2022 February 25

Daily news wrap-up

Daily News - Feb/25/2022: New ethics board to sanction anti-vax doctors __ Ukraine war; Artsrun's analysis; Sanctions' impact on Armenians & billionaires __ Video of the planned North-South road __ Exports & economy surge in January YoY __ EAEU summit __ EV imports skyrocket __ Art & sports __ more
by ar_david_hh

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Welcome, new readers. This is your 9-minute Friday digest in 2400 words.

this is what the Kajaran-Sisian North-South road will look like

Video: https://youtu.be/akGJI4wHFsY

Many curvy sections of the current road will be replaced with straight tunnels and bridges. Existing roads will be widened.

https://factor.am/480366.html

economic activity +15.4% year-over-year in January

Exports +53%

Imports +65%

Industrial production +16.6%

Construction +3%

Trade +11.5%

Services +21%

Electricity production +19.2%

Consumer price index +7.1%

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076490.html

Russian invasion of Ukraine continues

Bodies began to pile up on both sides amid more resistance by Ukrainian forces after the first day's shock attack that destroyed the Ukrainian airforce, radars, and airports. Ukraine reportedly targeted an airbase within Russia proper.

... war for water

Ukraine had shut down the water canal that was feeding Crimea after its 2014 annexation, leading to a severe drought in Crimea. Russian troops have captured the water supply located north of Crimea. An official said it'll take at least 2 weeks to make the canal operational again.

... capital under siege

Russian paratroopers reportedly suffered losses near Kyiv but received land support soon after, and successfully blocked the capital Kyiv from the west.

Russian groups entered the capital, sometimes disguised as Ukrainian troops. Ukrainians blew up bridges to slow down the attack.

The residents of the capital were urged to use Molotov cocktails against the intruders. Authorities began distributing weapons to thousands of reservists to mount a resistance amid reports that the capital was being encircled.

... let's talk

President Zelensky offered to meet Putin and discuss the idea of keeping Ukraine militarily neutral, one of the initial demands by Russia. Lavrov said they don't trust Zelensky's words. Nevertheless, Putin later said he's willing to negotiate in Minsk. He then called for the Ukrainian army to organize a coup and launch negotiations with Russia.

... military expert Artsrun Hovhannisyan analyzed the events

Artsrun: Russia has 10x forces and 50x arsenal. Ukraine has strategic problems. The heroic Armenian soldiers, with fewer weapons, had put up a much stronger resistance in 2020.

Russians entered from 3 directions: Crimea, Belarus, Kharkiv/Rostov. The convoys descending from Kyiev meet the Russian convoys ascending from Crimea, in areas populated by Russian civilians. So the resistance in these areas cannot be compared to the west of the Dnieper River. I think Russians had ideologically prepared the Russian population in the east.

Overall, the Russian army is acting in a literate manner, with the use of 5th gen warfare, winged and ballistic missiles, and dense aviation.

The goal is not to invade Kyiv. It may be a short-term political task to remove the government. The more important are the Russian soldiers that are descending from Kharkiv (far east). If they connect to soldiers coming from Crimea, let's say near Pavlograd, it will encircle the largest Ukrainian army that's currently resisting Donbas in the east. This is unfolding somewhat slow.

No one can predict how long this war will last. Ukrainians could increase resistance and make it more about the economy and resources.

Ukraine has declared general mobilization. They have very large reserves and they received lots of aid from the West when the talks about the war began. The question is whether they can organize the mobilization properly, unlike in Armenia in 2020 when we had weapon shortage and issues with organizing. Ukraine is capable of mobilizing 1-2 million people in 2 days. This is massive.

This isn't about president Zelensky being "new and inexperienced". We don't live in the middle ages. Not everything depends on 'Genghiz Khan'. There is a military system in place that was formed well before Zelensnky. His orders are important, but a lot depends on subordinates. The system is built that way so that in the event of a leader's death the country doesn't collapse.

... aid for Ukraine

France promised €300M economic aid to Ukraine, after an "unprecedented €1.2B macro-financial assistance". They'll also send military equipment.

British MPs asked the gov't to boost military aid. A former cabinet minister said Vladimir Putin has "effectively declared war on the West" and that "if we do not provide military support, more than 40 million Ukrainians will go from living in a democracy to living under a brutal dictatorship."

U.S. lawmakers are discussing hundreds of millions of $ in humanitarian and military aid, starting as soon as next week. That's on top of Biden's $650M military assistance over the past year.

... Ukraine's "Tiananmen Square" moment

A local man steps in front of a Russian military convoy.

https://youtu.be/W1SbnjW8jXw?t=1

... Turkey

One of the Russian bombs hit a Turkis-owned ship that was sailing from Ukraine's Odesa to Romania. None of the Turkish, Ukrainian, and Filipino crew members were injured.

Turkey accused NATO of "all talk, no action".

Turkey is assessing Ukraine's request to close the Black Sea access for Russian ships. They will make a decision "in favor of peace instead of deepening the conflict". Turkey reminded that there is a clause in the international convention that allows ships to freely return to their home state. Turkey is also assessing the conflict's impact on the Turkish economy; the lira fell 5% since the invasion.

... Azerbaijan magically forgets about the territorial integrity of Ukraine

[Not long ago](https://www.azernews.az/nation/169053.html) Ukraine and Azerbaijan firmly and openly expressed support for each other's "territorial integrity". Things appear to have changed after the signing of the allied cooperation agreement between Russia and Azerbaijan this week.

Today, Aliyev's spokesman expressed concerns and urged for a diplomatic solution. He reminded that Azerbaijan is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, which is a group of countries that [on paper] do not want to align with/against a power bloc.

... how much did Russian and Armenian-Russian billionaires lose amid the market crash?

Russian billionaires' net worth shrank by $39B amid a 33% rout in the stock market. The losses are $90B since February 16, according to Forbes.

The hardest-hit Russia-based billionaires were Lukoil's Vagit Alekperov (-$5.4B), gas giant Novatek's Gennadiy Timchenko (-$3.9B), his colleague Leonid Mikhelson (-$4B), etc.

Armenian-Russian businessman Samvel Karapetyan suffered no losses (=$3.7B), while billionaire Ruben Vardanyan lost only $3M (=$1.3B). Trade magnate Artyom Khachatryan lost $700M, a third of his net worth. Ethnic Armenian supermarket magnate Sergey Galitsky lost $33M (=$3.7B).

Roman Trotsenko of GeoProMining, the company that last year purchased Zangezur Copper Plant shares and donated part of it to Armenia for nationalization, also hasn't suffered significant losses.

... Russian VTB bank was sanctioned

US and UK froze VTB bank's assets. VTB's Armenia branch said they continue to provide the financial services and loans in Armenia, no problem with customers' deposits, customers can use the funds within Armenia with Armenian dram.

Problems were reported while using VTB Armenia to make transactions to/from Russia. Workaround methods were advised. It's not "too" bad as long as Russia isn't disconnected from global SWIFT, said experts. Economists worry more about the ruble's devaluation, which could damage Armenian exports to Russia and reduce remittances.

... море sanctions against Russia

Suspension of Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline could last months or years, announced the leader of the German CDU faction today. "I think the temporary suspension will last quite a long time."

Georgia will not join sanctions against Russia. It'll do more harm to Georgia, believes premier Gharibashvili. Protesters gathered in Tbilisi with demands for the premier's resignation.

Ukraine again urged the West to disconnect Russia from the SWIFT banking system. The idea failed to materialize earlier because of opposition from Germany, Italy, and Cyprus.

Russia will restrict access to Facebook after accusing it of censoring Russian media outlets RIA News, Zvezda TV, gazeta ru, and lenta ru.

Russia has banned British jets from using its airspace, a day after Britain banned Russian Aeroflot.

Manchester United soccer club canceled a 40 million pound contract with Aeroflot. They are using the local Titan Airways for now.

EU has agreed on the second wave of sanctions. They'll freeze assets belonging to Vladimir Putin himself and Sergey Lavrov. No travel ban. Russia's access to European high-tech components will be limited.

Council of Europe has temporarily suspended Russia's participation in the Committee of Ministers and Parliamentary Assembly. Russia remains a member of the Council of Europe.

Eurovision song contest bans Russia from the 2022 competition.

Formula 1 cancels the Sochi Grand Prix scheduled for September 25.

... Armenia negotiated with Poland for safe passage of citizens

QP MP Hakobyan: Over 500 calls have been made to the Armenian embassy since yesterday. An agreement was reached with Poland for Armenian refugees to enter Poland and remain there for 15 days without a visa, just enough to transfer elsewhere. There is a similar agreement with Romania.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076487.html https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2022/02/25/russia-says-captured-key-water-supply-route-to-crimea-a76591 https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076493.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076493.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076494.html https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/24/conservative-mps-urge-increase-uk-military-aid-ukraine-russia https://www.reuters.com/world/us/amid-crisis-us-lawmakers-look-spend-big-boost-ukraine-2022-02-24/ https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076497.html https://www.dailysabah.com/world/europe/bomb-hits-turkish-owned-ship-off-ukraines-odessa https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076499.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076503.html https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/02/turkey-evaluates-ukraines-request-closure-turkish-straits https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076491.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076509.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076522.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076527.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076545.html https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/24/kyiv-furious-as-eu-wavers-on-banning-russia-from-swift-payment-system https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076549.html https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/25/world/europe/eu-russian-sanctions.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076557.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076558.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076562.html https://factor.am/480310.html https://factor.am/480272.html https://factor.am/480103.html https://factor.am/480397.html https://factor.am/480287.html https://factor.am/480411.html https://factor.am/480466.html https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/231897 https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/231906 https://www.panarmenian.net/arm/news/298705/ https://www.azatutyun.am/a/31723706.html

Armenian ambassador and military attaché visited Evelpidon military academy in Greece

They met the academy leadership and the Armenian students. A discussion was held about the military and strategic cooperation between Armenia and Greece, and the need to increase interactions in multiple fields. The ambassador thanked the academy for providing spots to Armenian students.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076508.html

Defense Minister Papikyan discussed the modernization of the Armenian army with Russian counterpart

MOD Papikyan paid his first working visit (?) to Moscow yesterday. Shoygu thanked Papikyan for the prompt action in Kazakhstan. They discussed security topics, peacekeeping in Artsakh, and Armenian army reforms. Shoygu was invited to visit Yerevan.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076550.html https://youtu.be/QtWmAr1vgok?t=38

drone engineering lab opens for students in Gavar (Gegharkunik)

High school students will learn how to produce and operate amateur drones, and gradually increase their complexity. A similar lab opened in Gyumri yesterday as part of the Armath initiative.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076541.html

Education Ministry met the representative of Council of Europe

CoE wants to promote media literacy in Armenia, in addition to other programs they run in Armenia.

Ministry spoke about the state's general education standards, and that it's designed to promote democracy and civic capacity.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076543.html

day 2: Pashinyan attends EAEU summit in Kazakhstan, takes a subtle jab at CSTO military bloc

President Tokayev: Welcome. We have the warmest feelings towards Armenia and the Armenian people. I know the history of your people not so badly, I highly appreciate their achievements in culture and other areas. The AM-KZ relations are steadily developing.

Pashinyan: I'm happy that normal life has been fully restored in Kazakhstan. The CSTO mechanisms worked great; you know that it has been the priority of Armenia's chairmanship. "Unfortunately, Armenia has been in a situation when we believed that this mechanism must work, however, it didn’t take place, unfortunately." [very unfortunately]

Pashinyan: The geopolitical developments and sanctions will leave their impact on the economic environment of EAEU. We should discuss policies to minimize the negative consequences.

EAEU saw healthy trade turnover gains in 2021. Armenia's trade turnover reached $2.7B (+21%). Our exports +25% and imports +18%. There is a potential to expand EAEU, there are observer countries that are effectively cooperating.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076472.html https://youtu.be/OjWzh0tISSQ https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1076483.html https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076489.html

gov't discussed the relocation of 1988 quake survivors who live in makeshift houses (tnaks)

[Context in December 6 post](https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/raitzt/news_dec62021_mass_production_of_sputnik_lite_in/). A taskforce formed by Pashinyan discussed the topic of assessing the socio-economic status of makeshift housing occupants, and the 2021-2026 plans to relocate them and demolish the makeshifts.

MPs visited Gyumri today to assess the situation on the ground. There are reportedly 2765 makeshift homes there.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076523.html https://factor.am/480276.html

electric vehicle imports continue to skyrocket in Armenia

Nature Ministry: Armenia pursues a policy aimed at the development of the EV sector to reduce environmental pollution and exhaust gases. EV importers and sellers are given tax waivers until 2024. The imports have been rising:

2017: 29

2018: 12

2019: 668

2020: 2,155

2021: 6,645

According to www.plugshare.com, there are 90 EV charging stations in Armenia. //

https://factor.am/480067.html

COVID stats

4642 tested. 572 infected. 1571 healed. 21 deaths.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076477.html

foundation is formed named after late singer Hayko

Beloved singer Hayk "Hayko" Hakobyan recently died of COVID at the age of 48. A Foundation was created named after him. It'll organize an annual HAYKO MUSIC FEST and other events.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/231881

Armenia will have a new Medical Ethics Committee; anti-vax doctors could lose license

The Gov't recently approved a bill, yet to be voted by Parliament, about setting ethical rules for doctors.

Government: Armenia lacks standard ethic rules, which negatively impacts the quality of medical care and the efficiency of the healthcare system. It became even more necessary after COVID and the spread of anti-vax propaganda. Some doctors were advising patients not to get vaccinated.

We currently don't have clear mechanisms to sober up the doctors who deviate from their professional duties. Healthcare Ministry will implement a licensing system for doctors as part of the 5-year program. Unethical doctors will lose their licenses. //

The proposed ethics rules will pave the way for the implementation of the medical licensing system.

At first, the government, universities, and field experts will form a committee. It will then form the final committee (>10yr experience) that will be tasked with regulating ethics.

An unethical doctor will receive a warning first, a severe warning if happens again within a year, and termination under some circumstances.

Sexual assault by a doctor will be handled by regular courts.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/231611

Tags: #HealthcareReform

PHOTOS: paint & chill, now available near you

Meri Galstyan, a diplomat by profession, launched the ArtWinePartyArmenia project a few years ago. They travel through cities and set up their painting studio in museums, restaurants, and tourism sites. The visitors drink wine, paint, and chill. They are often families with children.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076485.html

Armenian gymnasts enter finals at Cottbus Gymnastics World Cup

Artur Avetisyan and Vahagn Davtyan entered the finals of the Rings exercises.

>Olympic bronze medalist Davtyan also performed a new element on the pommel horse, which will be recorded in his name.

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1076478.html

today in history

1865: national hero Zoravar Andranik Ozanyan is born.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076457.html

top-10 bestseller documentary books

10) Գարեգին Նժդեհ. կենսատարեգրություն, մտամասունքներ, by Rafael Hambardzumyan

9) 100 բիզնես գաղտնիքներ, by Vahagn Dilbaryan

7) Լույսի ճանապարհին, by Narine Baghdasaryan

4) Չխրատվող ժողովուրդը, by Garegin Nzhdeh

1) The monk who sold his Ferrari, by Robin Sharma

Full: https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1076295.html

ICYM

The news in русский (by Impossible-Ad-).

News archive: http://www.armeniapedia.org/wiki/Daily_Anti-Corruption_Reports Donations: soldiers' families, humanitarian aid, US tax-deductible donation.

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

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Link to original report and comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/t1eobi/daily_news_feb252022_new_ethics_board_to_sanction/