factor.am/422793.html

Iran keeps flexing on Azerbaijan, and it's getting personal

Context: after Azerbaijan took two Iranian truck drivers hostage to pressure Iran to stop cargo deliveries to Artsakh, Iran decided to hold large-scale military exercises near Azerbaijani borders.

Saddam complained "why now, why near our borders", to which Iran responded: The Iranian military exercises are a matter of sovereignty, meant for stability and peace for the whole region. Iran will not tolerate any display of Zionism [Azeri-owned Israeli drones and stuff] at its borders and will take any action necessary for its national security. //

Today the Iranian embassy in Armenia made a Facebook post in which they cited an article from Iranian Jaam-e Jam outlet, which is basically a response to Aliyev:

1) Unlike Baku and Ankara, Armenia does not have vain dreams towards Iranian lands and does not display such behavior.

2) Unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia is not Israel's ally.

3) Unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia has not established a network of mercenary-separatists in Atropatene.

4) Armenia does not intend to push Iran out of trade routes.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064359.html https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/pxeoi2/news_sep282021_russia_is_against_negotiating/

Iranian ambassador was invited to Yerevan State University

They discussed plans to launch programs for Armenian and Iranian students and scientists.

Ambassador Abbas: the Armenia-Iran ties and cooperation, established throughout the past several decades, is the best model in the region. Studying your [host] biography, I noticed that you are a theologian by profession, so I want to state that although we are countries of different religions, we have found the formula for dialogue and coexistence. This model can serve as an example for other Muslim and Christian nations. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064372.html

the next U.S. ambassador to Turkey has changed his stance, and now publicly recognizes the Armenian genocide

Jeff Flake is a nominee for ambassador. He was asked by Sen. Bob Menendez if he recognizes the genocide. Flake gave a positive answer. Prior to this, he had voted against the genocide bill in Congress on four occasions.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064368.html https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/us-news/2021/09/28/nominee-for-us-ambassador-to-turkey-recognises-armenian-genocide-warns-of-more-sanctions/

VIDEO: video of the Independence Day drone show in Yerevan has gained millions of views on TikTok

https://www.tiktok.com/@geoscan.show?

the army held exercises

Artillery and motorized rifle units went brr.

https://factor.am/422829.html https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/221941

ex-Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan's house was raided by NSS (might be going to jail soon)

It could be related to arms purchase contracts. More here, in case you missed the news about a 2011 missile purchase and subsequent corruption. TLDR: MOD purchased missiles and learned they were faulty. Instead of returning them as scheduled, a MOD official re-sold the bad missiles to the army. The missiles failed during the war.

HD Seyran Ohanyan was the MOD in 2011, but he is not charged with corruption in this story. Ohanyan commented on the case: we accepted only 30% of that missile batch. We deemed 70% faulty. The alleged crime was committed in 2018 or 2019. //

Parl. Defense Committee chief QP Andranik: I won't rule out that this missile case is directly related to Patron Davo's case. We did not have other big suppliers other than him, as far as I'm aware. The end result is our army will become healthier. [Context: Patron Davo was an arms supplier who was charged with embezzlement on January 19 of this year. He allegedly delivered lots of wrong missiles that couldn't be used during the war.] //

Prosecutors recently announced charges against hundreds of army soldiers and officials, accused of various crimes and corruption.

As of writing this, it's unclear whether ex-MOD Davit Tonoyan is a suspect or the NSS is looking for material evidence for other cases. The media sources report that Tonoyan is, in fact, a suspect and will soon be arrested. Tonoyan was the MOD during the war.

https://factor.am/422894.html https://youtu.be/Kl_yGiI1uUU https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/l0tunj/jan192021_news_prominent_arms_supplier_mr_davo/ https://168.am/2021/09/29/1585564.html

Tags: #ArmyCleanup #PatronDavo #Tonoyan

infrastructure construction and repairs

Large-scale asphalting in Norabats community as part of a federal-local co-subsidy program. The main roads are done. Moving on to secondary ones. They will have efficient LED lights and a water removal network.

Norabats will also have a new large sports venue to promote a healthy lifestyle for youth.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064341.html

how is tourism doing?

The summer was active with 313k visitors. The January-August period saw 488k visitors, still below the pre-pandemic levels.

Most travelers were from Russia, Iran, Georgia. Ukraine, India, and elsewhere.

Overall, Armenia saw significantly more airport traffic this year, indicating a pandemic recovery.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064286.html

how many foreigners were granted the right to stay in Armenia in 1H 2021?

3,600 people from 30 countries.

India 993

Russia 722

Iran 471

Ukraine 150

Levanon 141

Georgia 143

Iraq 120

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On what basis:

Education 1295 (including 882 Indian and 120 Iranian)

Reuniting with family 499

Job 491 (including 52 Indian and 114 Iranian)

Business 68

Being ethnic Armenian 43

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064317.html

Reddit's favorite general Samvel Babayan is back in court for his Serj-era felony trial relating to alleged laundering and weapon smuggling

Artsakh's ex-army chief Samvel Babayan was arrested in 2017 and charged with smuggling Igla 9M39 antiaircraft missile complex, and money laundering. He was accused of planning to use the Igla to shoot down Serj's aircraft.

At the time, Babayan was part of his fellow military man Seyran Ohanyan's election bloc. There were tensions between Serj and Ohanyan-Babayan bloc. Some interpreted the arrest as politically motivated.

Babayan was subsequently sentenced to 6 years. His co-defendants got lesser terms.

Two months after the 2018 revolution, the Cassations Court overturned the lower court's verdict, releasing Babayan from detention. Overturning meant the case had to return to the lower court again. That's where we are right now. The court held a session today.

Witness Hrachya Mayilyan: defendant Armen Poghosyan learned that I had a business in Georgia and had "connections", and asked me if I could obtain an Igla for him. Poghosyan told me that he would be given a piece of land if he delivered Igla to the authorities. I obtained an Igla for him. He came to examine it but I was later told it was dysfunctional. I was supposed to receive $4,000. //

Babayan said he was asked to evaluate whether Igla was dysfunctional or not.

Babayan to witness: we met four days before your arrest. I gave you my professional opinion that Igla was dysfunctional. They arrested you on 21st and urged you to hand over Igla, and that they would not pursue heavy charges against you. //

Prosecutors complained that the witness changed his testimony during today's trial. Babayan made a counter-argument, saying the witness did not write the original testimony, but the judge ordered the original testimony to be brought up.

Babayan: they are accusing me of urging the group to import Igla from Georgia. The public should know the truth: prosecutors had committed machinations. //

The next trial is on November 2. More witnesses will appear.

https://factor.am/422628.html https://eurasianet.org/armenia-arrest-missile-smuggling-allegations-amid-election-campaign https://anca.org/former-karabakh-commander-samvel-babayan-freed-by-high-court/ https://hetq.am/en/article/90228 https://anca.org/former-karabakh-commander-samvel-babayan-freed-by-high-court/ https://youtu.be/hSDXf1RkdDM https://youtu.be/-vhIaEx1EmM https://factor.am/422822.html

Tags: #Igla #Babayan

potato harvest begins in Gegharkunik province

The province has 7,720 hectares of potatoes this year (about the same as last year). About a quarter has been collected already.

The average yield per hectare was 18 tons, while in areas where they utilized ցանքաշրջանառություն (crop rotation?) it was 35 tons.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064289.html

firefighters were able to extinguish the fire that broke out in remote areas of Arevik Park in southern Armenia

They deployed patrols to ensure it doesn't start again.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064376.html

new firefighter-rescuer stations open in Gyumri and Akhuryan with the help of the U.S.

It was a cooperation between the U.S. military and Armenia's Emergency Ministry. The stations have modern standards and equipment.

U.S. ambassador: the emergency response time will be twice faster now. It will undoubtedly help save lives. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064361.html

Veolia Water has asked the public utility regulator to raise water fees

Public regulator chief: Veolia applied in August to raise the 1m^3 price from ֏180 to ֏223 (46¢). It's a regular process as part of the 15-year contract for Veolia to manage Armenia's water network.

After winning the 15-year contract, the company presented its 15-year base prices. Looking at the base prices, I can say that by 2022 it was supposed to be ֏214.

They recently asked us to implement the hike. We're currently reviewing it with Water Committee and the government. We are considering the possibility of making changes to the lease agreement.

We have a scenario in which the fees will gradually increase until 2025-26, before lowering again. We're currently negotiating with Veolia to have a more stable pricing policy.

The reason for the proposed hike is inflation, electricity price hike, etc. We have 80 days to decide. If approved, the new prices will activate on January 1.

Q: in 2018, Premier Pashinyan revealed that an agreement was reached not to raise water prices until 2024.

The price was kept the same since 2018 at the expense of reduced payments from the lease.

We don't necessarily have to raise it for consumers. We can choose not to raise the prices until 2035 by not sending the lease revenues to the budget. If the budget has the means, and we reject the ֏6.8B lease payments, we could even lower the prices for consumers.

These are all options that need to be discussed based on what the budget can afford. I personally do not support the idea of subsidizing from the budget. We will hold discussions to prevent price hikes for low-income residents. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064311.html

Tags: #Veolia #WaterFee

Armenia is liberalizing the energy market

Giving consumers more options when it comes to choosing their electricity supplier is one of the aims of an $8 million USAID program. The goal is to help Armenia to diversify its energy supply, liberalize the energy marketplace, foster energy independence, be closer to EU standards, create a more favorable environment for new investments.

Public utility regulator: the liberalization of the electricity market is scheduled for February 1, 2022. The process began in 2019. There will be amendments to the law. Some reforms have already been implemented. With the help of USAID, an e-platform will be created for energy trade. //

You can purchase electricity online through the special platform. The reforms will take 5 years to finish.

What will change?

Manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers will remain the same, but several new suppliers will emerge between them and consumers. Consumers who like their current partnership with Electric Networks of Armenia will not be affected by the change.

>Wholesale traders will also be introduced to the new market. Their job will be to create conditions in trade relations with both local and neighboring countries allowing the parties to make mutually beneficial transactions.

Clean energy will be prioritized. Work is being done with Georgia to develop interstate trade.

https://hetq.am/en/article/129137 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064333.html

Tags: #EnergyMarket #ElectricityMarket

VIDEO: demolition of illegally built structures continues in Yerevan

https://youtu.be/UISSUcOS5EU?t=2

chess news

The women's team has defeated Spain 3.5-0.5 in the 4th round during the world championship. The team is second in the group. The last game will be against the group leader Russia.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064277.html

Levon Aronian defeated the Dutch opponent during "Champions Chess Tour Finals". He is in third place, trailing behind the usual suspects Magnus Carlsen and Wesley So. Aronian's next opponent is Azerbaijan's Radjabov.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064278.html

post office expands the types of government services you can receive without the need to visit multiple agencies

HayPost reports: from now on, you can receive a wide range of public services in 850 post office locations.

Documents relating to marital status, international apostille for birth/marriage/divorce/death documents, business registration, documents about your criminal record in Armenia that you can present in other countries, and more coming soon. //

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1064285.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/py33dl/news_sep292021_armenias_energy_market_will/